Thursday, June 23, 2011

An award-winning ad (see update at bottom)

Here's an award winning ad from Kia. (Click on the link to pull up a larger version in order to read the text.)


What were these people thinking?

Never mind. We know what they're thinking. And they've just convinced me NEVER to buy a Kia. Congrats!
______________________

UPDATE: Thanks to reader AP's excellent sleuthing, you can make your thoughts known to the Kia folks by contacting the following:

Scott McKee, Director of KIA-USA Public Relations
c/o KIA-USA
111 Peters Canyon Road
Irvine, CA 92606

email: smckee@kiausa.com
phone: 949-468-4813

I sent the following email:

Congratulations on your new award-winning ad! It has worked beautifully and convinced me never, ever, ever, ever, ever to purchase a Kia vehicle.

- Patrice Lewis

33 comments:

  1. Holy poor taste, Batman.

    I'll bet it came from some newsmagazine that puts pedophilia on the cover as the big social problem they're going to feature, but then they put this advert and ones for padded bras for 8 year olds, pleather booty shorts for preschoolers and Kill the Hooker video games inside the magazine.

    ReplyDelete
  2. First! (I always wanted to do that - it IS pointless, but... anyway... one more off my informal bucket list...)...

    Ahem, where was I?

    Oh yeah.

    That ad is disgusting.

    That's it, disgusting.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Are these people serious? That is so cray. What does this even have to do with cars?
    Jani
    Lorax Farm

    ReplyDelete
  4. The ads on TV are even more disgusting. Business using sex to sell their products and services is not new. Even the sexualization of young kids is not new. What is new is the ease of acceptance that Americans have for this distasteful stuff now.

    Again I say, we must change ourselves if we want to change our country. We must DEMAND better from business and that can only be accomplished if/when we DEMAND better from ourselves.

    Instead of just bemoaning this type of ad, I ask you to write to the company, Patrice, and let them know what you wrote here. It takes action to change the world, will you act on your feelings? I hope so.

    Tell you what, I'll send them an email as soon as I am finished writing this. Who else will stand up, speak out, and DEMAND better from business? Do something!

    Anonymous Patriot

    ReplyDelete
  5. Just another one to add to my No-Buy-List. I won't buy from Audi either after seeing this commercial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wq58zS4_jvM

    ReplyDelete
  6. I will make this as easy for all of you as possible. After a few phone calls and a little browsing online, I found this name, email address, USPS address, and phone number. Now none of you have any excuses - speak out!

    Scott McKee, Director of KIA-USA Public Relations
    c/o KIA-USA
    111 Peters Canyon Road
    Irvine, CA 92606

    email: smckee@kiausa.com
    phone: 949-468-4813

    Be polite, keep it short, and let him know how disgusted you are. I already did.

    -AP

    ReplyDelete
  7. Okay... second then...

    The Blaze has got this up. Maybe enough coverage will cause people to ask what we are doing as a society.

    And I still think the ad is disgusting.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thank you, Patrice, for taking action. We can save America, if we do something instead of just complain about things.

    Anonymous Patriot (AP)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Not sure if this ad passes the smell test. They are disgusting and yes it won an aware at the Cannes Film Festival, but it wouldn't be the first time an Ad company did a spoof/Spec ad without a corporations knowledge, in order to give the ad company itself controversial press and bump up their reputation as cutting edge. The company that developed these ad posters is called MOMA propaganda and they are based in Brazil. We will probably know in about a week if the ads were real or not.
    Also if you aren't aware the ad content standards overseas are a lot less strict then here in the US. Some TV commercials are out and out pornographic in Europe. So if you want to make purchasing decisions based on an ads content, which I'm all for, you need to check out every company that sells products internationally. Just saying.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Okay...that ad is just creepy. Eww.

    ReplyDelete
  11. That's disgusting. They will be hearing from me too. Thanks for the contact information.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Ralph, I received an email reply from Kia's American office in response to mine. Their rep assured me the ad never was used in America. I responded, in turn, that regardless of where it was used it is inappropriate.

    And, no, it is not necessary to check out every company that sells products internationally, just those companies which have disgusting ads that appear somehow, somewhere in America and we become aware of them, as this one did.

    Or, we can come up with excuses for doing nothing.

    Anonymous Patriot

    ReplyDelete
  13. Gross.
    Email sent.

    Hooray! Now I get to associate every Kia I ever see with that bizarre ad & offensively dressed woman/child!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Tacky, tacky, tacky. Did I mention I thought the ad was tacky?

    ReplyDelete
  15. What the...? HUH??? Wha...? I read the ad a second time, and I still don't know what they're trying to sell or what the point is! It makes absolutely NO sense, other than to disgust anyone who has any dignity. We used to own a Kia, and we've rented a few. Loved the cars and have often said we might buy another. NOT!!! We will NEVER own another Kia! Do the morons who own and run Kia think Americans don't keep up with what goes on in the rest of the world? This is going WAY beyond too far. There is nothing cute or funny about this sort of thing. Anyone who thinks so should be locked up for the rest of their lives.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Wow. The ad itself is vile. The fact that it won any award at all is pretty scary, since it means more than one idiot thought it was a good idea.

    ReplyDelete
  17. AP!!!! [: )

    Message to KIA confirmed, and thanks for doing the 'heavy lifting' part! The gist of my politely worded message:

    This is some prurient stuff, regardless of where it's shown. It's selling lust for little girls.

    Who knew Anthony Wiener was also moonlighting at an ad agency???

    A. McSp

    ReplyDelete
  18. Done! Thank you Patrice for bringing this to our attention.

    It really is time for "us" to speak up and let the world know enough is enough.

    ReplyDelete
  19. BTW....if it can be said there's an upside to this, it is that it's another opportunity, now that folks' attention is on KIA, that they make a NOTORIOUSLY UNSAFE PRODUCT.

    Yes, I recall reading crash-safety reports that rated KIA vehicles as very unsafe in a crash after they rated last in several tests.

    Please BOYCOTT KIA.

    A. McSp

    ReplyDelete
  20. Palpable disgust has been sent through cyber space! Thanks for the info., Patrice and AP.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Yes, A.McSp, I am back. It appears the British commies is gone, so I have returned. Much to the chagrin of Patrice, not doubt. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

    -AP

    ReplyDelete
  22. That ad is depraved. Utterly disgusting.

    -David

    ReplyDelete
  23. Really freaking tacky. WHY does some sort of sexual tension have to be used to sell a product? Why? (In this case it looked some what like they used disgusting pedophile overtones in the comic frames on the left side....*shudders*)

    They also heard from me.

    P.S. Love your blog! :D

    ReplyDelete
  24. Update: KIA-USA assures me they will NEVER release this ad to American audiences and that they will investigate its origins. Job well done, folks - we prevailed!

    Anonymous Patriot

    ReplyDelete
  25. KIA's response to my email:

    Your email to Kia attached below has been forwarded to me and I wanted to personally respond to you on behalf of Kia Motors America - thank you for taking the time to let us know of your feelings.

    Kia Motors America (KMA) is aware of the offensive piece of advertising material and has learned that it was created by an ad agency in Brazil that KMA has no business relationship with and has never worked with. Again, it was NOT created in the U.S. by Kia Motors America or any of its marketing partners.

    Rest assured that this ad does not reflect the opinions or values of KMA or Kia Motors Corporation. The ad is undoubtedly inappropriate, and on behalf of Kia Motors we apologize to those who have been offended by it. We can guarantee this advertisement has NEVER and will NEVER be used in any form in the United States, and our global headquarters in Seoul, South Korea is addressing the issue with the independent Brazilian distributor.

    Again, thank you for your time to make us aware of your concerns and we hope that you find this additional information helpful. If you still have questions that may not be addressed in this email, please feel free to contact the Kia Consumer Assistance Center at 800.333.4Kia (4542) and we will be happy to assist you.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Sick people. What more can one say. Place an arm around your children and hold them tight.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Sick people. What more can be said.

    ReplyDelete
  28. I sent an e-mail and complained about the ad tonight and received this response:

    Your email to Kia attached below has been forwarded to me and I wanted to personally respond to you on behalf of Kia Motors America - thank you for taking the time to let us know of your feelings.

    Kia Motors America (KMA) is aware of the offensive piece of advertising material and has learned that it was created by an ad agency in Brazil that KMA has no business relationship with and has never worked with. Again, it was NOT created in the U.S. by Kia Motors America or any of its marketing partners.

    Rest assured that this ad does not reflect the opinions or values of KMA or Kia Motors Corporation. The ad is undoubtedly inappropriate, and on behalf of Kia Motors we apologize to those who have been offended by it. We can guarantee this advertisement has NEVER and will NEVER be used in any form in the United States, and our global headquarters in Seoul, South Korea is addressing the issue with the independent Brazilian distributor.

    Again, thank you for your time to make us aware of your concerns and we hope that you find this additional information helpful. If you still have questions that may not be addressed in this email, please feel free to contact the Kia Consumer Assistance Center at 800.333.4Kia (4542) and we will be happy to assist you.

    Sincerely,

    Michele Cameron
    Director, Consumer Affairs & Warranty Operations
    Kia Motors America, Inc.
    Direct Telephone: 949.468.4617
    Fax: 949.468.4805
    Email: mcameron@kiausa.com

    ReplyDelete
  29. BOOOYAH!!!

    Well done, troops!!

    A. McSp

    ReplyDelete
  30. They've obviously received many complaints since Anonymous 4:05 and I received the same form letter. =) That's a good thing, in my opinion. If people want to watch porn--hey that's none of my business--but an ad like this is disgusting and my nieces and nephews could see it! I can't believe that someone thought it was even close to being appropriate.

    ReplyDelete
  31. I think the ad was meant to show the little girl has a crush on the well-meaning teacher. However, it was in extremely poor taste and I find it extremely offensive. Good job everyone!
    JP

    ReplyDelete