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Subscribe to RSSThe Parents' Television Council is outraged over a Mercedes Benz Super Bowl ad featuring model Kate Upton that they say reinforces the notion of using sex appeal to get what you want. The video has attracted nearly 3 million views on YouTube in only two days.
A new Super Bowl commercial featuring supermodel Kate Upton washing a Mercedes Benz has critics complaining that the only clean part of the clip is the car.
The Parents Television Council, a watchdog group that opposes harmful and negative messages targeted to children, has criticized the spot for its objectification of women.
“It’s not the raciest ad that’s ever aired during the Super Bowl, but that doesn’t mean it is just harmless fun, either," Melissa Henson, PTC’s Director of Communications and Public Education, told TODAY.com in a statement. "This ad isn’t selling cars, it’s selling sexual objectification, and reinforcing for millions of wives, daughters and sisters across the country that you use your sex appeal to get what you want. If anything, this ad proves that we’ve regressed rather than progressed over the last several years. This is not an empowering message for women or girls. It doesn’t encourage respect, achievement, or any values beyond the purely superficial.”
A 90-second trailer for the commercial has already been viewed more than three million times on YouTube since being released on Tuesday. It starts with the message, "Kate Upton washes the new Mercedes CLA in slow motion," and features the 2012 Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue cover girl blowing soap off her hands and posing as sultry music plays in the background. Three men in football jerseys and jeans are then shown slowly washing the car with their mouths agape at Upton. The clip ends with her inspecting their work and saying "you missed a spot,'' before walking away.
The commercial follows in the footsteps of other racy Super Bowl spots of the past, including several GoDaddy.com spots in recent years featuring NASCAR driver Danica Patrick.
NASCAR driver Danica Patrick has done several racy Super Bowl ads for Go Daddy in the past few years, including this one from last year's game.
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Well, let’s see; what is more of a motivator to a normal, heterosexual male? Sweaty, overlarge men in a testosterone frenzy engaging in an activity that promotes and exacerbates injury and sometimes death, or a voyeuristic fantasy involving a woman we could never in our wildest imagination have a realistic chance of actually engaging in the fantasy we are having?
The constipating, puritanical, religious fundamentalism is what drives prurient interest; not TV ads, and certainly not a healthy desire for a beautiful woman.
English please!!!
It's just a rip off of a scene from Cool Hand Luke, except there the hot chic was doing the washing. It was much more interesting.
Everything is based on sex.
Oh well.
She should do advertisements for Whirlpool.
Her great grandfather, Fredrick, and his brother, Louis, founded Whirlpool Corporation now the largest home appliance maker in the world.
At least there would be an inside story if she was selling their products.
The least they could have done was to dress her in clothing that fits. Her top was almost dignified. She was thatclose to falling out of it. Never thought she was attractive anyway.
General rule of thumb on matters like this:
If it would feel awkward to watch it with your grandma, then yes, it probably is.
It's an absolutely lifelike commercial. When a Mercedes driver's first wife starts to lose her looks, he dumps her for a woman who looks like a model.
This commercial is controversial?
Big hubub over nothing.
showing aborted fetuses O.K. selling sex not. Is that right?
Don't you mean "Showing womens' health OK"? or "Showing choice OK"
If you have to ask, you already have the answer!!!!!
Now we're attacking beautiful young white women for being beautiful young white women! Is it a crime to be straight yet too?
I generally find that most women who use nothing but sex appeal and show off their bodies like this to make a living to be generally uneducated and lazy. To even try to do anything else, anything that takes intelligence that is, remains a mystery to them.