Dove Creates a Soap Opera

The famous Unilever body wash brand, Dove, struggling to emphasize positive body image, managed to offend its female audience not once, but twice this past year. “Dove’s advertisements are some of the worst social media disasters of 2017,”  Jacob Shelton wrote in Ranker.com. “The corporations that made the list performed “big stunts, with the hopes of appealing to people’s sense of either …

Christmas Commercials That Connect: Toyota and Audi

Happy Holidays from READY FOR MEDIA and Tim Nudd, creative editor of ADWEEK, who has rated 30 of the best Christmas commercials from this year (we consider these as Christmas Commercials that connect to the audience) ttp://www.adweek.com/creativity/see-all-the-big-holiday-ads-of-2017/. As our gifts to you, we will summarize a few of the commericals here in a series of holiday blogs. The usually in-your-face …

Christmas Commercials that Connect: McDonald’s

Happy Holidays from READY FOR MEDIA and Tim Nudd, creative editor of ADWEEK, who has rated 30 of the best holiday commercials of 2017, http://www.adweek.com/creativity/see-all-the-big-holiday-ads-of-2017/, As our gifts to you, we have summarized a few of our choices in a series of holiday blogs: Christmas Commercials that Connect. Our award for “Best New Product Introduction” goes to McDonald’s campaign, get #ReindeerReady …

Outside the Box

In an essay written for ELLE UK in 2015, Meghan Markle, new fiancé to Prince Harry, said, “My dad is Caucasian and my mom is African American. I’m half black and half white.” With the word pictures so crucial for good writing and public speaking, she notes a traumatic moment in her childhood when, “My teacher told me to check the box …

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

There’s an old saying in journalism, the camera doesn’t lie, nor does it blink. But until recently, the camera has always been in the hands professionals. Not in the hands of citizens documenting police or airline brutality. Now everyone with a cell phone, and that’s pretty much everyone, is a documentarian, taking cameras and matters into his or her own hands. And …

Down but not Out

Outnumbered but not outclassed, House Democrats fought for the right to be heard on gun control. A veteran civil rights activist, Congressman John Lewis (D-GA) was the spokesperson for the 170 lawmakers who staged a 26-hour sit-in on the House floor before the 4th of July adjournment. He also tweeted this soundbite, “We got in trouble. We got in the …

Trumped Up

In the game of bridge, when you don’t have enough cards in the suit that’s being played, the trump card wins. And Donald Trump appears to be winning in the Republican presidential race of 2016. But he’s not playing well with others or winning the media game that is ultimately required in presidential politics. Following Mr. Trump’s complaints of Fox News …

Don’t Shoot the Messenger

Taking artistic license with Marshall McLuhan’s edict: the medium is the message, consider that the media is the messenger. Media coverage is designed to convey a subject’s agenda, thoughts and opinions. Donald Trump was unaware of how to use the media to his advantage when he took broadcast journalist Anderson Cooper to task after his questioning of Hilary Clinton during a recent …

A Winner in our Hearts

One of the youngest professional golfers at this summer’s British Open,  22-year-old Jordan Spieth, ended his chances of winning all four major titles in a single year by finishing one stroke behind Zach Johnson. However, with a handshake and a hug, Mr. Spieth was the first to walk over and congratulate Mr. Johnson on his win.   Fans across the …

It’s Easy When You Know the Answers

There’s an old saying among trial lawyers: “Never ask a question (of a witness) to which you don’t already know the answer.” On the other hand, no one should face the court of public opinion via the media or audiences in person, without first asking and answering for yourself the obvious questions. Case, in point, Jeb Bush, presumptive Republican presidential …