When an ad agency supporting
Chrysler's Netherlands Market Performance Center created a viral ad for the
Dodge Nitro that depicted a dog
being electrocuted by the vehicle, they were so smitten with their work that they decided to put it on
YouTube. The timing of the spot couldn't be any worse here in the US, where
dog cruelty is making front page news. Chrysler execs in Auburn Hills, MI were quick to pull the ad from YouTube and go into damage control, as Chrysler spokesman Jason Vines called the spot "far beyond the bounds of what the company considers appropriate". Vines also pointed out that viral marketing in Europe is a little more over the top than it is here in the States, and anybody that has seen some of the old
Ford KA
internet spots knows that sort of insensitivity wouldn't float here. What surprises us is that any multinational automaker can air
advertising without at least one high-ranking executive looking at it first.
[Source: Auto News (subscription req'd)]
[Source: Auto News (subscription req'd)]
