As an avid fan of Coca-Cola I took notice of this article when I saw it. I further took notice when I saw that one of the principals was an old friend of mine, not to mention a former Secretary of State and Governor of the Great State of Kansas.
According to CNN,
The American Trucking Associations has written a letter to Coca-Cola Chairman and CEO E. Neville Isdell urging that the ad be pulled or changed. Coke is the sponsor of the "Full Throttle Kick-Off Show" on ABC just before the Super Bowl, and the 60-second ad is the last one that will be shown on the broadcast. It includes the slogan "Let Your Man Out."
Saying the ad "will reinforce and help perpetuate a negative stereotype that the trucking industry and our professional drivers have fought long and hard to overcome,” ATA President and CEO, and former Kansas Governor, Bill Graves says the ad shows a large truck full of Full Throttle forcing a small passenger car off the road.
Trade publication Advertising Age says the ad also shows the Full Throttle truck tailgating and forcing a smaller vehicle — adorned with the rival Red Bull logo — off the main road.
However a Coca-Cola spokesman said that the ad the ATA is reacting to is most probably a rough cut of the ad, and that the ad has undergone significant changes since then.
Article comments
1 - Susan R-G
I have seen the ad. I think everyone should be more worried about the look on some of the guys' faces followed by the voice-over phrase, "Let Your Man Out." It was very disturbing in an eerie, subliminal-type of way.
*tongue-firmly-planted-in-cheek* (sorta)