Obama Vs. McCain As Mac Vs. PC
The old vs. new theme in this year’s matchup sometimes seems reminiscent of Apple Computer’s often hilarious “Mac vs. PC” ads. While funny and likable as far as television commercials go, they didn’t necessarily translate into higher sales at first.
Slate’s ad analyst Seth Stevenson hit on the problem: "My problem with these ads begins with the casting. As the Mac character, Justin Long ... is just the sort of unshaven, hoodie-wearing, hands-in-pockets hipster we've always imagined when picturing a Mac enthusiast. He's perfect. Too perfect. It's like Apple is parodying its own image while also cementing it. If the idea was to reach out to new types of consumers (the kind who aren't already evangelizing for Macs), they ought to have used a different type of actor."
Meanwhile, the PC is played by John Hodgman - contributer to the Daily Show and This American Life, host of an amusing lecture series, and all-around dry-wit extraordinaire. Even as he plays the chump in these Apple spots, his humor and likability are evident ... The ads pose a seemingly obvious question - 'would you rather be the laid-back young dude or the portly old dweeb?' - but I found myself consistently giving the "wrong" answer: I'd much sooner associate myself with Hodgman than with Long.
Obviously, we’re supposed to want to be the Mac guy, but I suspect a lot of consumers laugh because they relate to the PC - the world is changing too fast for him to keep up, he’s so far from cutting edge that by the time he tries something it’s obsolete, the cool crowd looks down on him, and some snot-nosed twenty-something who thinks he knows everything is ready to take his job. There’s something Charlie Brownish about the PC - he tries hard, but it never seems to work out quite right. Of course, Charlie Brown is one of the most popular characters in the world.
Clearly, the ads have worked for Apple; they’re in their third year. But note that Long’s Mac character has shifted from boasting and bragging (reading his own great reviews in the Wall Street Journal, bringing out a supermodel to symbolize his home movie), to constantly expressing sympathy for his befuddled friend/rival - albeit in an irrepressibly condescending manner. In a 2007 ad entitled “Counselor” that depicts a joint therapy session, Mac says, “I don’t know why you’re so hard on yourself. . . . You are a wizard with numbers, and you dress like a gentleman.” There is probably no clearer parallel to “You’re likable enough, Hillary Clinton,” in advertising.
McCain thankfully isn’t making comical pratfalls like Hodgman’s PC, but contrasted with Obama, he can’t help but be defined as the de facto “old reliable.” Obama is the Mac Guy: young, brimming with coolness - fist bumps, moves adopted from Jay-Z videos - beloved by the press and perpetually surrounded by technology-savvy fans. — Jim Geraghty
Slate’s ad analyst Seth Stevenson hit on the problem: "My problem with these ads begins with the casting. As the Mac character, Justin Long ... is just the sort of unshaven, hoodie-wearing, hands-in-pockets hipster we've always imagined when picturing a Mac enthusiast. He's perfect. Too perfect. It's like Apple is parodying its own image while also cementing it. If the idea was to reach out to new types of consumers (the kind who aren't already evangelizing for Macs), they ought to have used a different type of actor."
Meanwhile, the PC is played by John Hodgman - contributer to the Daily Show and This American Life, host of an amusing lecture series, and all-around dry-wit extraordinaire. Even as he plays the chump in these Apple spots, his humor and likability are evident ... The ads pose a seemingly obvious question - 'would you rather be the laid-back young dude or the portly old dweeb?' - but I found myself consistently giving the "wrong" answer: I'd much sooner associate myself with Hodgman than with Long.
Obviously, we’re supposed to want to be the Mac guy, but I suspect a lot of consumers laugh because they relate to the PC - the world is changing too fast for him to keep up, he’s so far from cutting edge that by the time he tries something it’s obsolete, the cool crowd looks down on him, and some snot-nosed twenty-something who thinks he knows everything is ready to take his job. There’s something Charlie Brownish about the PC - he tries hard, but it never seems to work out quite right. Of course, Charlie Brown is one of the most popular characters in the world.
Clearly, the ads have worked for Apple; they’re in their third year. But note that Long’s Mac character has shifted from boasting and bragging (reading his own great reviews in the Wall Street Journal, bringing out a supermodel to symbolize his home movie), to constantly expressing sympathy for his befuddled friend/rival - albeit in an irrepressibly condescending manner. In a 2007 ad entitled “Counselor” that depicts a joint therapy session, Mac says, “I don’t know why you’re so hard on yourself. . . . You are a wizard with numbers, and you dress like a gentleman.” There is probably no clearer parallel to “You’re likable enough, Hillary Clinton,” in advertising.
McCain thankfully isn’t making comical pratfalls like Hodgman’s PC, but contrasted with Obama, he can’t help but be defined as the de facto “old reliable.” Obama is the Mac Guy: young, brimming with coolness - fist bumps, moves adopted from Jay-Z videos - beloved by the press and perpetually surrounded by technology-savvy fans. — Jim Geraghty
posted by Strother | 10:33 PM
3 Comments:
Something to add to Jim's typical Republican or conservative-leaning person's observation of Obama, uh, I mean 'Mac':
In the Apple commercials, 'Mac' is 'that dude' at the office: a member of the young creative class who often steps up for his company and saves its ass. Driven by motivations beyond his own wallet's fatness, he puts in the long hours while the other guys rush to meet tee times and corporate dinners. Rather than keeping up with his shaving and dry cleaning for business matters that are 'all about relationships,' he's always in his office chair after hours, making the project happen. In reality, ‘Mac’ is that guy, too — a young talent who seems to always be working hard for those shaven and pressed folks who appear to be hardly working. Surely this isn't the correlation that Jim wanted to make, but it's there.
Another good observation of Obama and a 'Mac' is that I can't afford neither of them. Ha!
The right tools are rarely cheap, man.
On the price point, I should geek out and give you a comparably featured Mac vs. PC, $ for $, performance, reliability, customer satisfaction, and 'why-talking-to-customer-service-in-California-maybe-once-is-better-than-translating-a-dozen-calls-to-India' sales pitch, but I won't (although I think I just did).
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