ABSTRACT
Most TV viewers turn off their brains when the commercials come on. Some of the worst cultural propaganda is jammed into those 60-second and 30-second spots. Consider the recent ad for the Isuzu Rodeo. A grotesque giant in a business suit stomps into a beautiful field, startling a deer and jamming skyscrapers, factories, and signs into the ground. One of the giant's signs says, "Obey," but the narrator says, "The world has boundaries. Ignore them." Trying to trample the Rodeo, the hapless giant trips over his own fence. The Isuzu zips past him and topples a huge sign that says "Rules." A great many advertisers now routinely appeal to the so-called "postmodern" sensibility, which is heavy on irony and attuned to the message that rules, boundaries, standards, and authorities are either gone or should be gone. Foster Grant sunglasses has used the "no limits" refrain. So have Prince Matchabelli perfume, Showtime TV and AT&T's Olympics ads in 1996.
