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Fox: Super Bowl ad showing a wall between the U.S. and Mexico "too controversial"

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Dryk

Member
I think it's supposed to be supportive of the wall saying, "see? the hard working good people can still get in!"
But only if they can find the door, which we will randomly move to a different location every 48 hours.
 
Yeah I'm having a tough time figuring out the message.

There really isn't one. It's oh-so-cleverly presented in a way that lets people interpret it in the way they want to interpret it, or rather, the way they don't want to interpret it.

It's pretty fucking shameless in that regard. They were trying to manufacture a controversy.
 
I was about to post this in the boycott thread but then it got closed before I could (now I know how immigrants feel).

I saw the 84 Lumber ad and thought "uhh am I the only who thinks this is pro-wall?". It was weird because I saw my liberal friends share it, and even a liberal news outlet share it. I'm glad this thread confirmed it is indeed a pro Trump/wall ad
I saw it as a reconfirmation of the idea that you have to enter through legal means (the gate) and that you're welcome if you have the will to succeed (I guess if you're willing to go through the legal process and maybe extrapolate to get a job/assimilate--whatever "succeed" means to the viewer).

It is telling that some are offended even by that idea. It's also telling that progressives are seeing it as anti-wall. It's actually a very interesting ad because people can interpret it differently and be offended for different reasons.
 

Nafai1123

Banned
I don't see the ad as pro-wall at all. The construction workers are defying the wall and Trump by building an open door, which represents support for immigrants.

The door is not portrayed in a positive light. Mother and daughter crying looking at this monstrosity in their path after the girl had made a make-shift American flag out of all the scraps she found along the way. It's heartbreaking until the door is revealed.
 

Spenny

Member
I don't see the ad as pro-wall at all. The construction workers are defying the wall and Trump by building an open door, which represents support for immigrants.

The door is not portrayed in a positive light. Mother and daughter crying looking at this monstrosity in their path after the girl had made a make-shift American flag out of all the scraps she found along the way. It's heartbreaking until the door is revealed.
This is what's up. The people in the commercial didn't build the wall. It was already there. What you see them working on through the whole thing is the door.
 
I think it is set up so that you think they're building only the wall until the reveal at the end. It could be interpreted that they're building both wall and gate or just the gate. There's no existing wall in the background while they work, and there's a steel frame that looks bigger than the gate. The closeups of them riveting are definitely the gate itself.
 

Dirca

Member
And 84 Lumber is the winner here. They got everyone talking and that's exactly what they wanted. They're a business, and their goal is to make money. I'm no financial expert, but I'm of the opinion that their profits will be higher this year. It's all about $$$$ when you get to the bottom of it
 
I think it's supposed to be supportive of the wall saying, "see? the hard working good people can still get in!"

This is what I thought. At least supportive of some kind of magic system that will still let everyone "worthy" into the country.

Still kinda teared up at the end when they got in, I'm a dang softy.
 

New002

Member
There really isn't one. It's oh-so-cleverly presented in a way that lets people interpret it in the way they want to interpret it, or rather, the way they don't want to interpret it.

It's pretty fucking shameless in that regard. They were trying to manufacture a controversy.

Yup. I was reading an article where someone from the company was saying they wanted to be controversial. So to me they came out with a commercial that could be controversial to both sides.
 

AMUSIX

Member
Only the door is made of wood...which is what is in the truck. Also, it's a Lumber company. That, with the statement at the end, clearly shows this as defiantly against the wall.

I have no clue how anyone could get 'pro wall' from this, other than the fact that there's a wall in the ad.
 

MickeyPhree

Member
How about let's stop putting political bullshit from both sides in these commercials and just let us have four hours of peace where we don't have worry about the real world.
 

Pandaman

Everything is moe to me
Nothing about the commercial really seems pro wall. It's gray, bleak and the music stops to really grind home the solid minute of empathy you had just built up. The only time anything about the wall is a positive is the part that subverts its purpose.

I can't see anything pro-wall here other than the fact that the wall exists.
 

MilkBeard

Member
Everyone commenting realizes the ad is pro the wall, right?

People will see the emotional journey of the people and think it is pro immigration -- but they are trying to be both pro wall and pro immigration, which is not the reality we face. It's a confusing tactic, and I was left at the end scratching my head what the fuck they were on about.

People will think the commercial is making a stand against the wall, but it is not.
 

electrotonus

Neo Member
From a business point, I can understand why FOX did not want to air that commercial. With its ambiguous meaning you can be sure to provoke a storm of protest. One side will interpret the ad to advocate for breaking the law by illegally trespassing the border, the other side will see a vindication of the border wall in it. You will receive flak from both sides.
 

GaimeGuy

Volunteer Deputy Campaign Director, Obama for America '16
This is what I thought. At least supportive of some kind of magic system that will still let everyone "worthy" into the country.

Still kinda teared up at the end when they got in, I'm a dang softy.
You could also take it as "Where others put up walls, we'll build doors."


It's a lumber company ad, and the door is made of wood. Unlike the wall.


Kind of crazy this was rejected given some of the ads that are shown.
 

Keasar

Member
Dunno how people come to the conclusion that it is pro-wall.

The wall is built, nothing stopping that, but the ad shows a unlocked, unguarded door made out of wood in the middle of a huge stone and metal wall. It's not a metal gate that only allows a few, it's a literal defiance of the wall.
 

Jackpot

Banned
I interpreted it as mild support: The Wall looks bad at face-value but on closer inspection there's a magic door for "the good ones" who will work hard.
 

plidex

Member
The problem is that the ad says one thing (anti wall) and the company says another (pro wall).

Anyone who watched the ad should understand it as being against the wall. It's clear as water, and many people have already explained why.

The owner of 84 Lumber is actually pro Trump and pro wall, so after the ad aired and all the controversy erupted, they went into damage control mode and tried to spin the ad into the idea of Trump talking about the big beautiful door through which legal immigrants can enter. But the protagonists of the ad are clearly entering illegally.

So why if they are pro wall they made an anti wall ad?

Because the company works in the second sector that has more illegal workforce. This ad was a recruiting campaign for illegal immigrants.

The agency that made the ad said the intention was:

To generate awareness of the company, create pride in its workforce and fill jobs. ”We've got over 400 positions that we're looking to fill at all levels, at all capacities"

With that in mind, you can understand the meaning of their final message: "The will to succeed is always welcome here".

If you go to the campaign's website it says "Start your journey with us" and has a link to their career's page.
 
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