May we now call Alex Bogusky the anti-Draper?
Lumenati, which Bogusky himself describes as “a not-very secret society of film makers in Denver,” just released an answer of sorts to the old McCann ad that your dad kept singing after last month’s Mad Men finale.
You know this isn’t the first time Bogusky has attacked Coca-Cola: back in 2012 he and Jason Mraz introduced us to “The Real Bears,” and this time the Center for Science in the Public Interest wants to make sure the message hits a bit closer to home.
This latest stop on Bogusky’s apologies for advertising tour follows the March launch of Fearless, a sponsored content project created in partnership with media company Fusion. The question preceding “Change the Tune” is simple: what happened to the millions who chose to sing in perfect harmony with Coca-Cola and its competitors over the past 40-plus years?
The answer is even simpler: obesity and type 2 diabetes.
Hear the choir sing: “Please drink soda less/this is not happiness.”
From CSPI Executive Director Michael F. Jacobson:
“For the past 45 years, Coca-Cola and other makers of sugar drinks have used the most sophisticated and manipulative advertising techniques…It’s a multi-billion-dollar brainwashing campaign designed to distract us away from our diabetes with happy thoughts.”
No word on the promotion of these sugary drinks by other corporations like, say, Burger King.
For context, Big Soda officially peaked in 1998, and per capita consumption of carbonated syrup water has declined consistently every year since then. A majority of Americans now actively avoid the stuff even though 20 percent of us still drink (and, hopefully, recycle) at least one can every day.
We may debate how much advertising influenced this change and how many people thought twice about drinking a Coke after watching the Real Bears. We can, however, agree on one thing: “Change the Tune” is better than the Oasis version of Matthew Weiner‘s favorite ad.