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'Destruction of the human experience': Apple iPad ad prompts online backlash

theguardian.com

1–10 of 16 posts

Re: 'Destruction of the human experience': Apple iPad ad prompts online backlash

#4
The observation that this ad is a bookend to the classic 1984 ad is interesting, in 1984 Apple is destroying a screen and freeing people to work on creative, human expression. Meanwhile in the M4 iPad ad, they're crushing the tools of creative human expression into a screen.

Edit: I bet the reaction to this would have been completely different if it was a cartoon instead of real life commercial.

Re: 'Destruction of the human experience': Apple iPad ad prompts online backlash

#5
The ad does seem very tone deaf. It looks like they were going for “thinness” with the hydraulic press, but the ad instead evokes “destruction.” Apple’s brand has never tried to be about destruction, particularly the destruction of creative things, so it feels like a pretty big mistake.

Re: 'Destruction of the human experience': Apple iPad ad prompts online backlash

#6
The ad is kind of pretty and gently amusing. In the grand scheme of "offensive adverts" this doesn't wiggle the needle. I'm suspecting this is more likely a thinly veiled hype from Apple, or just a result of Apple being polarizing.

Re: 'Destruction of the human experience': Apple iPad ad prompts online backlash

#7

The observation that this ad is a bookend to the classic 1984 ad is interesting, in 1984 Apple is destroying a screen and freeing people to work on creative, human expression. Meanwhile in the M4 iPad ad, they're crushing the tools of creative human expression into a screen. Edit: I bet the reaction to this would have been completely different if it was a cartoon instead of real life commercial.

Yeah there's no problem with the general concept of the ad, and a cartoonish squish solves that. But they wanted dramatic images of destruction because it looks cool or whatever, without thinking that it's really odd and dissonant to feature a bunch of creative tools being destroyed in an ad which is ostensibly meant to celebrate and encourage creativity.

Re: 'Destruction of the human experience': Apple iPad ad prompts online backlash

#10
post #9

Whenever I see backlash like this I always wonder if the marketing company is thinking dangit or mission accomplished.

Apple works very hard to cultivate an image of "our users are hip, cool, creative, and free." Apple also specifically avoids controversy often going out of their way to take non-positions, so to speak. At that level, no advertiser should take the maintenance of that image lightly for what would be a cheap bump in the discussion trends.

That'd be my guess, at least. I imagine we'll know if we see the ad pulled (if it hasn't been already).

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