Apple's COMMERCIALS: NO Diversity?

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  • Reply 21 of 68
    [quote]Originally posted by poor taylor:

    <strong>I'm not saying that it exactly props up the fact that as others have said, all the principal users are 20ish males, i have to note the Mac.com commercial that was pretty friggin diverse (that sounds really funny in my head, but i cant figure how else to put it)</strong><hr></blockquote>



    I can't believe I forgot about that commercial. That commercial was really boring, but at least it showed that Mac users come from all walks of life.
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  • Reply 22 of 68
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    Correct! The target audience = four 20 year old white men and one 30 year old Middle Eastern man!



    Yeah, they've inflated the the ratio of Middle Eastern people to white people apparently. In all the recent commercials, the was the one with the iPod. Is that accurately depicting the population of this country?



    iPod, iPhoto, iDVD, iTunes, iBook commercials. How many Middle Eastern people live in this country? So, 1 in 5 Mac users is Middle Eastern?



    Of course they'r not accurately representing the population of this country. 1 out of 5 people in this country is not Middle Eastern.



    Am I supposed to throw fits because the only Asian personalities on prime time television are Lucy Liu (Ally McBeal,) Ming Na (ER,) and the guy from That 80s Show?



    These people are actors, and there are many more white actors out there. With 5 ads within the last year, how can anybody expect Apple to accurately represent the racial diversity of this country?



    Coming soon, a redone iPhoto ad with a black mother, a white father, an adopted asian baby and Native American Shaman at the local foster home.



    [ 02-13-2002: Message edited by: Eugene ]</p>
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  • Reply 23 of 68
    [quote]Originally posted by EmAn:

    <strong>



    :confused: Looked pretty white to me.</strong><hr></blockquote>







    This guy looks white? Are you kidding me? :eek:



    [ 02-13-2002: Message edited by: Mr.Potatohead ]</p>
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  • Reply 24 of 68
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    Actually, after seeing the photo above, that guy looks Pakistani or Indian...or from the region.
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  • Reply 25 of 68
    [quote]Originally posted by Eugene:

    <strong>

    Am I supposed to throw fits because the only Asian personalities on prime time television are Lucy Liu (Ally McBeal,) Ming Na (ER,) and the guy from That 80s Show?

    </strong><hr></blockquote>



    You forgot Connie Chung, Michelle Yeoh, Tia Carrera...just to name a few



    Nobody is throwing a fit here. Apple doesn't need to represent the country as a whole in their commercials. But the latest ones have only had 20-30 something males using the products. I'd just like to see more commercials like the mac.com email ones. How about at least ONE commercial with a woman making a video about her boyfriend and his dog?



    How about Grandpa using it to make a video of his grandson's baptism, or birthday



    There products are so easy to use, Johnny 30something isn't the only one who can figure it out.



    I don't think they're getting that message across.
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  • Reply 26 of 68
    amorphamorph Posts: 7,112member
    [quote]Originally posted by Eugene:

    <strong>Yeah, they've inflated the the ratio of Middle Eastern people to white people apparently. In all the recent commercials, the was the one with the iPod. Is that accurately depicting the population of this country?</strong><hr></blockquote>



    Where do you get the idea that advertizing is about accurate depictions? It's targeted quite deliberately at people's irrational, wish-fulfilment sides. The old melting pot is still a favorite.



    It's also very much like Apple, which has a long history of actively encouraging diversity in its workforce, and in its public image.



    That aside, I don't think Apple's doing all that badly. The biggest problem is that the sample size (of Apple's ads) is too small to conclude anything. :/ Paging pscates to the better mousetrap phone please, Mr. pscates to the better mousetrap phone.
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  • Reply 27 of 68
    serranoserrano Posts: 1,806member
    [quote]Originally posted by Amorph:

    <strong>



    Where do you get the idea that advertizing is about accurate depictions? It's targeted quite deliberately at people's irrational, wish-fulfilment sides. The old melting pot is still a favorite.



    It's also very much like Apple, which has a long history of actively encouraging diversity in its workforce, and in its public image.



    That aside, I don't think Apple's doing all that badly. The biggest problem is that the sample size (of Apple's ads) is too small to conclude anything. :/ Paging pscates to the better mousetrap phone please, Mr. pscates to the better mousetrap phone. </strong><hr></blockquote>



    exactly.
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  • Reply 28 of 68
    emaneman Posts: 7,204member
    [quote]Originally posted by Mr.Potatohead:

    <strong>







    This guy looks white? Are you kidding me? :eek:



    [ 02-13-2002: Message edited by: Mr.Potatohead ]</strong><hr></blockquote>



    OK, you're right. I never saw a close-up before.
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  • Reply 29 of 68
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    [quote]Originally posted by Willoughby:

    <strong>



    You forgot Connie Chung, Michelle Yeoh, Tia Carrera...just to name a few </strong><hr></blockquote>



    Oh please. Connie Chung is on CNN for one. Not everybody has cable and she's almost never on the air any more. She was on Larry King and did a few spots and that's all I've seen of her. Again, CNN isn't a depiction of reality. IT IS REALITY. But for sitcoms and other primtime shows, there are no Asians/Orientals.



    Michelle Yeoh is on primetime television? In which country? Tia Carrere...still on TV? Relic Hunter? Please... Perhaps I should say oriental. Carrere is not a typical Oriental name.



    Amorph, I know advertisements don't depict reality. But should they cater to someone's dream of rabid multi-culturalism?



    Like I said, there have been 5 major ads from Apple in the last year or so. That is not a large enough sample for someone to start saying Apple isn't diversifying its ads.



    Frankly, I never even considered the ethnicities or ages of the 'users' in the commercials before seeing this thread, and I'm sure most people haven't either. I'm sure Jesse Jackson would have noticed though.



    If Apple is doing fine with the ads, why are there so many suggestions here for Apple to diversify? If Apple keeps putting out 20% of its ads with rich ethnic diversity, is that enough or is that not enough?



    Actually, it's more than 20% since I forgot about the mac.com ad...It's 33.33%, 2 out of 6.



    [ 02-13-2002: Message edited by: Eugene ]</p>
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  • Reply 30 of 68
    [quote]Originally posted by Eugene:

    <strong>



    Perhaps I should say oriental. Carrere is not a typical Oriental name.

    </strong><hr></blockquote>



    [NITPICK] Actually, Asain would be more accurate. Oriental and occidental are mariner terms refering to the rising and setting of the sun (oriental: where the sun rises; occidental: where the sun sets). Asia is only the orient if you're standing in Europe. In North America, Asia would the the occident and Europe the orient. [/NITPICK]



    Tia Carrere doesn't have a typical Asian name because has a mixed background: part Chinese, Filipino, and Spanish. She was born and raised in Hawaii.



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  • Reply 31 of 68
    buonrottobuonrotto Posts: 6,368member
    Come to think of it, since the name of Jesse Jackson was brought up, it reminded me of diversity in the real world. Apple's Board of Directors is still comprised of all white males. Does this concern anyone? It concerns me a bit. Not so much with regard to the racial profile of the board, but the exclusively male population of Apple's board is of some concern. Obviously, they have a bunch of very qualified people on the board so the point is mostly one of principle. It doesn't seem that they're making any decisions based on physical qualifications, but you can argue that the tech industry could use the impetus to bring women to the top shelf (and with equal pay).
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  • Reply 32 of 68
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    The board may be thin on diversity, but Apple has at least 3 female executive high-ups in main operations, education, and other departments.



    The Apple BoD is made up of 7 people.



    All are male. One is Chinese. The board does not exactly represent the tech industry. In fact, it seems to be quite diverse from a business standpoint.



    Bill Campbell from Intuit: representing software developers

    Gareth Chang from PingPong.com: representing content providers and publishing

    Millard Drexler from GAP, Inc.: representing retail

    Larry Ellison from Oracle: representing enterprise computing

    Steve Jobs: representing Apple

    Art Levinson from Genentech: represnting the scientific field

    Jerry York from MicroWarehouse: representing e-commerce
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  • Reply 33 of 68
    [QUOTE]Originally posted by Eugene:

    <strong>



    Oh please. Connie Chung is on CNN for one. Not</strong>



    I added names to your list as a joke. Notice the

    --&gt; &lt;-- You don't need to take everything so seriously.



    <strong>

    Amorph, I know advertisements don't depict reality. But should they cater to someone's dream of rabid multi-culturalism?

    </strong>



    Sigh. Once again, you're missing the point of this thread. No one here has dreams of rabid multi-culturalism. No one is expecting Apple to proportionally represent the culturalism of America in their commercials.



    I asked, why are there no woman using the products? Why are there only young males? I didn't say "Why isn't Apple representing ALL of America's population?"



    EDIT:

    One more thing. Eugene, your points are VERY valid, if we WERE talking about rabid mult-culturalism...but we're not. My only question is WHY only ONE demographic? NOT why not all?



    [ 02-13-2002: Message edited by: Willoughby ]</p>
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  • Reply 34 of 68
    double



    [ 02-13-2002: Message edited by: Willoughby ]</p>
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  • Reply 35 of 68
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    Because we're talking about a total of 6 ads. Because 2 out of 6 of those ads did not feature 20-something year old white males.
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  • Reply 36 of 68
    ...and while we're on the subject, have you noticed that there's no woodland creatures in Apple's ads?



    Racial diversity is more than just the human race!
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  • Reply 37 of 68
    [quote]Originally posted by Mr.Potatohead:

    <strong>...and while we're on the subject, have you noticed that there's no woodland creatures in Apple's ads?



    Racial diversity is more than just the human race!</strong><hr></blockquote>



    What, have you forgotten about Jeff Goldblum? Oh, waitaminute...you said "woodland," not "wooden." Sorry, my mistake.



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  • Reply 38 of 68
    eugeneeugene Posts: 8,254member
    I'm pretty sure Jeff Goldblum is a space alien. Does that count?
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  • Reply 39 of 68
    pscatespscates Posts: 5,847member
    Do some of you people realize how much nicer and easier life is if you don't go through it obsessing and harping on stuff like this?



    Just curious...



    What do you give a shit if Apple has Jimmy Smits or Kool & the Gang in their ads? Relax, get a life and mind your own P's and Q's.



    I've always been amazed at people who, while on one hand go on about a "colorblind society" and not forming opinions on race, skin color, ethnicity, etc. will then turn around and scream and carry on when people do just that: DON'T notice and DON'T let it factor in or matter.



    You can't have it both ways: either it DOES mater and is the end-all/be-all of civilization and should be talked about 24/7...or it doesn't matter at all and people should be judged on who they are, how they behave, what they do, etc. and NOT where they were born, how dark (or light) their skin or hair is.



    I go with the latter. I judge and form opinions on everything BUT skin color. So if you're black and are acting like an asshole, it doesn't make me a racist to point that out. You're simply being an asshole and skin color doesn't - or shouldn't - factor in.
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  • Reply 40 of 68
    pscatespscates Posts: 5,847member
    But then, I'm more evolved and a cool swinging daddy, so...



    <img src="graemlins/lol.gif" border="0" alt="[Laughing]" />



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