Comments on: Downfall in the Age of Conversation

By: Will Egan

Will Egan — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 13:02:52 +0000

Hey Gavin,
I never knew you blogged on Marketing Profs Daily Fix site. This is a place full of gold! I was lucky enough to be sent to one of their conferences last year, it was amazing. Learnt so much and continue to do so with their online lectures.
Hope your well, thanks for the comments on my blog lately also.
Hope you like my latest one: http://tinyurl.com/willknows
Cheers,
Will

By: Gavin Heaton

Gavin Heaton — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 20:46:35 +0000

Anne … you are right. Humor can be dangerous – precisely because it is personal. Many interesting lessons in this one!

By: Gavin Heaton

Gavin Heaton — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 20:37:33 +0000

Thanks Amy, I agree that robust discussion of issues is important. Of course, issues of race and stereotyping are also cultural … so actually being able to pick the stereotype and the “authentic” can be confusing in a global setting.
For example, a TV show that aired here (Australia) last year gave me a little concern about its depiction of kids from a Pacific Island background. However, many Pacific Islander kids adopted the character as a role model.
I was censoring myself without seeing the celebration of identity that the character encompassed. It was an interesting lesson. The character was called “Jonah”:
http://www.abc.net.au/tv/summerheightshigh/#home

By: Anne

Anne — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 17:54:12 +0000

Hi Gavin:
Thank you for your post. It takes a lot of courage to speak frankly about your video and to share your experience so that others can learn from it.
Humor is a tricky thing in general, and particularly in marketing, because the reaction to humor is so subjective.
I particularly appreciate that you accept that your video isn’t funny to some people without judging their reaction as politically correct, humorless, etc.
Cheers

By: Amy Jussel

Amy Jussel — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 19:05:10 +0000

Gavin, I guess you get to join the ‘marketing tragedies and triumphs’ section with me in AOC, eh?
For what it’s worth, I’d like to do a blog/media analysis of the many striations and sensitivities on this topic with Carmen Van Kerckhove at Racialicious (on our Shaping Youth advisory board) because to me this is a global, sociological discussion on which involves the risks of muting authentic discourse (and parody/satire) out of cautionary fear.
Not exactly on point, but in this adjunct piece “Is there a right way?” http://tinyurl.com/8chqe3 Liza talks about the “we-don’t-want-to-do-it-wrong” example that surfaced in her daily life, and the ‘I don’t wanna mess up’ focus curbing genuine dialog or tamped down observations on race, for example… particularly among youth educators who end up ’stuffing it’ rather than discussing it. (whatever the ‘it’ may be)
She cites “the practice of using every single other descriptor about a person other than race” and the frustration of her husband hearing, “see that guy over there–kind of athletic build, with the brown hair,with the book bag, standing up straight, with the nice smile–” rather than, “The Puerto Rican guy in that group…”
So it seems the conversation on race, religion, politics, sexuality, whatever NEEDS uncorking to keep from going underground entirely in ‘let’s just not discuss it’ mode.
Then what’s left in the Age of Conversation? Only the most vapid…And that sure doesn’t appeal to me!

By: Gavin Heaton

Gavin Heaton — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 07:30:13 +0000

Thanks Douglas … I can certainly see how this could be handled very insensitively.
My aim was to actually share this as a lesson for us all (esp me) – and to remember how easily your message can be overwhelmed.

By: John Caldwell

John Caldwell — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 05:47:14 +0000

While I may understand what you’re going for, two things come to mind with both from your column.
First, “You Are Not Your Audience” (Kudos to Mr. Karr).
Second is what you found from some of your feedback; where you may have found humor others saw horror.
Maybe in another time, but right now we are living in a world of renewed anti-Semitism.
And with all due respect to Mr. Karr, I don’t think that this is political correctness as much as reverse political correctness.
Irena Sendlerowa saves over 2,500 Jewish children during the Holocaust, but Al Gore beats her out for a Nobel Prize.
Akmadenijad is invited to speak to a full house at Columbia after continually stating that his goal is to wipe Israel off the planet, and is only boo’d for saying Iran has no gays….
Man, do we live in a messed up world….
Timing is everything, and I don’t think that this is the time for this clip for this purpose.
Just my $0.02

By: Keith Burtis

Keith Burtis — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 05:13:53 +0000

Gavin, as I watched the video I understood the time and effort that went into it. I kept thinking in my head that all politico themes aside that the video was genius. In fact Hitler was Genius.. a freaking madman with no conscious but he was genius.
So I guess this goes back to the fact that just because you can doesn’t mean you should. The video was genius and possibly offensive and coarse to many. I applaud you for your creativity and damn you for your lack of sensibility.
I am glad the sensibility returned after talking to the many folks that emailed you back response. You never move forward without falling a few times. Bravo for falling and getting up quickly and dusting off.
-Keith

By: Douglas Karr

Douglas Karr — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 01:02:17 +0000

I’m not sure if I’m the only author who had relatives who survived and perished in Auschwitz… and it’s ironic that you talked about my chapter in the book … BUT
I took no offense at the clip. The clip did not mock the Holocaust. In fact, quite the opposite, it mocked one of the worst monsters in our worlds’ history. No sane person would believe that your intent was to insult people.
I grow weary of ‘political correctness’ run amok. I appreciated the work you did on the video and found it entertaining and memorable.
While you are not your audience, you are you! Don’t change that, otherwise the message would have surely sucked.

By: Gavin Heaton

Gavin Heaton — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 22:04:11 +0000

It is always a balancing act, whether we like it or not
I love your meme idea … let’s see if we can’t give it a boost!