November 06, 2011, 9:23pm
Product Displacement
there are two types of product displacement: fictionalized & unbranded
Posts About Product Displacement
Product Displacement Explained: Part 1
Product Displacement Explained: Part 2, Functions of Parody & Satire
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Cup of Soup - South Park
Product Displacement in Times Square Billboards - Breaking Bad Edition
The above Weatherproof ad featuring Obama was greeted with controversy when it first appeared in Times Square back in January. Shortly after the billboard was pulled for using Obama’s image without the White House’s consent, a very similar ad for AMC’s Breaking Bad appeared. The similarities between the billboards are pretty obvious (Great Wall of China, black jacket, a smoldering, contemplative gaze) but what’s particularly interesting are the parodied elements of the original ad. The Breaking Bad billboard wonderfully utilizes product displacement to piggyback on the hoopla surrounding the Weatherproof ad. This strikes me as win-win situation for both AMC and Weatherproof since they both capitalize on viewers’ encoding/decoding of the billboards’ cultural relevance.
A special thank you to Brechtbug for the awesome photos!!
April 26, 2010, 8:54pm
