I have another question for ya’ll … why is everyone upset about the Motrin commercial?
This looks like making mountains out of molehills to me. True, the commercial wasn’t cute/flip/hip even though it tried to be. True, it wasn’t very tasteful and a bit annoying with all of those flying words, but why the outrage? To me, this commercial is all about sympathizing with the moms who HAVE aches and pains from carrying their babies – you’d have to be made of steel not to feel some discomfort. And the official mom thing? Yeah, nothing says “mom” than a baby in a sling/on the hip. So what? We proudly wear that badge.
And the YouTube videos I saw in response to the Motrin ad? Didn’t say much. How is the ad disrespectful? How is the ad patronizing? Be specific because generalizations spell irrational emotion and if this is an issue that needs to truly be addressed, I would think specifics would be more helpful than making a blanket statement about how the commercial made you feel personally.
I think the commercial was saying that moms are human too and that it’s okay to admit we have physical pains caused by our children. That if you make the choice of wearing your baby and it causes you discomfort, then hey! They are suggesting you try their product. That’s how advertising works. We’re moms, not robots. At least, that was my take on it. And that’s all I took away from the commercial.
I can’t help but wonder if complaining about mom-related issues, however remotely they are referred to in any venue, is not some sort of trend? Is getting upset over something this trivial really worth the time and energy it takes to respond to it?
Can someone explain it to me? Because apparently I’m clueless.
Write From Karen 
You make some very good points, Thea, and I can understand why some moms would have gotten upset by the insinuation. I’ll admit, the “supposedly” threw me for a loop, too. That was indeed a poor choice of words.
For the most part, I don’t think feeling guilty has anything to do with why people are upset.
I think that ad makes it sound like people who are baby-wearers do it for the status and attention, because it’s the “in” thing to do and it makes them look like “an official mom”.
Whenever you use words like “supposedly” you are basically saying “I’m not sure I believe you”, you know?
This ad alienates and demeans the very people it is trying to attract.
That being said, I’m not entirely sure that it deserves the response it’s getting, but when people are passionate about something they should definitely speak out.
O.K. I’m done. : )
Well put, Rachel.
My first thought, whenever I see people get bent out of shape over things like this, is: WHAT are you feeling so guilty about? I mean, why else get so upset, you know?
For example: When the husband comes home and asks what I’ve done all day because I obviously didn’t get the house picked up, I get furious. When I stop to think about my reaction, it’s mainly because I feel guilty because he’s right – I didn’t do much that day and I should have picked up the house.
Anyway, just my two cents.
I heard about this. i didn’t actually see the ad (the link on the site I was reading didn’t work), but I read both stories from news outlets describing the ad and a few blogs commenting on the whole issue.
I think the idea behind the ad was ok, they just didn’t pull it off right. Instead of being funny, it came off as making fun of moms. And Lord knows, you don’t make fun of baby-wearing moms. (sarcasm alert!) I think the other issue is that it made non-baby-wearing moms seem like they weren’t good moms – again, because the ad wasn’t pulled off right.
My phrase for life? Get over it. And that’s what all these moms need to do. I used to be a baby-wearing mama (kiddos are too big now) and yeah, I’d get sore, but you know what? It’s totally worth it and no one, NO ONE, will make me feel bad for the choices I make with my kids, especially a bunch of advertising goons holed up in a boardroom.
i think you pretty much explained it yourself in the last paragraph…