[Am-info] Dishonesty in ads

[John J. Urbaniak]

I've noticed a strange trend in computer-related advertising.  It seems
to glorify, or at least okay, dishonesty.

I thought I'd share it with the folks here and see if I'm nuts or if
there is something here.

1. "Dell Dude" ad where the guy asks him if it's his father's car.  He
winks, rolls his eyes towards the girl he's trying to impress and says
"No."

2.  Microsoft .NET ad - the wine store salesclerk is selling wine to a
customer.  Meanwhile, in the storeroom the cases are falling over,
breaking the bottles.  The invertory guy enters something into the
computer and the prices are immediately updated.  Nothing wrong so far.
But the salesclerk, after seeing the higher prices, takes the bottle of
wine the customer bought and pushes it onto the floor, breaking it - the
clerk gives a wry smile.

3.  "Dell Dude" ad where the "dude" uses his job as a PA announcer at a
mall to spread messages about Dell.  Obviously, this is not part of his
job definition because his boss stands above him and scowls.

1. - Lying, but it's ok.

2. - Cheating, but it's ok.

3. - Misuse of responsibility, but it's ok.

What teases me the most is that none of these incidents are necessary to
convey the main message of the ads.

There was no need to include the bit about his father's car, nor the
clerk breaking the customer's bottle, nor the boss scowling.  They
seemed to have been added as afterthoughts.

I know that TV ad time is very precious and expensive.  Therefore, there
had to be a conscious decision on the part of the ad-makers to include
these incidents and examples of dishonest behavior.

Anyone want to discuss this?

John