Was the percentage rounded off?
(Courtesy of muirneg-onelife.blogspot.com)
This ad campaign from a local clothing store caught my attention yesterday from my Facebook News Feed. I have treated advertisements as a gauge of (what advertising companies think is) the pulse of consumers and what they find appealing, and this is no exception to the general conclusion I have observed for quite some time now: having foreign lineage assures you of a career in local advertising campaigns.
One can argue that there is no "pure race", but this campaign had an accompanying text that raised more uhhh... moments than made the intention clear.
Eugenics, the ad version.
(Courtesy of muirneg-onelife.blogspot.com)
It starts out by asking what your mix is. Personally, I have been mistaken for Chinese and Japanese, but there is no doubt what my nationality is.
It then talks about "mixing and matching", with both nationalities and fashion pieces in the same category.
Most days I wear my black pair of jeans, but sometimes I will choose my white jogging pants for a day that will be "sporty". Is this what the ad agency had in mind for "mixing nationalities"? What if I wasn't happy with the "result"? Should one keep searching to find "the right blend"? Does this mean I also get to have a different "match" during the day and a completely different one for the night, the way I would change my getup based on the time of day?
The next statement was "mixing...with Filipino blood is almost a sure formula for someone beautiful and world class."
What would be the reverse statement for this then? That is if there is no "mix", if one was a 100% "pure" Filipino, the resulting equation is someone hideous and lacking "world class"?
The ad goes on to say that "Having Filipino lineage is definitely something to be proud of", without expounding on why this is supposed to be stated as a fact. And it runs counter to their extolling the virtues of "mixing" with "different nationalities" earlier.
The neurosis continues when they ask people to BUY FILIPINO, while having models who, by their own admission - with specific percentages to back it up - are anything but 100% Filipino.
I don't need a headache this early in the morning.
