Original Ad:

 

When searching for an advertisement to evaluate and jam, my first thought was to look to alcohol advertisements, as they are historically quite notorious for communicating absurd messages. I came across a series of Boca Maldita beer ads that were similar in theme to the above ad, but this one especially stuck out to me.

I think there are two distinctly absurd aspects within this ad. Primarily, the company is highlighting an event that would be a potentially heart-breaking situation for someone to be in: finding out your significant other is on a dating app behind your back. They are invoking a strong, negative emotional reaction from the reader. This reaction could potentially be even greater if the reader has been experiencing relationship issues recently. Even if one has not, it is just such a negative thought to be placing in people’s mind. Intentionally placing people in this mindset feels very misguided here.

Secondly, the small subtext that reads, “some days you just want to forget”, is frankly even more ridiculous. The company is blatantly promoting alcohol as a viable solution for people when they are upset about a life changing realization. It’s definitely not very ethical to downplay the harm that alcohol—a depressant—can have on people, especially when they are going through a tough time in their life. Furthermore, they are clearly not just promoting having a drink as a solution, but binge drinking to the point where you will forget. I had never seen such a message be perpetuated this clearly in a beer ad before.

 

Jammed Ad:

 

While pondering ideas for jamming this ad, I was having a difficult time trying to effectively use some subtly in jamming it. I thought about going a different route and using a new ad; something simpler to add a nuance to, as many examples did so well. But then I thought about how my goal was to reveal what the ad was really saying. So, I dropped the subtly. I think the blatancy I used only matches the blatancy of the original advertisement.

With this jam, I have, essentially, translated what the original advertisement is truly communicating. Their provocateur attention grabber really is describing an event that would likely end a relationship, and cause someone emotional pain. I believe the bluntness of my statement is pretty well on par with that of the tagline in the original ad. The realization that one would experience if they went through the scenario of discovering their significant other on a dating app would be the realization that their relationship is broken.

Next, I stuck with theme of translating what the original ad is saying by highlighting the company’s absurd proposition that ones emotional pain should be medicated with alcohol. I can’t speak to it enough how inconsiderate this message is. Alcohol should certainly not be considered a viable solution for someone’s emotional pain. I felt I had to highlight this message they were communicating, as it is such an absurd one. Not only is it an irrational message, it is an unethical message for this company to be disseminating.