Really people, there are no tigers in Africa. And we don’t have lions walking in the streets of our towns in South Africa. And it doesn’t always rain in England. And Germans do have a sense of humor. And the baseball World Series really do include the best teams in the world. Okay, maybe the last three pushed it a bit too far. But I am really getting sick and tired of ad people getting it so very wrong when they try to paint a global picture. Or when they try to grab the ‘mysterious Africa’ in their ads. I don’t mind them trying to put an African face to it. Hey, I was born in Africa and appreciate it when people use the images of Africa to inspire others. But, really people, just get the basic facts right when you do include Africa or when you try to include an African story into your ad.
One ad that was so bad that I blocked the company name from my mind was up in Back Bay Station in Boston for a few months. (I know it was a financial company.) It tried to tell the story that they can turn the tables on conventional thinking and conventional actions. And one specific ad had a Kenyan Masai (or Maasai) warrior run across the Serengeti. Being chased by a tiger. The ad is trying to tell us that the sometimes the tables are turned, and that they can help you turn the financial tables. BUT the Masai is well known for hunting LIONS for their entry into manhood. LIONS people. NOT tigers. THERE ARE NO TIGERS IN AFRICA. Can someone hunt down the ad guy who had this moment of ‘brilliance’ please. And then feed him to the tigers. Wherever they might be - try Asia as a start…
Sometimes it is simple mistakes. Unknowingly trying to capture a bit of Africa into your product. And that is especially true when the product comes from Africa. Nothing wrong with that. Except when you associate the wrong part of Africa into the product. For example, Teavana recently opened a store close to where I work. (Or I just walked past them almost every day for the last year and never noticed them.) I really like the shop. Good and healthy teas from everywhere around the world. Problem - they have a rooibos tea from Africa. Well, to be more specific, all rooibos tea come from a small area about 100 kilometers from Cape Town. Right at the bottom of Africa. I know this because I come from that area and my brother-in-law still farms with the stuff. The logo that Teavana use is an elephant. You know, elephants are all over Africa. Hum, not really. No elephant at all in that area. None, nada, zilch, zero. Never had any elephant. Never will. But it doesn’t stop there. The bloody elephant they use is not an African elephant. It is an Indian elephant. The smaller ears gave it away, you see. Teavana’s slogan is ‘Opening the Doors to Health, Wisdom, & Happiness’. I am not happy and therefore not healthy. No wisdom to be found in their messy logo for their rooibos. And I’ll close the door with that.
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3 responses so far ↓
Justin D-Z // February 24, 2008 at 2:18 pm
Last year, I took a trip to London, then to the Netherlands, France, Germany, back to London, Japan and Hong Kong, then home. I thought about the global stereotype that Americans are fat; turns out that one is true. When I arrived back to Dulles airport and deplaned, I had this moment of disorientation. “Why is everyone so overweight?” I realized I was having re-entry shock from being in Europe and Asia for about a month. I’d like to say I’m exaggerating but it was really weird. I was genuinely shocked, albeit briefly.
One of my college roommates lived in Africa on and off growing up while his parents volunteered teaching services, etc. Here are my two favorite anecdotes related to misconceptions, ethnocentrism and cultural eye-openers:
1) My roommate tells me that while in Africa, he learned to eat with his hands. Someone at the table chimed in, “What’s there to learn?” My friend proceeds to explain that when he was told they eat with his hands he started digging in and looked up to find all the African kids laughing at him. They explained that he was doing it very, very wrong and looked like an idiot. Silence around the table. No one had considered that it might be a developed skill.
2) My friend’s parents were in town and we went to an Indian buffet. We got to talking to the owner who recognized our faces. My roommate’s parents were telling him how amazing they thought the Taj Mahal was. The owner says, “I’ve never been.” They start giving him a hard time, along the lines of “How could you live in India and never see the Taj Mahal? So the guy says, “Ever been to the Statue of Liberty?” They say, “Oh… no.” And he walks off.
Rodney North // March 7, 2008 at 4:39 pm
I’m glad I’m not the only one who is riled by annoying displays of ignorance - like the ads (most recently it was Coke) with polar bears (who live only in the Artic) frolicking with peguins (live in the Antartic mostly, and never in the northern hemisphere).
It’s true that these are “only ads”, but all this advertising (umpteen billions of dollars worth annually in the US alone) inevitably doubles as a kind of education medium. Especially given that children are typically exposed to much more high-impact advertising than they are high-impact teaching. The result? - people think polar bears live at both poles and that tigers run loose in Kenya. Sigh.
Jess // April 9, 2008 at 3:16 am
Really enjoyed reading the post - slightly depressing, because you’re so right - but still funny! And let’s not even get started on portrayal of the Orient in the media…
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