360fly has unveiled a provocative new 60-second TV ad, titled "Trump's Wall," for its 4K 360-degree action camera.
The ad, the first national spot for the 360fly, is billed as "fictional futuristic satire" by the company, portraying a rally taking place to celebrate the debut of a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico by a President Trump look-a-like. While "Trump" stands at the podium delivering a triumphant declaration, a blogger in attendance uses the 360fly to capture what is going on behind the scene, which shows a stereotypical lineup of Mexican immigrants tunneling below the wall and emerging to be greeted by lookalikes of Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders.
The spot resolves with the message: “Get a broader perspective. Miss nothing.”
According to 360fly, the major TV networks have refused to run the ad. Clearly the stereotype of Mexican immigrants was the sticking point.
The creative agency that produced the spot, 180LA, defended the ad as purposely provocative satire. “This satirical scenario provides the perfect backdrop for a product demo, highlighting the importance of having a bigger perspective, which is exactly the promise of the 360fly camera,” said William Gelner, the agency's chief creative officer.
Peter Adderton, 360fly's CEO explained further. “People are inherently driven to take a side, adopting a very narrow and singular point of view where politics are concerned, and that’s exactly what the camera industry has done for quite a while now. This spot acts like a metaphor for the camera industry and showcases how 360fly allows you to break out of that singular focus and capture and relive experiences from every possible point of view.”
A 360fly spokesperson commented: “With all the attention heaped on the Trump and Clinton campaigns by network news programs, talk shows and comedy programs, it’s ironic that a satirical and humorous advertisement is being so heavily avoided by TV networks. But that’s exactly what has happened.”
The campaign launched yesterday. Here’s the spot:
