MxMIndia

Tag: Scamadgate

  • MxMIndia invited Anant Rangaswami, editor, Storyboard (the CNBC-TV18 show) and senior editor, Firstpost to analyse the Leo Burnett-Tata Salt Lite radio spots controversy

    By Invitation: Anant Rangaswami on Scamadgate-2

    MxMIndia invited Anant Rangaswami, editor, Storyboard (the CNBC-TV18 show) and senior editor, Firstpost to analyse the Leo Burnett-Tata Salt Lite radio spots controversy

     

    By Anant Rangaswami

     

    In an embarrassing development, Leo Burnett withdrew two award-winning Tata Salt Lite radio spots from the Abby Awards on instructions from the client.

     

    Leo Burnett’s Arvind Sharma confirmed the decision to withdraw in a letter to ShashiSinha, chairman of the Awards Governing Council

     

    The letter reads as follows:

     

    Dear Shashi

     

    I know that there was some debate at the AGC about two Tata Salt Lite radio spots submitted by us. I recused myself from this debate and the AGC decided to award the spots. Today a website alluded to this debate with unnecessary insinuations.  We do not want any unwarranted insinuations about one of our prestigious clients and brands to continue. We request AGC to treat these two spots as withdrawn from our side

     

    Thanking you

    Arvind Sharma

    Chairman & CEO India Subcontinent

    Tata Chemicals made the following statement in explanation.

     

    “It is unfortunate that our agency has been under the cloud of controversy regarding their recent Abby’s awards based on work done on our brand. The entire award submission process is one initiated and entirely managed by the agency; our role as a client was limited to approval of the creative. As a client, we were not aware of all the other technical requirements and subsequent process of submission criteria etc.  As soon as the inconsistencies were brought to our attention, and upon further enquiry, we concluded that it would be appropriate for the agency to return the award to the organizers.  We regret this incident which only strengthens our resolve for and commitment to strict adherence to standards.”

     

    The Tata statement is consistent with the values that brand Tata represents and upholds. After all, the overall Tata brand was ranked, in March 2013, as the world’s 39th most valuable brand and had a combined brand valuation of USD 18.23 billion (http://www.financialexpress.com/news/tcs-in-5bn-brand-value-club-tata-group/1082935).

     

    The crux of the situation, put simply, is this: Tata Chemicals was not aware that they were party to scam advertising.

     

    Arvind Sharma protests too much when he says, “Today a website alluded to this debate with unnecessary insinuations.  We do not want any unwarranted insinuations.”

     

    The allusion to the debate (in MxMIndia) was necessary and the insinuations were completely warranted.

     

    At Goafest, when the spots in question were debated, it was because the auditors found them to be not quite kosher, which resulted in their being disqualified because the client confirmation that accompanied the entries said that the campaign was created only for entry to awards. Upon rejection, Leo Burnett convinced the client to send a second letter (one which conformed to the needs of an award entry) which sparked the debate. When the “AGC decided to award the spots”, it was by no way a unanimous decision; it was a divided house with many feeling that the entries should be thrown out.

     

    The incident is similar to the Ford Figo ad, where the client did not quite understand the way advertising awards function and the implications of scam ads.  The Ford Figo saga resulted in the resignation of JWT’s creative head Bobby Pawar and others (http://www.firstpost.com/business/senior-jwt-executive-resigns-over-controversial-ford-ad-676825.html).

     

    The Leo Burnett climb-down coming immediately in the wake of the Ford Figo ads will end up doing yeoman service to those in the anti-scam advertising camp. Clients like Tata Chemicals will now be aware of the significance and implication of advertising awards shows and of scams – and will think many times before they clear dodgy campaigns and ads.

     

    The Tata Salt ads are by no means the only scam ads to have entered and won at the Abby’s this year – but Leo Burnett, in this instance, has been outed.

     

    By Arrangement with Firstpost.com where this first appeared (link: http://www.firstpost.com/living/why-leo-burnett-withdrew-suspect-ads-for-tata-salt-from-awards-691368.html).

     

  • MxMIndia Editor-at-Large Anil Thakraney analyses the issues thrown up by the JWT-Ford scam ad controversy, and puts things in perspective

    #Scamadgate | Anil Thakraney: Let’s face the facts

    By Anil Thakraney

     

    For many creative people, it’s not been a long weekend to celebrate. I noticed there was high action on social media, as folks got busy venting over Bobby Pawar’s unfortunate sacking. While on one level I am delighted to witness this ‘standing up for a colleague’ campaign, must say that in all the furious excitement, people seem to have overlooked some key considerations. Also, I could not help but notice a similarity between the outcry and another campaign that’s underway simultaneously: And that’s ‘Pardon for Sanjay Dutt’. In one case, Bollywood has launched a massive PR drive to save their ‘hero’. And in the other one, ad land is seeking justice for their own fallen star. Both campaigns have one thing in common: Lost in emotion, we aren’t able to view the situations objectively.

     

    So allow me to deal with the main arguments put out by the creative people:

    It’s not a scam, the posters were approved by the client: This is technically correct. If a Ford executive endorsed the ads, they become official work. And the news is that Ford has sacked the concerned employee. This seems fair. However, that still doesn’t change the fact that these ads were created purely for winning awards, that they were never intended for media usage, and therefore they still fall in the ‘scams’ category. In my previous post, I have already discussed the issue of scam ads, and on what needs to be done thereof. Scam ads are rampant in the ad world, several guys and gals do it. But the JWT gang got caught with their hands in a very messy scam, and therefore there had to be retribution.

     

    Bobby Pawar is the convenient ‘fall guy’: Ermm, not really. When work produced by an ad agency brings global disrepute to a client (as has happened in this case), the buck must stop at the desk of the creative chief. The captain has to take full responsibility of his ship, that’s the right way to go about professional life. Sacking only the crazed, award-hungry youngsters is a cop-out, that would send the wrong signals. Also, now that it’s clear that Ford had indeed endorsed this work, it’s no longer a case of some stupid kids jerking off in the back office. JWT’s responsibility becomes total and absolute. And the leader of the pack becomes directly accountable.

     

    But shouldn’t Colvyn Harris have been punished too?: Supporters of this line of argument believe thus: Why must only creative people suffer when advertising is supposed to be team work. And that surely there were servicing people involved in this campaign. Also, as the big JWT India boss, Harris should have been the one to pay. Indeed there is merit in this argument, and am hoping that the client services director who approved this work has been sacked too. However, I am against the idea of penalizing the agency CEO. For the simple reason that Harris would (assumedly) leave the charge of all creative work to his NCD, that’s the professional thing to do. That’s why you hire a national creative director at a very high cost, so that he/she controls the agency’s output. Therefore, logically, that’s where the buck must stop. Let me give you a parallel: If a newspaper runs a false, misleading, illegal story, it’s the editor who will get axed, and not the publisher. Even though bringing out a newspaper is teamwork.

     

    The agency should have stood up for its creative people: I entirely agree with this point of view. If you are expecting your creatives to raise the bar, be prepared to back their edgy work. If you are reluctant to do so, stick to hiring only the safe players. So far, so good. However, in Ford Figo’s case, the creatives didn’t raise the bar, they lowered it to a new low (refer to the para below). And this resulted in a very angry large multinational client, a client that the agency had to assuage, or risk losing forever. Some senior blood had to spill, and Sir Martin Sorrell himself would have been left not very amused if it hadn’t. So before you trash Colvyn Harris (and I carry no candle for him), you must also view this issue from his angle; perhaps the CEO had no choice. I am quite certain if this work had happened for a local, small-time mosquito coils maker, Bobby Pawar would still be inside his cabin. These are harsh realities of the global world, and we have to accept them.

     

    These ads are tongue-in-cheek, we’ve lost the ability to laugh: I must tell you I am always first in queue to back work that challenges the acceptable boundaries. All along in my career, both in media and advertising, I have landed in trouble for believing and indulging in this principle. I am also always ready for a good laugh; safe and boring work pisses me off, my ad reviews will tell you that. But to create a campaign where women are projected as ‘mobile commodity’ is being totally insensitive to the gruesome rapes that keep happening every other day in India, often inside moving vehicles, AND THAT IS NOT FUNNY. If you find these ads hilarious, you need to get your head examined and your values sorted. This nation is deeply misogynistic, and women have been paying a heavy price on account of this sick mindset for a very long time. So please get this right: If you can’t be a part of the solution, for god’s sake don’t be a part of the problem.

     

    Anil Thakraney is a senior journalist and commentator. He is also Editor-at-Large, MxMIndia. The views expressed here are personal. Follow him at @anilthakraney.

     

  • Ford India has sacked its employee who cleared the controversial ad for entry to Goafest

    #Scamadgate: Ford sacks employee who cleared ads + MxM View

    By A Correspondent

     

    After MxMIndia first wrote that Ford India is equally responsible for #Scamadgate given that the Abby entry was approved by its marketing head (reportedly someone at the level of vice president), Ford India has issued a statement: ”We deeply regret this incident and agree with WPP that it should have never happened. The posters are contrary to our values and everything we believe in at Ford. We sincerely apologize that they ever were created. After internal reviews, both Ford and WPP have taken appropriate actions. We take this very seriously. Together with WPP, we are reviewing our processes and increasing our education efforts to help ensure nothing like this ever happens again.”

     

    The “appropriate actions” haven’t been elaborated on by Ford’s spokesperson Deeptie Sethi. While Ms Sethi doesn’t give us the name, a report in the Detroit Free Press quotes Jim Farley, Ford’s head of global marketing, as saying in an interview that the Ford India employee who approved and signed off the award for the Abby “no longer works for Ford” (link: http://www.freep.com/article/20130328/BUSINESS0102/130328066/3-employees-at-Ford-of-India-fired-over-controversial-ads).

     

    MxMIndia has the name of the person who signed off the ads for the Abby, but given that there’s no official confirmation at the time of writing, we are not revealing her/his name. What we do know is that the people helming the marketing department at Ford India are: Vinay Piparsania who is Executive Director of Marketing, Sales and Service and Sriram Padmanabhan who is Vice President, Marketing.

     

    Update/Mar 29, 12.30pm:

    When quizzed further to identify the employee who has been dispensed with, Ms Seth said: “The Ford India employee no longer is with the company. Per our policy, we will not identify the individual publicly.”

     

    MxM View: While MxMIndia is aware of the name of the person whose services have been terminated with, we will not proactively reveal it. While part of the reason is that we do not have official confirmation, we also believe it will be unfair to the employee, his/her family and to the organisation. We didn’t want to do this with Bobby Pawar and Vijay Simha, but by early morning the name was public. It appeared that JWT India folks didn’t mind the media carrying the names, as it showed the client that they have cleansed themselves. We believe it is an unfortunate development. The fact of the matter is that both organisations do not appear to have any clear policy on scam ads, and all the stuff about standards etc is BS. If there was a policy in place, we wouldn’t have had the scam ads in the first place! We urge JWT India/WPP and Ford India to do their bit to ensure their ex-employees are rehabilitated. That will be their good deed for the Holy Weekend.

     

    See also: Ball in Ford India’s court now,

    Mediaah!: After Bobby Pawar, will Ford marketing head also go?

     

  • The Ford India management will take action after its internal investigations are done, but since the Abby entry was approved by a Ford official, it's wrong to make the JWT India folks the scapegoat

    #Scamadgate: Ball in Ford India’s court now

    By A Correspondent

     

    Everyone likes free publicity, but Ford India couldn’t have bargained for this. As MxMIndia Editor-at-Large Anil Thakraney wrote in his tri-weekly blog ‘Hard Knocks’: It’s only within the global ad frat that the names of WPP and JWT crop up. To the rest of the world, Ford is the offender.

     

    Ford has been in damage control mode as it apologized on Day 1.

     

    “The investigation over what happened is ongoing,” Ford spokesperson Chris Preuss told Advertising Age. “Obviously, appropriate actions will be taken up to and including the dismissal of individuals who were found to be culpable.”

     

    To the questions, MxMIndia sent to Ford India, Head of Communications Deeptie Sethi wrote back: We have a process to investigate internal matters, and as such, we are conducting an investigation to determine how this happened. Once the investigation is complete we will take the appropriate action, if needed.”

     

    But there’s a problem with what the folks at Ford are quoted at various places.

     

    Like this one from Scott Monty who oversees Global Digital Communications. Reacting to  a post on the Wall Street Journal’s CFO Journal editor Nicholas Elliott where he has said among other things that “this kind of control failure can require serious remedial work and put a company’s good name at risk”.

     

    Mr Monty wrote to Mr Elliott:

    “Nick,

    You neglected to share that these were not part of any ongoing or commercially commissioned work for Ford by JWT and that the images in question were not part of our standard review and oversight process. In short, these were not Ford ads.

    Hoping you can clear this up.”

     

    This message was posted on Tuesday, March 26, by which time one is sure Ford officials would know what really happened. But if the ads weren’t part of any ongoing or commercially commissiond work, then what were they were doing at the Creative Abby, where an entry requires the okay of the client and the ads entered should’ve been used commercially, unless used for charity.

     

    On the issue of Ford firing JWT, there has been some discussion online. To a comment by BL Ochman to an AdAge story where s/he said (edited):  “These ads were despicable on every level. Agencies have been fired for one errant Tweet, and Ford’s keeping JWT India?! Seriously?”, Mr Monty wrote back: “As we said, BL, the relationship with WPP goes way back and is a global one. It’s not quite as simple as you describe.”

    JWT, we believe, shouldn’t be too worried about the sack, because right now, it’s Ford that’s goofing it.

     

    In response to the MxMIndia tweet promoting our Big Story on Wednesday, Sanjay Tripathy, Executive Vice President – Head Marketing, Products and Direct Channels at HDFC Life, tweeted back: “Completely agree.. Ford India Marketing Head should also go”.

     

    Elsewhere to a Facebook post, KR wrote: “Without Ford agreeing to this JWT India scam ad, this would have never ever seen light of the day. All I feel is that, Ford India folk’s heads should have been rolled, not JWT India guys..!!!”

     

    To repeat what Ford India’s Ms Sethi told us: “We are conducting an investigation to determine how this happened. Once the investigation is complete we will take the appropriate action, if needed.”

    Clearly there will be a lot of people to know what’s come out in the problem. Anyone for ACP Pradyuman? We have one  in our midst.

     

  • There was a spontaneous outpouring of sympathy for #Scamadgate victim Bobby Pawar on Facebook and Twitter

    #Scamadgate: Social media bats for Bobby Pawar

    By A Correspondent

     

    Bobby Pawar may have suffered much humiliation with #Scamadgate, but there was a tone of bravado as he updated his Facebook status with this: “As long as I have them and my family I have everything.” The message accompanied a photograph of members of his family.

     

    Elsewhere, the Twitterati was getting restless. @abanith17h wrote: if Berlusconi can make a come back so can you! God Speed dude!

     

    But there was another sentiment that was growing. @mintmayhem wrote: What’s more tasteless than d #Ford Ads is JWT not owning up to their creative team aft consciously entering ads for Abby’s.

     

    @TinuCherian echoed a similar sentiment: Shaming and Firing your employee publicly is the last thing a company should be doing.

     

    Meanwhile, there were many outpourings of support  in response to his Facebook post. Since these are not in the public domain, we have withheld the name of the person quoted with just the initials. Note there are several more messages, all of which praising Bobby and his work. We’ve picked only a few of these….

     

    MJ: totally agree, the family is the reservoir of strength.

     

    SPB: Well sir, you also have a wit that quite a few with their narrow thinking lack! The sun will shine again tomorrow, I’m sure!

     

    SS1: N the fraternity family! I still do not understand how u responsible – moraly or otherwise..u r not expected to see all pieces of work especially those which will never get published or is a client brief..

     

    RS: At the end of the day, that’s all that matters, Bobby. And you know the whole industry knows what this is all about. A $2Billion ad budget is a tough thing to be weighed against. Yet you walk away with an unscathed rep…Godspeed!

     

    SR: its 2 billion dollar that mattered more than its own people! we have seen the true color of jwt now.

     

    AG: very true bobby..family is indeed the source of everything

     

    SS2: All I know is Sachin is Sachin,Yuvi is back at his best, Tiger Woods is again no 1 and waiting for Bobby to deliver big time

     

    SK: U rock bobby. Been there done enough seen enough lead enough. Enough said. Though you would want always to do more.

     

    SS3: That’s right brother! You are the best person I have had the good fortune to meet iin a long, long time. I cannot tell you how outraged I feel and how close I feel to Sampy, Iti, Ari and you at this moment. You cannot keep a good person down. Certainly not someone as good as you!!!

     

    VM: We all believe in you Bobby. Nothing to worry. A good person and good intentions are important. And you are/have both..

     

    SG: i dont care what they say… i have immense respect for you..

     

    MHS: Jobs come and jobs go and public memory is short. But a true leader sticks by his guns and protects others. That’s what you did and You should be proud of taking the moral responsibility. The industry respects you. It’s sad that the agency didn’t have the balls. Good luck Bobby. Big hug! Xxx

     

    JT: Hey Bobby, When you have your family you don’t need nothing. Move on to bigger happiness that awaits.

     

    NS: I had thought that some juniors will be made scapegoats and thrown under the bus. Don’t know the back story for this decision,but as M said earlier, you should be proud of sticking to your guns and taking responsibility. Best of luck.

     

    There are posts elsewhere too echoing a similar sentiment. There is also outrage against WPP, JWT India boss Colvyn Harris and against Ford. Sample this:

    PKS: Sorry, Sir Martin Sorrel, you failed your agency.

     

    AD: CYA policy… cover your ass… and the buck had to stop at someone

     

    AL: Every controversy needs a fall guy…really sad that it had to be Bobby Pawar

     

    MM (edited): While the JWT India scam ad for Ford was dumb, sacking Bobby Pawar for it is dumber. Now I hear he might be hired back as a “consultant”. Smacks of testicular deficiency all around I think. Stand up for your creatives, @Colvyn Harris. Don’t sell them out at the first sign of trouble. Now who with a brain and a backbone will work for you?

     

    KR: Without Ford agreeing to this JWT India scam ad, this would have never ever seen light of the day. All I feel is that, Ford India folk’s heads should have been rolled, not JWT India guys..!!!

     

    IS: Unimaginative. I’d have the creative team, creative bosses and Ford work on and fund a significant campaign against violence against women.

     

    SP: … the days of circa 1990 trikaya , of people with balls is a a tad rare!

     

    RP: Typical of bosses….running away…they dont have the guts to protect their own people…

     

    What Ford and JWT wouldn’t have bargained for was the international media attention that the controversy has generated.

     

    Sample these:

     

    Huffington Post:

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/27/ford-ad-jwt-india_n_2962649.html

     

    BBC:

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21949622

     

    Financial Times (blog):

    http://blogs.ft.com/beyond-brics/2013/03/27/india-jwt-staff-leave-after-bondage-ad/New York Times (blog)

     

    USA Today:

    http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2013/03/27/ford-jim-farley-bondage-berlusconi/2024141/

     

    Wall Street Journal (requires subscription):

    http://blogs.wsj.com/cfo/2013/03/26/fords-crash-course-in-reputation-risk/

     

    Anindya Banerjee still trying to figure out the ‘sexist’ portion in the ads. Looks like a mystery that’s not going to be answered.

     

  • JWT India crucified its CCO even as it emerged that Ford endorsed entry of Berlusconi ad at the Abby!

    #Scamadgate: After Bobby Pawar, will Ford marketing head also go? [Updated, Mar 28]

    By Pradyuman Maheshwari

     

    Call it Holi Horror. The first casualty in the JWT-Ford mock-up of advertising is Bobby Pawar, Chief Creative Officer and Managing Partner of JWT’s office in India. Also sacked is Vijay Simha, VP and Senior Creative Director of Blue Hive or WPP-Global Team Ford that works as part of JWT India.

     

    But that’s a smaller thing, when you hear the really horrible piece of news: thatthe ads in question were also entered for the Creative Abby. In fact the information we have received is that they were also shortlisted for a metal. Could well have been winning a Grand Prix. (Update on March 28: We now learn that while the three ‘posters’ were indeed entered for the Creative Abby in the outdoor category, they were not shortlisted. The three were part of the 13 Ford entries that were entered by JWT. All 13 were subsequently withdrawn from the Creative Abby)

     

    The award was withdrawn after the controversy erupted and the India office of JWT put out a communiqué on Tuesday evening that a probe was conducted and those accountable were dispensed with.

     

    The industry grapevine had it that the sack was delivered to Pawar, who was brought into JWT was desperate for a creative leader. However, the JWT spokesperson refuse to divulge to MxMIndia the number of people who’ve exited or their names. Sad that the best brains in marketing communications screw it up when it comes to sending a simple message: Yes, we effed it up, but all is well.

     

    There was shock in the international community when this writer tweeted about it around a little before sunrise on Wednesday. One senior professional wrote back to us with this: “I didn’t realize they’d entered the ads for awards, which is a very serious infraction.

     

    Infraction it is, but the question that everyone is asking is that how could the ad be entered at the Creative Abby without the express approval from the marketing team at Ford? “The investigation over what happened is ongoing,” Ford spokesperson Chris Preuss told Advertising Age. “Obviously, appropriate actions will be taken up to and including the dismissal of individuals who were found to be culpable,” Ad Age quotes Mr Preuss (link: http://adage.com/article/global-news/jwt-india- sacks-staffers-responsible-offensive-ford-ad/240555/).

     

    So, will we see heads roll at Ford India? We think they should if indeed someone out there issued approvals. MxMIndia believes it’s wrong to only nail Messrs Pawar and Simha, though they may well be responsible for what happened. It’s time for the marketing head at Ford to step down. Corroborating the sentiment that’s being discussed much in adland, a senior member of the A&M fraternity told us: “Why penalize only the agency… didn’t the client sign the Abby form?”

     

    For the record, at Ford India, Vinay Piparsania is Executive Director of Marketing, Sales and Service and Sriram Padmanabhan is Vice President, Marketing. When asked for a response on how Ford had endorsed the Abby application and a few other questions, Deeptie Sethi, Head of Communications at Ford India, wrote to us: “We have a process to investigate internal matters, and as such, we are conducting an investigation to determine how this happened. Once the investigation is complete we will take the appropriate action, if needed.”

    There are decidedly more questions than answers. There’s got to be a way to put a check on scam ads. The emphasis that marketers and agencies put on winning awards has to come down.

     

    Read a detailed analysis tomorrow