What many Super Bowl viewers noticed on Sunday was the subtle–and sometimes not so subtle–way that commercials during the game seemed to relate to Donald Trump in one way or another. Recently, his immigration ban has upset leading figures in America and abroad, and on Sunday, 97 U.S. tech companies filed a joint court brief opposing it.

In case you missed them, here are some of the most politically outspoken, and funny, ads from Super Bowl night:

Budweiser

Arguably the most famous American beer, Budweiser, originated from a collaboration between two German immigrants; Adolphus Busch and Eberhard Anheuser. The new Bud commercial tells a dramatized story of Busch arriving by boat to the United States where he is initially heckled and told to go home. He then meets Anheuser who buys him a beer, marking the start of a friendship that produced the first American lager. That Americans wouldn’t have their Bud on a hot summer day if it weren’t for a couple of immigrants, might come as a shock to some. While the ad may not be completely true to the original story, it does tell a compelling story of the important role that immigrants played in American beer industry.

Wow. @Budweiser‘s Super Bowl ad is just wow. pic.twitter.com/j3AMrKz565

— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) February 4, 2017

Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola’s ad is a collection of voices singing “America The Beautiful” in different languages, showing faces from all over the world, and ending with the words, “together is beautiful.” Short and simple but very expressive.

Our diversity is our strength. America The Beautiful #SuperBowl #Coke pic.twitter.com/vhEBvJQ38d

— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) February 6, 2017

It’s a 10 Haircare

The haircare product line offered a punch at Donald Trump’s famous hairdo with its ad’s opening line: “We’re in for at least four years of awful hair.” The ad went on showing all kinds of hair—old, young, facial, chest, dog hair, and much more.

Airbnb

Airbnb’s ad is a compilation of faces of different ethnicities accompanied by the text, “No matter who you are, where you’re from, who you love, or who you worship, we all belong.” It ends with the hashtag #weaccept. The company didn’t just make a subtle but fairly clear jab at President Trump; it also promised to provide 100,000 refugees with a place to stay and has a longtime goal to accommodate even more displaced people in the coming years.

Acceptance starts with all of us. #weaccept pic.twitter.com/btgqyYHVTK

— Airbnb (@Airbnb) February 6, 2017

84 Lumber

Probably the most obvious, and definitely the most tear-inducing, Super Bowl ad came from 84 Lumber, which showed a mother and daughter from a Latin-American country making the long and strenuous journey to the American border. The original ad is almost six minutes long, but Fox News banned the end from airing on TV, arguing that it was “too controversial.” The full-length ad shows the mother and daughter facing a wall, similar to the one Trump has talked about. The ad ends with the text, “The will to succeed is always welcome here.” The construction business relies heavily on workers from Mexico and other Latin-American countries, and an employee shortage will likely drive up construction prices.

Our complete Super Bowl story. See a mother & daughter’s symbolic journey toward becoming legal American citizens. https://t.co/AiI3MLrVd5

— 84 Lumber Company (@84LumberNews) February 6, 2017

Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga has been praised for her halftime show during which she was lowered down from the ceiling like Spiderman then proceeded to dance, play piano and keytar, and finally threw the microphone off the stage before jumping off herself. It didn’t seem like a particularly blatant political statement, but if you listen closer, it very well could have been. After starting off singing “America the Beautiful” she quickly switched to “This Land is Your Land,” a song that has also been popular among those protesting Trump’s immigration ban.

Gaga also performed her song “Born This Way,” which is about being who you are and contains the line, “No matter gay, straight, or bi, lesbian, transgendered life, I’m on the right track baby I was born to survive.” During the show, over 800 Texas high school students contributed to the magnificence by waving coordinated lights below the stage while singing the line “Why don’t you stay.” Maybe the show wasn’t a political statement, maybe it was just Gaga being inclusive and herself, but really, that too is a statement.

Lady Gaga hugs teen during halftime show: “It was an amazing surprise” https://t.co/dbzqE8wfHgpic.twitter.com/4YnZNzSnUs

— billboard (@billboard) February 6, 2017

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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London Mayor Sadiq Khan is banning ads that promote negative body image from London public transportation.

It all started with this Protein World ad asking if passengers were “beach body ready” last spring.

As a result, 378 people filed formal complaints with the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), leading the ASA to prohibit the ad from appearing again in the London underground system. Beyond that, more than 70,000 people signed a change.org petition demanding Protein World take it down.

@SnugglingonSofa I did this earlier today: pic.twitter.com/PDjiLiPXkJ

— Booky w/t Curly Hair (@NicoleBurstein) April 23, 2015

Khan announced the ban on Monday, and it will go into effect in July.

“As the father of two teenage girls, I am extremely concerned about this kind of advertising which can demean people, particularly women, and make them ashamed of their bodies. It is high time it came to an end,” Khan said, according to a BBC report.

Research from the U.K.’s Government Equalities Office found that more than 50 percent of adults are ashamed of their appearance and one in five elementary school-aged girls has already gone on a diet in her lifetime.

Liam Preston, public affairs manager at the Be Real Campaign in the United Kingdom, said, “These negative influences out there…we don’t need them, and they will make people more anxious about how they look.”

Jessica Brown, 23, commutes in and out of London every day. Advertisements like Protein World’s poses a threat to people struggling with body image, she said, especially those who are working to overcome self harm or eating disorders.

“If you’re going to be on the tube for up to an hour, you don’t want to be looking at content that can be offensive,” Brown said. “It’s not going to help [people] on their path to recovery if they’re looking at this woman who’s been perfectly photoshopped.”

The ban will effect all transportation systems in London, including buses and the Tube. However, there is still much more that needs to be done in order to provoke global change on this issue.

“If the mayor understands it’s a big issue for Londoners…we’re hoping that the rest of the world is going to follow suit as well,” Preston said.

Samantha Reilly

Samantha Reilly is an editorial intern at Law Street Media. A New Jersey native, she is pursuing a B.A. in Journalism from the University of Maryland, College Park. Contact Samantha at SReilly@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Hello, ello. As someone who grew up in the generation of social networks, it’s quite remarkable to see how in a little less than a decade we’ve come almost full circle. In the early 2000s, social networks revolutionized the ways in which we communicated. But back to the full circle part — these social networks, particularly Facebook, have become such a norm that there’s plenty of people who dislike the commercialization, lack of creativity, and ubiquitousness of Facebook. In that context, a new social network has joined the scene, trying to capitalize on some of Facebook’s disappointed customer base. It’s called “Ello” and it appears to have a lot of potential.

Ello’s tagline appears to be “Simple, Beautiful, and Ad-Free.” The interface is simple, as vintage as one can go in a world where the internet is still too young to be truly vintage. Ello’s “About Us” section spells out what it’s for. Important priorities appear to include that Ello is invite-only, it does not contain ads, it’s simple and uncluttered, and it does not sell user information. As Ello puts it:

Virtually every other social network is run by advertisers. Behind the scenes they employ armies of ad salesmen and data miners to record every move you make. Data about you is then auctioned off to advertisers and data brokers. You’re the product that’s being bought and sold.

Recently, Ello took another step further. It is now what’s called a “Public Benefit Corporation.” That means that they cannot:

1. Sell user-specific data to a third party;
2. Enter into an agreement to display paid advertising on behalf of a third party; and
3. In the event of an acquisition or asset transfer, the Company shall require any acquiring entity to adopt these requirements with respect to the operation of Ello or its assets.

So, how will Ello make money? If it doesn’t have advertisers, and it doesn’t sell data, how is it able to profit? As idealistic and great as Ello sounds, the people who created it can’t just bankrupt themselves in the name of a more ethical social network.

Well, right now it apparently has a few venture capitalists behind it, which will keep the company flush while it gets off the ground. According to Ello, it’s going to have people pay for more premium services. Ello compared it to an iPhone — you buy an iPhone and then you customize it the way you want. You can purchase apps and other features to customize the iPhone to be exactly what you want.

The big question is will people take the same approach to Ello? Millennials love customization, to be sure, but we’re also incredibly cheap. If we have the option for a free social network like Facebook, will anyone pay a little more for the ad-free experience of Ello? Maybe, especially when the network is new and hip, but once it goes the route of Facebook and attracts pretty much the entire world, will people be willing to fork up the dough?

Ello is a tantalizing concept — an anti-Facebook. But I just don’t know if people are frustrated enough with Facebook to need its social media foil yet, especially if it’s going to cost them.

—

Anneliese Mahoney (@AMahoney8672) is Lead Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

Featured image courtesy of [Mike Mozart via Flickr]

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Ello, Goodbye? appeared first on Law Street.

Hey y’all!

Yesterday I was watching The Five on Fox News and one of the topics was this new ad campaign that some former Mitt Romney “ad guru” came up with that has me feeling all kinds of different things. Another one of the writers here at Law Street got her fingers working on the same topic and I will address a little of what Anneliese had to say about the “Republicans Are People Too” campaign.

I get the message they’re trying to get across here, but I think it was done wrong. We all have a misconception of people we do not know or do not associate with, and this often goes along party lines. There have always been certain stereotypes attached to each party. Republicans and conservatives are typically viewed as heartless, racist, homophobic, gun-toting, war-loving, wife-beating, feminist-hating, uncaring-about-the-poor, mean-spirited, greedy, selfish, intolerant, drunk, one-percenters. Democrats and liberals are often viewed as tree-hugging, abortion-loving, gun-hating, politically correct, unpatriotic, lazy, looking-for-a-handout, entitled, big government-loving people who like to stick racism or sexism into every conversation.

These stereotypes are not true of everyone and that was what Vinny Minchillo was trying to put out there for the world in this ad. But I don’t think he did it the right way. And if he spent $60,000 to create that ad then he needs to get his money back because the supposed use of stock photos is just embarrassing. Not to mention the stuff he points out is just petty and shallow.

The one thing I do love about the ad is the moment when it states “Republicans like dogs and cats, but probably dogs a little more than cats.” It was the playful humor of this moment that made me like the ad. But to feel like you need to tell the world that even people with tattoos are Republicans drives me insane. I have 14 tattoos, I don’t drive a Prius, I do love dogs, and I’m a conservative, too!

Greg Gutfeld had an interesting point on The Five: “This commercial is not the answer. You shouldn’t be saying ‘we’re just like them.’ You should be saying why you’re better than them. You need to focus on why you’re right.” I like the point he makes but maybe not so much about being better than anyone else but simply saying why we think that our opinions and views are just as important and should be just as respected as those of another party.

Which brings me to the petty comment that President Obama made the other day in a speech:

While good, affordable health care might seem like a fanged threat to the freedom of the American people on Fox News, it’s working pretty well in the real world.

Delusions of grandeur come to mind.

Why on EARTH, Mr. President, do you feel like you need to take jabs at Fox News? Are you threatened by the idea that you have not been such a great president and things are not actually working out the way you said they would!? Someone actually took the time to include this little jab in his speech. President Obama didn’t just go off the cuff and use his own wit to make this comment, but a speech writer actually wrote it in for him. When you are on your second term and this is what you and your speech writing team are talking about it is time to hang up your hat! Take a page from the fictional President Josiah “Jed” Bartlet of the West Wing and respect the other party, maybe even include them.

Yes, Anneliese, real Republicans actually use Macs. In fact, I am using one to write this right now! I love all things Apple; the iPhone 6, iPad mini, Apple TV and I even have two Mac laptops and a 27″ iMac. But now I have to wonder if me listing all of the Apple products that I own makes you think I am, yet again, your typical elitist Republican because Apple products are not cheap! I appreciate that you appreciate the fact that Republicans are just kind of tired of having a bad rap.

Now, I agree with Anneliese on the other ads she talks about — they are just horrible! But you can’t fault the party for trying. What’s even better is that the more you talk about these ads the longer they stick around and the more people they reach! So even if it is a ridiculous ad, you have given it the momentum to influence someone it may not have reached before. Or at least get someone thinking.

Allison Dawson

Allison Dawson was born in Germany and raised in Mississippi and Texas. A graduate of Texas Tech University and Arizona State University, she’s currently dedicating her life to studying for the LSAT. Twitter junkie. Conservative. Get in touch with Allison at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

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