Letters

The Thai That Binds I enjoyed David Kilburn's most recent Letter from Thailand ["Creative Prowess," Oct. 20]. Letting the world know that outstanding creative work is being done in Thailand could not come at a better time. Now more than ever, Thai advertising needs to play a role in reversing its country's current economic downturn. Having once owned an advertising agency, I've witnessed clients slaughter their ad budgets at the first sign of financial turmoil. I hope the recent creative recognition will help influence domestic and international clients to increase their advertising budgets-a necessity not only for the Thai economy, but also for the creative talent that needs all the nurturing it can get. Sakol Mongkolkasetarin Art director, Hal Riney & Partners, San Francisco Thinking Different In response to Christopher Friedberg's letter ["Apple Sauce," Oct. 20], I'd like to say that Apple's new "Think different" campaign uses the term "crazy ones" not to reflect the company's beliefs about these figures but to give tribute to those the world has called "radicals." Society has pegged Albert Einstein and Martin Luther King Jr. as "crazy" because they were daring, bold and revolutionary. They challenged the norm and forced people to question themselves. To be "crazy" (as these figures were) is to understand what it feels like to be "alienated" and to succeed in spite of it. An alternate definition of "crazy" is very enthusiastic. Where would we be if Einstein, King or Rosa Parks had given up on their dreams? Why should creative people feel alienated by this campaign? The entire point is that those who are considered "crazy" are also some of the most important creative people of our time. This campaign is inspirational, truthful and even a bit revolutionary. As the original article ["Great Thinkers Grace Apple Ads," Sept. 29] states, the campaign is "explaining how the . . . legends' once off-the-wall ideas have contributed to society." We should all be lucky enough to attain such "craziness" in our lives. Jessica Kwarta Assistant account executive, Foote, Cone & Belding Direct, New York Kicking Butt Your Creative cover story ["Up in Smoke," Oct. 13] is the best history of the cigarette-smoking wars I've read. But it misses a basic point with far more impact than all the pro and con smoking advertising put together. Few advertisers would disagree that movies and television shows do more to create teen habits than anything else. By quietly using lobbyists, the tobacco industry has concentrated on movie and television segments of the entertainment industry to glorify smoking by the world's film idols-and with great success. The article states that anti-smoking advertising efforts are not reaching teenagers. Perhaps this is a reason why. I suspect that tobacco companies are laughing all the way to the bank knowing that a proportionately few dollars spent in the right place-in movies and TV shows-is where it's at. Let politicians make headlines about restrictions on billboards and vending machines. One scene with, say, Nicolas Cage taking a drag plants the impression that smoking is cool, which is much more effective than any camel or cowboy. When was the last time you saw a film or TV scene in which a character said, "No thanks, I don't smoke. It's dangerous to my health"? Let's take a few dollars from the millions available in anti-smoking budgets and pay entertainment producers to include anti-smoking content in their work, just as the tobacco companies have been doing for years. Freeman F. Gosden Jr. Former chairman, Foote, Cone & Belding Direct, Los Angeles Tuscan Square In response to Debra Goldman's column "Let Them Eat Fake" [The Consumer Republic, Oct. 13], I must object to what I consider to be racist remarks. I am amazed that Adweek allowed Ms. Goldman to base her judgment of Tuscan Square on the humiliations she suffered during a trip to Italy, where she found herself to be just another "tourist" in "Tuscanyland." But I am even more amazed that her culturally racist remarks about Italians and all Europeans and their presumed lack of decent bathroom facilities were allowed in print. Not only were they ridiculous, they were deeply insulting. Pino Luongo President, Toscorp, New York Adweek welcomes letters. Send them to: Letters to the Editor, Adweek, 1515 Broadway, New York, N.Y. 10036. Or fax them to: (212) 536-1416. Letters may be edited.

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