The Norwegian Association of the Blind made these commercials.
What do you think?
Comments:
All right, there is no excuse for not having a comment on these videos. After you laugh, think a couple minutes and then share your thoughts.
Are they Funny? Creative? Good Advertising?
Are they Insulting? Embarrassing? Bad Public Relations?
Does this ad compaign promote inclusion? normalization? stereotypical thinking?
Do you think these ads will create more jobs? Change stereotypes?
Enhance the image of people who are blind?
Does it make a difference that the commercials were created by the The Norwegian Association of the Blind?
Does it make a difference that the commercials used actors who were really blind?
Keep Climbing: Onward and Upward
All my best,
Mary
I am not sure that creative would be the right word to describe these advertisements, even though I can honestly say I have never thought about any of those situations before. I find it a little ironic that The Norwegian Association of the Blind was who produced these commercials, but I can see how it could have possibly been done with a twisted bit of humor. The videos shed light on an issue that is serious, but attempt to put a comical spin on it and personally I do not think they were made to offend anyone especially since the actors used were actually blind. The fact that we know they chose to be in these commercials probably meant that they supported the message or vision that that Association had and that means a lot coming from someone who experiences being blind every day of their life. Hopefully these advertisements will promote the inclusion of blind in the work place and progress their image as well.
Hi Lauren,
You make a great point that the people in the videos chose to be there. Earlier Alison Golden spoke about humor being different in different cultures, but in my opinion, the ads weren’t funny. But then I’m not a fan of Saturday Night Live and other “dark” types of humor. So, I guess we have to just assume the Association of the Blind knows what they are doing. But I sure wouldn’t recommend this approach.
It would be interesting to know if these ads really led to more JOBS, which is their purpose.
I agree with the earlier posts. I think that the commericials get the point across and are also pretty offensive. I don’t happen to have a close family member or friend who is blind but found them uncomfortable still.
I thought that the commercials were funny and put a point across, but I could also see how it could be offensive to someone who is blind or has a close family member or friend who is blind. It somewhat mocks the blind.
Hi Hilary,
Thanks for your comments. I agree the comments made me uncomfortable too. IMHO If you really respect the person, you do not do things behind a person’s back.
I was hoping for more discussion before I added my two cents.
On Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn the comments to these videos have ranged from “thinking they were hysterical” to “liking them” to “confusion” to “poor taste” to “thinking they insulted people who are blind.”
What do you think?
I found them all really offensive. I hope that they work though. The people who wouldn’t find the commercials offensive are probably those who would never consider hiring a blind person in the first place and are hopefully responsive. Then again these are not commercials here in the USA, so I really can’t judge this. I hope these ads help promote inclusion!
Hmm. The last one was really sad. I can see the point of the don’t disturb while working one, not sure about the others.
I worked in Nordic countries for three years, including Norway. The sense of humor there is very different from what we experience here in America. For my taste, these ads were curious to insulting to lame. But I also know that I can’t be the judge because of cultural differences.