Le Sigh has Moved!

Please visit Le Sigh at its new home, http://www.SailajaJoshi.com

 

 

Team CoCO x India (Oh Balle Balle!)

So India has been getting some love the past few weeks. First Outsourced hits NBC, then the President visits India and does some dancing, and now my man Conan.

A few sites have been trying to compare the ad with Outsourced but the  two honestly have their own space. While Conan and the team at AmEx’s ad agency had a clear vision in mind, its possible that the writers at Outsourced are just riding the stereotype train.

Here is a bit on how the ad came to be via Sepia Mutiny:

Amex has been trying to lure Mr. O’Brien into appearing in a commercial since the company sponsored his comedy tour earlier this year. Several weeks ago, Mr. O’Brien said he was finally convinced by a funny script created by WPP PLC’s Ogilvy & Mather, as well as American Express’s past ads.

Playing on Mr. O’Brien’s obsession for detail, the new ad shows the comedian taking a trip to India to search for the finest materials to make curtains for his new show. Mr. O’Brien is seen using a loom to weave the fabric; stomping on flower petals to make the dye and having a gossip session with the local washing ladies as he dyes the material.

A person familiar with the matter said AmEx paid Mr. O’Brien more than $1 million to do the commercial. [wsj]

If we’re going to use Anthropological speak (and really, we always should), then we would talk about perhaps Goffman and his presentation of self. Here in this ad, Conan is presenting himself as someone who cares about quality, down to the smallest detail. Perhaps he’s saying something about his former employee and their lack of attention to detail (see Outsourced).

So what’s your take folks? What do you think about the ad?

 

 

Question: Who should I be?

Answer: A Cavalier.

So, I love(d) LeBron James. I was in Cleveland his first season with the Cavs and the man is he awesome to watch. The man, moves. I like the rest of Cleveland, was pretty upset (understatement) when the man moved to the Heat. But that is all in the past.

This newest ad by Nike titled Rise gives us a glimpse into the icon that LeBron has become, or wants to be. Its hard to say whether this work is the creative genius of LeBron, or the work of their ad agency, but none the same the message is provocative. Not only that, the ad challenges our thinking of LeBron and the status we have given him in our society. Is it really his responsibility to be a role model? Should he really involve an entire state or nation in his career decisions?

The truth is, LeBron is a Cavalier. He went against what the public wanted to better himself. We as Americans should appreciate it, after all we are the country that invented the self-made man. In a society where CEOs continue to pay themselves millions of dollars in bonuses while laying off lower level workers, can you really blame LeBron for making the move?

So, what are your thoughts my readers? Who should LeBron be?