Forum Post: Please Kill the Advertisement

A national ad is a mistake. When a grassroots organization is already getting press attention and growing respect, producing ads will undercut it. Corporations communicate messages through ads, as does the Tea Party. Americans look at ads with skepticism as they should. Most importantly, the media reaction will easily overwhelm anything you try to communicate, especially with an ad that is not very effective. This will be a huge PR setback.

Here are the other reasons why this ad should be stopped.

1. You choose a professional who works for major corporations (like the Wall Street Journal owned by Rupert Murdoch).....it's not a problem for me, but the media doesn't listen to me; f* we all got to pay the bills somehow
2. It is professional (esp with musical background)....better a handheld and street noise
3. It offers a laundry list of grievances and policy goals...it gets very easy to get lost and overwhelmed...where do you start? who should do something?
4. It is abstract..."it's like I want a better world" rather than Congress should propose a constitutional amendment to take away corporate personhood 4.. Where is the call to action? people who are sympathetic will ask what should I do about it?
5. It lacks a clear rhetorical strategy; the approach to clarify specific goals is dictated by critics (this ad indirectly acknowledges their claims)...
6. It focuses on many different subjects....without ever getting to know anybody...what are those people's story? why should I identify with them? rather than what they want... people will ask: are they like me?

I absolutely AGREE with everything they said on the ad, but as a student of rhetoric and one familiar with marketing, it's about HOW you say it not WHAT you say that matters much more. Besides, the media's reaction (which will be neutral at best) will be so much more influential than the advertisement itself.

Why waste the respect of the American people this way?

I missed the last couple days of the general assembly of Occupy Wall Street. If anyone is willing to go back to the drawing board, I'd surely be willing to help.