Only the corporate get to be anti-corporate

I saw a strange television ad yesterday for the domain iwantmyvacation.com. The site supports “vacation advocacy”, and the PSA like commercial features a mock CEO thanking the average joe for putting in more hours and taking less vacation. The front page is splashed with commands like “America, You NEED A Vacation”.

I was curious. Partially because stations have been rejecting anti-corporate or controversial ads quite happily recently. Something was fishy. The only ads you’ll typically see that have a fight the establishment type feel usually are an attack on smoking or drinking. Of course, I think half the anti-smoking ads are put out by Philip Morris anyway.

Now, at least on the site they are clear in indicating it’s sponsored by Universal Orlando. Turns out the screw your boss in favor of your family ads are a novel attempt to get you to a theme park. So note to advertisers producing spots with a counter-culture edge: you must have lots of money already, and spend it freely too. Shocker.

—Jun 03, 2004