Archive
Every teardown, in order
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· Retail & Christmas advertising
Better than cash: what John Lewis's Gloria and Pickles is arguing
John Lewis's 20th Christmas ad has a toy dog telling a grandmother to do better than cash. Who the ad blames for the cash in the card, and whether it worked on its own terms.
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· Political advertising
A witness against a biography: reading Ramaswamy's Acton ad
Ramaswamy's campaign says $4 million backs a one-minute ad in which Amy Acton's mother says she lies about her past. What it argues and what the record says.
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· Government communications & political advertising
Same ads, new wallet: Trump's taxpayer-funded ads
The White House calls them public service announcements. After criticism from both parties, Trump said his super PAC would pay going forward and that the ads would keep running. What the switch tells you, and what it doesn't.
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· Footwear & global brand marketing
Approved, then apologized for: Converse's Karina ad and the review step that got skipped
Converse pulled a global campaign image after critics said it evoked Klan and lynching imagery, and apologized within days. A second, similar image from a different market surfaced the same month. What the approval chain was supposed to catch, and didn't.
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· Sports betting & prediction markets
Naked, branded, on schedule: reading Novig's Sydney Sweeney campaign as a marketing document
Novig didn't stumble into the backlash. It bought it, on purpose, as a brand-awareness line item. What the ad is actually doing, and whether it worked.
Four pieces up so far. More campaigns get the same treatment as they come along.