photo from kfoxtvIt’s Valentine’s Day and I thought it fitting to blog about something kind of “Valentine/PR related”. In Texas there was an uproar this Thursday, February 12, 2009, when PETA or People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, gathered in Downtown El Paso and put on a show. Now you may be asking yourself, “What kind of show; puppets maybe?” Unfortunately, no puppets here. No, PETA wanted to pull out all the stops. So, to bring attention to the plight and suffering of animals, PETA organized a “special event”. For those that are a little unsure as to what constitutes a special event, according to “Strategic Planning for Public Relations” by Ronald D. Smith, special events are “staged activities” that are planned. They’re also called pseudo-events and they provide the PR professional the opportunity to gain the attention and the acceptance of key publics.
Anyway, back to the story. PETA’s “show” couldn’t have been any more show stopping. To bring attention to the suffering of animals and the benefits of living a vegetarian/vegan lifestyle, PETA made sure that all El Pasoans spending the morning downtown saw their display. Two bikini clad women on a blow-up mattress, making out. People were passing by, snapping photos and taking video with their cameras, and wondering what this had to with animals. Ashley Byrne of PETA provided a little enlightenment on the subject. "This weekend is Valentine's Day, so it is a great time to get the point across that vegetarians have lower rates of impotence and this is also a great way to show off what a healthy vegetarian body looks like," said Byrne. Although the method is rather mad, the message is correct, at least for some El Pasoans. Vegetarian Miguel Rodriguez stated that he used to be overweight, but now that he is a vegetarian he’s a lot healthier and says that, “I am a better lover now.” Some people, however, were not so impressed saying that the whole thing was disrespectful and inappropriate for children.
Whatever people thought about the event, it was definitely attention grabbing. This brings me to my final point ladies and gentlemen, so please bear with me a few minutes longer. As I stated before, a special event is a staged activity that provides you, the PR professional, the opportunity to gain the attention of key publics. That being said, I want to know what you think about this “event” and if you actually believe it’s a special event or a publicity stunt. Publicity stunts, unlike special events, are gimmicks, “planned mainly to gain publicity and having little other value,” said Smith. Whatever the value of this particular show, I am sure the people of El Paso won’t soon forget this past Thursday and hopefully they walked away with some of the message, which was to, “learn more about how delicious and easy a vegetarian lifestyle is," Byrne said. Have a Happy Valentine’s Day and take it easy. Talk to you soon.
--Porsche
"Half-Naked Women Make Out in Downtown For Animals"
Derek Shore-KFOX News Reporter
Thursday, February 12, 2009 – updated: 10:41 am MST February 13, 2009
Derek Shore-KFOX News Reporter
Thursday, February 12, 2009 – updated: 10:41 am MST February 13, 2009
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ReplyDeleteWow. I personally think that this can be considered one of the most ridiculous publicity stunts for 2009. What does this have anything to with being a vegetarian? I understand that they said you can see what a healthy vegetarian body may look like but what else was this supposed to offer? I think that this was a little too extreme. Of course people are going to remember this stunt but are they are going to remember two girls making out or the benefits of being a vegetarian? I thought the message was, “learn more about how delicious and easy a vegetarian lifestyle is.” Where does learning and taste come in to factor with this stunt? Maybe you just had to be there? I think this was not the right way to go at all.
ReplyDelete-Kiah
I believe the PETA event intended to be a "special event" informing people of the many great reasons to become a vegetarian, but the way they chose to implement it seems like it was a publicity stunt.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe two women making out was the smartest way to grab attention, even if they were displaying great bodies of vegetarians.
PETA didn't stop to ask themselves how people would react, or maybe they felt any attention (even if it was negative) would get the job done.
If their goal was disturbing and surprising people and having them take pictures, then their mission was accomplished.
If it was to inform people about being a vegetarian, I'm unsure if they were successful because the pictures that people were taking as they passed by did not reveal anything about being vegetarian. It just revealed two women making out.
Hey, bad press is good press right? Right now there are thousands of articles circulating the net about this one event. For the people at PETA, their mission was obviously accomplished!
ReplyDeleteTravis Francis
PrNoNos.blogspot.com
I'm not sure I'd say PETA accomplished anything but a publicity stunt. I think the organization advocates good causes, but they go about doing it the wrong way. Throwing red dye on people's fur, laying in front of cars, and HALF NAKED KISSING WOMEN IN PUBLIC! They need to get it together and think about some better ways to have the public appreciate them more than they see them as a nuisance.
ReplyDelete