Negative ads are not limited to political campaigns. In fact, this post does not reference any political campaign ads. I’m talking about regular, everyday PSAs. If I listened to everything I’ve been hearing from these commericals I would make the following conclusions.

• The world is going to Hell.
• Animals are being so often it’s become a sport.
• The summit of Mount McKinley will soon be waterfront property.
• TV ads have become so negative, we’re in a living Hell.

So I present to you exhibit A. This commercial is from an ad campaign entitled “Divided We Fail” because people don’t have enough to be negative about. This commercial is on television screens everywhere, courtesy of the AARP.

My biggest problem is the title. How about “United We Stand” instead of “Divided We Fail“? In essence they mean the same thing, but the ad would be a lot more powerful if the entire commercial didn’t end with the AARP logo reminding people that their healthcare is terrible. I agree that the issues they discuss in the “Divided We Fail” series are important, but for that very reason, it’s important that people watch them. Everyday we’re bombarded by sad, depressing news. If this commercial was positive, I think there would be more support for the issues it deals with. Sad and depressing is more of the same. Interesting and unique creates support.

This next ad is courtesy of the ASPCA.

This commerical is even worse! At least in the last commercial they waited until the end to give you the whole negative “Divided We Fail” message. This one starts off with music that should probably be played at a funeral and an image of a sad dog in a small cage shortly followed by a dog with one eye. Once again, this is an important issue, but I don’t think this ad is going to generate the kind of support this issue deserves. First of all, I think they should replace the music. I’m not suggesting they get Up with People to sing a special song, but something that doesn’t scream “MORE SADNESS!” would be excellent. Something with a warm and fuzzy tone would be good, particularly since we’re talking about dogs and people like dogs. Or I like dogs anyway.

The final thing is slightly outside my field. I’m not the marketing director for ASPCA or AARP so I can’t speak to their ad placement, but I think they’re choosing the wrong channels that reach the wrong audience. I saw the ASPCA ad for the first time while watching a Star Wars movie on Spike TV. The juxtaposition of science fiction and furry, tortured faces doesn’t exactly work well, nor does it work well with any of the other things that Spike shows. Perhaps they should try CNN, NBC, and the other major networks. Not to be sexist, but from an advertising perspective, I think they would do well to advertise on WE and Oxygen.

I look forward to the comments. Positive comments.

My school is, at the moment, in the midst of a crazed, stressful few weeks. It seems that we’re in a boat filling with water and we can just barely stay afloat if we work really hard, but there’s a constant level of work that stays around no matter how hard we try. Projects are turned in and new projects are handed out. There are elections for student government positions next year. There’s a research paper deadline looming on the horizon. Final exams are a dark shadow in people’s minds. This state of tension is further compounded by the transition from middle school to high school.

I am surprised at the amount of emotion the process has caused already. We have been well prepared and we have frequent meetings about course selection and the transition process. The transition will, undoubtedly, be difficult for some and easier for others. There will be mistakes, courses dropped, and challenges taken on, but I confess myself to be relatively relaxed about the transition.

I’ve been telling people for the last several days that moving to high school is nothing new. We’re not trailblazing, we’re walking a few extra feet to a new building. That understates the challenges of new teachers, a new kind of day, and the new responsibilities that come with being in the Upper School, but we are not the first people to transition to high school and we will not be the last.

I suppose that it’s impossible to combat irrational fears with rationality, but I’m always stunned at the amount of stress that seems to be generated out of things that are important, but not groundbreaking.