tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post548433172621557396..comments2024-02-19T07:51:46.118-05:00Comments on Throw Grammar from the Train: "Clean is not an option"Janhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03173219179480606941noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-6891710441905673432011-06-17T03:33:58.307-04:002011-06-17T03:33:58.307-04:00I'm actually not a native speaker and still le...I'm actually not a native speaker and still learning English. When I heard that ads on TV, I really started to get confused, since I always thought "not an option" means "not to be considered". Then I started to think may be it can have both meanings. And then I started to wonder how can I tell which meaning it is in a sentence,since they are very two conflicting meanings... I'm really happy to read your blog and learned that I was right. But the Ads sounds so right and so natural, how can something wrong sounds so right? English is confusing...Yaohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01601641192332093833noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-17978178783146739182011-06-13T23:00:20.300-04:002011-06-13T23:00:20.300-04:00I don't work for Tide or the ad agency, but ev...I don't work for Tide or the ad agency, but every time I see this ad, I feel certain that the original tagline was "Style is subjective. Clean is not." And then someone said "nobody is going to know what 'subjective' means."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-38106617041920060162011-03-10T02:02:00.671-05:002011-03-10T02:02:00.671-05:00I e-mailed Tide directly, but they have yet to cha...I e-mailed Tide directly, but they have yet to change their error.<br />I am boycotting Tide products until clean once again becomes an option.<br /><br />And if we are talking about ads done without much thought, how do you feel about "enjoy the go" by Charmin? Honestly!!!Lilli Wnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-3542004863031213002010-11-05T12:48:21.024-04:002010-11-05T12:48:21.024-04:00I'm still cringing over "i'm lovin...I'm still cringing over "i'm lovin' it," along with the fact that the apostrophe is being re-engineered by advertisers (and everyone else) to apply to plurals as well as possessives.Jessica Jordan Richardsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14594369861927410088noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-57291937720118374672010-11-02T22:02:26.804-04:002010-11-02T22:02:26.804-04:00I will admit to being an advertising copy writer v...I will admit to being an advertising copy writer very early in my career. I had a BA in Seventeenth Century English Literature. I could have been fired for my spelling, but my writing skills were lauded. All ad agency writers and artists need a good copy editor. When you are creating that trash or treasure, you can’t be distracted by grammar or spelling. It is always about money and ‘billable hours.’ During my first WSJ job I was spouting glowing press releases for a bunch of crooks-in-suits: only to realize they’d manipulated me and the stock market. I quit in a self-righteous huff. I vowed only to use my ‘skills’ for things I believed in. I know how Edith Ann feels. For me, it was not a noble calling. It was the ’60’s, and I was very idealistic. However, in defense of the ad biz--it is a huge industry that provides a rip tide of jobs—in radio, magazines and television or the people who put glue on posters. Someone older than I, once took the time to tell me this, so I’ll pass it along here. Even the internet that we enjoy is an outgrowth of our capitalistic, free-speech society. Also, I wrote my share of public service spots (PSAs), funded by the Ad Council. Now I’ll end my editorial by adding that corporations do worry about grammar (they now hire in-house teachers). They also fund the Arts and charitable or humanitarian causes. Now, could someone please get me an editor and proofreader? I always overwrite.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-1881836313696062492010-10-29T06:53:16.527-04:002010-10-29T06:53:16.527-04:00[You] should always say what you mean, if you do n...[You] should always say what you mean, if you do not then you can never mean what you say - Film: the Last Emperor. I agree with all except the first comment. Yes, the purpose of advertising is to grab attention, but as a public platform which is absorbed by all it has a responsibility to use the language properly (unless of course a deliberate grammatical mistake is part of the message - not the case here. Perhaps a little over the top but I think media communication has a lot to answer for in the poor use of English today.<br /><br />Great blog!doodlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12279672042658789618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-17719427687573843602010-10-28T08:44:59.411-04:002010-10-28T08:44:59.411-04:00Offensive? She only said it was confusing. That...Offensive? She only said it was confusing. That's not the same thing as offensive.The Ridger, FCDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01538111197270563075noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-68296945466803154122010-10-28T02:52:33.831-04:002010-10-28T02:52:33.831-04:00I'm with you. "Style is optional" sh...I'm with you. "Style is optional" should have been perfectly acceptable for the ad.JeffScapehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00190641629175438603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-10541808480071656952010-10-25T07:47:16.118-04:002010-10-25T07:47:16.118-04:00Yet a lot of thought went into the slogan and the ...<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/08/business/media/08adco.html" rel="nofollow">Yet</a> a lot of thought went into the slogan and the advertising campaign of which it is a part. Offensive though it is to you and me, I don't think it is a blunder.emptyhttp://voidplay.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-33563863899764936872010-10-24T11:27:37.528-04:002010-10-24T11:27:37.528-04:00Yeah, I read that tag line the same way you did; a...Yeah, I read that tag line the same way you did; as 'being clean is not a possibility'. *sigh*<br /><br />p.s. I love this blog.novahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10999587070684124074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-69930607235038097992010-10-24T09:49:25.820-04:002010-10-24T09:49:25.820-04:00Yes, that's bewildering. They surely screwed u...Yes, that's bewildering. They surely screwed up there. A slogan that you can only make sense fo from context is a non-starter. Even "Style is optional; clean is not" is not great: "stylish ... clean" would be less clunky. Even then it's not in the least clever. A good candidate for feeblest ad slogan of the year.Harry Campbellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01675794936870568336noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-55057667308379535192010-10-23T15:17:41.483-04:002010-10-23T15:17:41.483-04:00"Cleanliness is said to be next to godliness,..."Cleanliness is said to be next to godliness, but neither godliness nor anything else can substitute for cleanliness." --I forget whoJohn Cowanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11452247999156925669noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-42781323370495875832010-10-23T11:24:59.957-04:002010-10-23T11:24:59.957-04:00Although it wouldn't be fully correct, changin...Although it wouldn't be fully correct, changing the tag line to "Style is optional. Clean is not." would make more sense. Unfortunately, even newscasters no longer speak proper English these days.Laurie Lalibertehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14640175895773282060noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-4929221544757432942010-10-23T09:27:47.159-04:002010-10-23T09:27:47.159-04:00To be quite honest, if Tide were the only choice, ...To be quite honest, if Tide were the only choice, I'm afraid clean wouldn't be an option in our home. My wife and my wallet are both seriously allergic to it!The Book Nuthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08742929699209017621noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-65649921924097368902010-10-23T09:18:43.489-04:002010-10-23T09:18:43.489-04:00Once upon a time in college, I had a comp class wh...Once upon a time in college, I had a comp class where we studied the gramatical construction of ads. It completely ruined this control freak on reading ad copy. It makes me insane to this day.<br /><br />Enjoying your blog so much!<br /><br />EAEdith Annhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06623443279337364086noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8811866763970314328.post-39625090921579436882010-10-23T02:32:16.094-04:002010-10-23T02:32:16.094-04:00True, tag lines used in advertising tend to bend o...True, tag lines used in advertising tend to bend or even turn blind eye on rules in grammar. As the goal is to gain attention from a customer, sometimes advertisers write things in a way to get that attention. Personally, I think it works because the brand does not want to associate itself with known catch phrases like what you mentioned. In the end, it's all about sales figures.Benjihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11110696518933304865noreply@blogger.com