Yeah, so Thinkprogress isn’t too smart about their campaign to get advertisers off O’Reilly’s air — astroturfing a standard form email to a bunch of them at the same time is just really not the way to go. But the fundamental idea is a good way — and it clearly has potential, viz. UPS pulling their ads recently. So I thought I’d pick the one advertiser that I can relate to and just sent them this:
To Whom It May Concern:
I am the happy and proud owner of a 2006 Audi A4. I love the car and think it epitomizes the quality and thoughtful design that I have come to expect from a high-end brand like Audi.
I am also an active cross country skier and Nordic coach, and greatly appreciate Audi’s continued commitment to the US Ski Team over the past years.
But right now I am mostly dismayed and profoundly disappointed to find that Audi continues to advertise on Bill O’Reilly’s deranged program of hatred and misinformation. It is hard for me to imagine that anybody who enjoys his pathetic attempt at entertaining by attacking the innocent and – as he has done repeatedly lately – stalking people would be a potential Audi driver. You can certainly claim, as have some of your fellow advertisers, that “Audi in no way endorses the views/opinions portrayed during the news broadcasts in which we advertise.” But spare me the spin. You know what O’Reilly’s show is about, and yet you continue to associate your brand with the narrow-minded, spiteful ignorance that lies at the heart of it.
I implore you to follow the lead of UPS, who recently announced that, after investigating the content on O’Reilly’s show, they would be pulling their ads (see http://thinkprogress.¬org/¬¬oreilly-campaign-responses/). It would be the right step to take, and most becoming for a brand that claims to represent quality, care and concern for discerning drivers.
Sincerely,
