Hasta La Creative!

When I think “Pittsburgh,” heavy industry comes to mind, along with a historically wretched baseball team. PPG Industries, in a campaign from Garrison Hughes, fuses commerce and culture (in Pittsburgh?) to play up the company’s philanthropic prowess in the city. “What do amorphous precipitated silicas have to do with opera?” one ad asks. Oddly, I woke up this morning with the same question on my lips. PPG explains that its success in silicas allows the company to fund the arts. “How the shading coefficient of glass helps your families enjoy the aquarium” is another headline in the campaign (with art showing a penguin, which is suddenly today’s AdFreak theme). Of course it’s self-serving, but not nearly as tired as many efforts in this vein, which seem to consist of uniting the phrase “We gave, so love us!” with corporate logos. Can silicas do anything to help the Pirates? Oh right, baseball’s got that whole “substance” scandal going on. Never mind.

—Posted by David Gianatasio

LONDON – The Metropolitan Police Service is reaching out to Londoners in a new anti-terrorism advertising campaign that asks the public to report any suspicious behaviour.

LONDON – Hicklin Slade & Partners has created insert and online activity for Honda’s ‘Problem playground’ campaign, which aims to showcase the car manufacturer’s environmental credentials.

LONDON – Picture Loans, the company responsible for one of the three ads found most annoying by consumers last year, has stopped advertising after ‘temporarily’ closing to new business.

LONDON – News Corporation has appointed Mark Williams, chief operating officer of Sky Italia, to the new role of chief financial officer of Europe and Asia overseeing News International in the UK, as Stephen Daintith joins the New York exodus to take up a job at Dow Jones.

LONDON – The International Direct Marketing Fair is to launch its own broadband TV channel through MarketingSuccess.tv, featuring pre-show interviews with exhibitors and speakers.

PARK RIDGE, NJ: Car rental company, Hertz, has issued an RFP for an AOR, PRWeek has learned.

SUNNYVALE, CA: Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has chosen Bite Communications for product PR and Ketchum for corporate PR, after a competitive review.

LONDON – Global Radio’s Heart network has secured a long-running deal with 20th Century Fox to promote seven of the studio’s films this year, including the March release of ’27 Dresses’.

Shopping in love.

Advertising Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi, Rome, Italy
Creative Directors: Guido Cornara, Agostino Toscana
Art Director: Andrea Baccin
Copywriter: Antonio Giannone
Photographer: Matteo Cremonini
Published: January 2008