Skip to content
The Cranky Creative blog

The Cranky Creative Blog

Truth in Advertising — and Beyond

See and share us on:

  • Facebook
  • X
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Home
  • TV Ad Reviews
  • About
  • Contact
  • Hire Me for Copywriting
  • Subscribe for Free
  • A rusted, bent shopping cart overflowing with pixelated digital icons like shattered red hearts, a broken blue verified checkmark, and smiling emojis, set against a background of a crumbling, post-apocalyptic city street.
    March 5, 2026 The Cranky Creative

    Age of decay: the enshittification of everything

    Am I the only one noticing that everything is turning to crap? Crap ads. Crap

    Continue reading
  • Pringles Super Bowl LX ad "Pringleleo" featuring Sabrina Carpenter; a prime example of modern advertising’s decline into absurdism and celebrity worship.
    February 10, 2026 The Cranky Creative

    Bad ads for bad brains: the mutual dumbing down of ads and audiences

    Is the advertising industry dying because creatives are lazy, or because audiences are too dumb

    Continue reading
  • Nuclear explosion symbolizing the explosive fallout from calling out hypocrisy in the 'bold' ad industry
    January 21, 2026 The Cranky Creative

    The creative farce: why the world’s “boldest” thinkers are actually the biggest cowards

    If your “boldness” requires a permission slip from the HR department, you are not a

    Continue reading
  • Image reminiscent of the final scene from the movie Planet of the Apes in which Charles Heston's astronaut character finds the ruined Statue of Liberty on the beach and realizes that mankind has destroyed itself
    October 26, 2025 The Cranky Creative

    How advertising created a nation of entitled assholes

    It’s over. I’m done. For years, I’ve used The Cranky Creative to vent about the

    Continue reading
  • A collage of virtue-signaling ad campaigns that flopped: Bud Light, Pepsi, Jaguar and more
    August 20, 2025 The Cranky Creative

    Virtue, Inc.: How progressive politics hijacked business and marketing

    Marketing used to be about connection — understanding what people wanted and selling it with

    Continue reading
  • In 1957, researchers experimented to see if subliminal messages could be used to increase sales of popcorn and Coca-Cola
    May 8, 2023 The Cranky Creative

    Subliminal messages in advertising … and Disney cartoons?

    A phallic shadow. The word “SEX” etched in ice. The American public has been bombarded

    Continue reading
  • Today's blog post talks about the top 10 reasons why people hate TV commercials
    February 28, 2023 The Cranky Creative

    The real reasons people hate TV commercials

    Oh, advertisers. It didn’t have to be this way. Once upon a time, consumers might

    Continue reading
  • The Cranky Creative explores where all the white people are in commercials
    January 5, 2022 The Cranky Creative

    What happened to white people in TV commercials?

    If you only watched TV, you might think that white people (including fumbling, bumbling white

    Continue reading

Cutting through the BS, one blog post at a time

satirical sad advertising executive shedding a tear
June 13, 2020 The Cranky Creative

‘Adapt or die’: the advertising industry faces painful change

Posh parties. Black-tie award shows. First-class flights and three-martini lunches. As ad budgets shrink, brands move capabilities in-house, and more people realize that the emperor has no clothes, advertising agencies

Continue reading
Progressive insurance company's new motorcycle mascot, Motaur
June 4, 2020 The Cranky Creative

Progressive’s ‘Motaur’ ads are too clever by half

Racial tensions are rising as American cities burn. Meanwhile, fear of an over-hyped virus ravages the globe. This breaking news is brought to you by Progressive Insurance and Motaur, the

Continue reading
tonal tv commercial mom
May 21, 2020 The Cranky Creative

Ad Review: Tonal TV commercial shows and tells

In a sea of terrible TV commercials, this ad for Tonal digital fitness equipment caught my eye—not for shouting at me or blithering like an idiot to get my attention,

Continue reading
diet dr. pepper's character lil sweet rewards people with the sweet taste of diet dr. pepper
April 29, 2020 The Cranky Creative

Dr. Pepper’s ‘Sweet One’ ads hit a sour note

Every time I see one of those Diet Dr. Pepper TV commercials with the twerpy little glam rocker and his annoying high-pitched voice, I wonder: Who is this guy? Am

Continue reading
screen shot from the all people are tax people superbowl tv commercial
April 16, 2020 The Cranky Creative

TurboTax ad review: When creative trumps strategy

Working in advertising is fun, especially as a creative. We copywriters and graphic designers get paid to think up clever ways to communicate a brand’s messages. The problem comes when

Continue reading
Work-at-home office with desktop computer and phone
March 27, 2020 The Cranky Creative

No-B.S. tips for working from home

Now that work from home (WFH) has become mandatory for anyone with a smart boss or half a brain, The Cranky Creative offers some no-B.S. tips to help you stay

Continue reading
empty grocery store shelves from panic buying during coronavirus pandemic
March 12, 2020 The Cranky Creative

Coronavirus pandemic: don’t panic, but be prepared

June 14, 2021: Be sure to see this post, “Brands have no business pushing COVID-19 vaccines,” to find out why these injections may not be safe or effective — despite

Continue reading
obnoxious boy yelling into a microphone to get attention
February 28, 2020 The Cranky Creative

Ear-ritating: How TV commercials misuse sound to get our attention

Sound is a powerful tool in advertising. Its ability to draw attention and evoke emotion is proven to affect sales. So why, then, do so many advertising soundtracks seem designed

Continue reading
football referee making no good hand signal
February 4, 2020 The Cranky Creative

No good: Super Bowl LIV commercials miss the mark

On Sunday night, Super Bowl advertisers spent $5.6 million for 30 seconds to make people go “ha!” or “aww”—only to have their costly TV commercials forgotten a moment later. The

Continue reading
marketers, stop letting compliance people rewrite your marketing copy
January 28, 2020 The Cranky Creative

Marketers, stop letting compliance departments write your sales copy

Compliance departments have an important job to do—but rewriting the company’s marketing copy is not it. Marketing departments dogged by overzealous compliance feedback need to stand their ground—not only for

Continue reading
messy aftermath of a New Year's Eve party
January 15, 2020 The Cranky Creative

New Year’s resolutions for TV advertisers

2019 was a banner year for bad TV commercials. Between Liberty Mutual’s bird-brained LiMu Emu commercials, Allstate’s “Mayhem” antics and Chevy’s not-so-real “Real People” ads, viewers had a lot of

Continue reading

Posts pagination

«Previous Posts 1 … 9 10 11 12 13 … 15 Next Posts»

Today’s Top Posts

  • Age of decay: the enshittification of everything
  • Liberty Mutual's branded idiocy: is this the future of advertising?
  • Subliminal messages in advertising ... and Disney cartoons?
  • My short-lived career as a United States Postal Service (USPS) mail carrier
  • Yes, the Gillette Venus Pubic Hair and Skin razor ad goes (down) there
  • What happened to white people in TV commercials?

Blog Pages

  • Home
  • TV Ad Reviews
  • About
  • Contact
  • Hire Me for Copywriting
  • Subscribe for Free

Site Policies
Content & Comment Policy
Privacy Policy

© The Cranky Creative. All rights reserved.

Browse Posts by Category

  • Ad Reviews (47)
  • Advertising (59)
  • Books (4)
  • Brand Ethics (7)
  • Branding (3)
  • Copywriting (17)
  • Corporate Deception (8)
  • Cranky Case Files (7)
  • Cranky Critiques (1)
  • Culture War (32)
  • Free Resources (4)
  • General (26)
  • Government Deception (6)
  • Graphic Design (8)
  • Holidays (8)
  • Humor (12)
  • Movies (2)
  • Music (1)
  • News (28)
  • Personal Life (27)
  • Rants (39)
  • Super Bowls (7)
  • Systemic Lies (6)
  • Tips (5)
  • Truth-Seeking (15)
  • Vaccines (5)
WordPress Theme: Wellington by ThemeZee.