In its quest to clean up television, could the Federal Communications Commission go after automotive advertising? USA Today wonders how the cuddly-wuddly FCC may react to some of the in-your-face commercials currently being shown in your home.
The story cites Volkswagen's "Safe Happens" Passat ads as well as Dodge's Caliber ad (shown after the jump) featuring the foul-mouthed Binky in a Caliber focus group. "It scares the BEEP out of me," Binky responds to the ominous black Caliber.
Regarding V-Dub's recent crash-centric commericals, VW's General Manager Kurt Schneider reponds to USAT's questioning, by saying, "One of the most critical things was to have the dialog and whole scene be extremely natural. For anyone who's been in an accident, one of the first things you do is curse."
One of the next things you might do is buy a new car. Either because of, or in spite of the ads, lots of drivers have bought new Calibers and Passats this year.
The fact that the FCC hasn't brought this issue to fore, yet, may be an indication that either these spots are flying under the radar of the agency's boffins or that the ad's tactics are a drop in the bucket when it comes to foul language and violence on TV. Either way, it's a safe bet that we'll be hearing more about this issue as advertisers continue to up the ante in 30-second increments.
[Sources: USA Today, YouTube]
The story cites Volkswagen's "Safe Happens" Passat ads as well as Dodge's Caliber ad (shown after the jump) featuring the foul-mouthed Binky in a Caliber focus group. "It scares the BEEP out of me," Binky responds to the ominous black Caliber.
Regarding V-Dub's recent crash-centric commericals, VW's General Manager Kurt Schneider reponds to USAT's questioning, by saying, "One of the most critical things was to have the dialog and whole scene be extremely natural. For anyone who's been in an accident, one of the first things you do is curse."
One of the next things you might do is buy a new car. Either because of, or in spite of the ads, lots of drivers have bought new Calibers and Passats this year.
The fact that the FCC hasn't brought this issue to fore, yet, may be an indication that either these spots are flying under the radar of the agency's boffins or that the ad's tactics are a drop in the bucket when it comes to foul language and violence on TV. Either way, it's a safe bet that we'll be hearing more about this issue as advertisers continue to up the ante in 30-second increments.
[Sources: USA Today, YouTube]
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