Ad campaign - more dumb romance readers

[jmc_bks]

I noticed an ad on the wall in the Metro last night that just pissed me off. Two photos of the same guy, side by side. In one, he's reading a romance novel and the caption is "Average subway reading." In the other, he's reading Plato's Republic and the caption is "Greater Washington subway reading." The small print went on to talk about the Greater Washington Initiative, and how educated people are in this area.

WTF? First, I've never seen a guy on the Metro reading a romance novel as lurid as the one the guy in the ad was. The newspaper or Express or magazine is more the norm, either that or work papers. And the only people I see reading "serious" stuff -- students. Second, does anyone really think that reading Plato means you are smart? Seriously, it was required reading in freshman philosophy in college. Every moron in my class had to read it -- it didn't mean they were smart or ed-jah-micated, it just meant it was mandatory. Third, talk about an insult to romance readers everywhere. We are apparently undereducated and not the target audience (or desired workforce) for Greater Washington.

Talk about pretentious.

So what is this GWI that is responsible for the ad? According to its website, it is the "regional economic development marketing organization that assists firms in expanding their business in the District of Columbia, Northern Virginia and suburban Maryland." I'm thinking about sending them an email about their stereotypes and assumptions. My letter is ready, but for proofing by a friend, and will be sent this evening.

Comments

[jperceval.livejournal.com]

!!!!!

Words cannot express my rage.

[jmc-bks.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I had to get up and move, because I couldn't stare at that ad -- the longer I looked at it, the more pissed off I got.

[jperceval.livejournal.com]

I'm surprised it's a GUY reading a romance novel.

[jmc-bks.livejournal.com]

Actually, the book cover in the photo caught my eye first. It was a sci-fi romance by Kaitlyn O'Connor -- must check if it was a real book cover -- held by a guy in business casual clothes. Don't think I've ever seen a guy on the Metro reading romance, although I did see a Naval officer on the train reading Brockmann's Flashpoint. Then I checked out the rest of the ad and my head nearly exploded.

[jperceval.livejournal.com]

Stranger things have happened. I gave an ex-Ranger friend of mine a copy of Welcome to Temptation and he claims to be reading it in his spare time.

[mcpangie.livejournal.com]

Me too...

[(Anonymous)]

Oh! This would've so pissed me off.

[(Anonymous)]

Again, forgetting to sign my name. I was too upset to remember.

--jennie

[(Anonymous)]

That is nasty! We romance readers just don't seem to get any respect do we - no matter how smart or educated we are.

Kristie(J)

[(Anonymous)]

That is too obnoxious and the non-romance readers of the "regional economic development marketing organization that assists firms in expanding their business in the District of Columbia, Northern Virginia and suburban Maryland." show they are clueless.

Tara (romancereadingmom)

[sarahf.livejournal.com]

You should email the smartbitches about it. I'm sure they'd rant and rave. Hey, did you see I spawned a contest on SB? That's so cool!

SB

[jmc-bks.livejournal.com]

I hadn't thought about emailing them -- thanks for the suggestion. What contest? I'm off to check the SBs.

[(Anonymous)]

Personally, the dumbass is the one reading Plato's Republic. BORING! He's some pretentious twit who's such an idiot he doesn't realize no one but no one will be impressed by his choice of books.

The romance, on the other hand . . . that, at least, might get a few women talking to you. And isn't that what reading on the subway is all about?

See ya --

Doug Hoffman

[mcpangie.livejournal.com]

No!

The "what you reading" question...

I've actually answered it with, "Nothing if I'm talking to you."

Well, I wasn't in a talkative mood.

[(Anonymous)]

Yep, every moron was supposed to read it. I just didn't because I was bored ;)

Seeing as how most people don't even bother to read novels, I'd say the ones who occupy their time reading on the subway are many IQ points above those who just sit and stare.

Meh. I guess you get used to being undervalued as a romance reader. I shouldn't but then I think, 'your loss'.

Cindy

[(Anonymous)]

Maybe it was just a humerous way to make a point? It's not like marketing is a hard science.

Apparently they have a whole campaign:
http://www.greaterwashington.org/news/media_library/ads.htm

It's not like the romance novel reader's caption said "An idiot on the metro" it said "An average reader". Besides, don't most people read that Wash Post McPaper these days?

LG

[jmc-bks.livejournal.com]

I don't read the McPaper, but yes, a lot of people do.

No, the ad didn't label the romance reader an idiot outright, but the small print and the captions imply that the romance-reader is less intelligent and less educated and a less desirable person to have as an employee.

Was humor intended? I'm sure. But, of course, humor is subjective. The ad struck me as poor-spirited, belitting an entire group of people based on a stereotype that is outdated and uninformed.

missing the point

[(Anonymous)]

Personally, I like the GWI add- if you knew more about the creative economy that DC has, maybe it would make more sense.

The ad isn't saying that romance readers are less educated, dumber or anything like that. It is try to show that yes, romances are entertaining, but the DC creative economy can provide more than that.

What point?

[jmc-bks.livejournal.com]

Anonymous,

You are entitled to like the ad. By the same token, I am entitled to not like the ad.

Must you make assumptions about what I know? Contrary to your comment, I am very aware of DC's creative economy and its growth. The metro area has a great deal to offer to many businesses. Drawing attention to that may have been the goal of the ad, but that isn't my point or the cause of my disgruntlement. My problem with the ad isn't the message that DC has a high concentration of advanced degrees and would be a good place to locate/relocate a business, nor is it a matter of the ad not "making sense." I am offended by the ad because it insults a large group of readers in order to make potential businesses feel smarter/better about themselves and the GW-area.

I believe the ad's small print and large photos are implying that romance readers are less educated and less desirable. The Plato reader is a GWI-desirable potential employee; the small print points out that the GW area has a large concentration of advanced degrees and smart people. The person viewing the ad is led by the captions to the ad's implicit conclusion, that the "average" non-Plato reader is less educated and a less desirable employee.

Frankly, I believe that there must be a way to highlight DC's high concentration of advanced degrees without insulting or belittling people. Especially people who read. [If you would like to know how educated and how widely read the "average" romance reader is, please check out stats at www.rwa.org.]