Spoofs are all over the place, especially on Comedy Central, but what I'm wondering is how spoofs influence people. They say any press is good press, so is any mockery good mockery? It'll still be in the news, on tv or on YouTube, that's a good thing, right? I thought a good example to use for my blog this week were spoofs of the commercial that I did my ad analysis speech on. So as a refresher here's the original commercial:
This next clip (which is terrible quality and I apologize for that) is from an episode of South Park that aired in November. Cartman uses the "LeBron James technique" on his mom. Watch:
This was one of the two times that South Park made fun of the LeBron commercial last season. Is this good for LeBron, or does it make him seem less legitimate? Does the actual commercial lose its value?
This next spoof is a YouTube phenomenon and is a poser Brett Favre doing the LeBron James commercial from a Brett Favre prospective. *This might be thought of as offensive to some people, so watch with discretion*
This mock commercial is another poke at the LeBron James commercial, although it is more of an attack on Brett Favre. So my question remains: is any spoof a good spoof?
It's interesting you bring that question up. I'm not so sure that any spoof is a "good" spoof, but they can definitely be effective. I'm guessing that maybe that's point, but I definitely know where you're coming from. Thanks for the post!
ReplyDeleteAhaha the Brett Farve one was.....I have no words. Hilarious though. Someone has too much time on their hands. But you're right, in a sense they did kind of make Lebron lose credibility through these spoofs. South Park just kinda has a way of getting to everything and anything they can and making fun of it, but it's hilarious regardless.
ReplyDeleteWow. Good post, and great question that you posed. I don't know if there's a definite answer; it probably depends on the situation. The Groupon commercials got tons of flack, but the "bad press" boosted our awareness of them. While some people might negatively view the company, they got more coverage than they otherwise would have.
ReplyDeleteIf it were "press" that was personally maligning me, though, I sure wouldn't see it as good! I don't envy those in the spotlight.
I think a spoof is trying to undermine the original, so I think my answer to your question is that if it's a good spoof, than no probably not. But the Brett Favre one was so funny. But also, I think when South Park makes fun of something it had some kind of effect on the public since South Park doesn't discriminate when it comes to making fun of something; they make fun of everything.
ReplyDeleteGreat question! I dont think that any spoof is necessarily a "good" spoof but it does get our attention in its own little way while making us laugh at the person or topic that they are poking fun at! I've seen that South Park episode before and I never really linked it to Lebron James commercial thank you for that. Thank you for opening my eyes. Great post!
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