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Did You Buy Skechers Shape-ups? You May Be Eligible For a Refund. Yes, this commercial was probably too good to be true. The Federal Trade Commission said Wednesday that Skechers agreed to pay $40 million to settle charges it misled consumers with claims that its toning sneakers would do everything from help them lose weight to make their “bottom half their better half” without ever going to a gym. So this 2010 commercial (which aired during the Super Bowl) was false.
The announcement comes eight months after Reebok settled similar FTC charges for $25 million. Along with singling out deceptive ads, such as Super Bowl ads (like this one featuring Kim Kardashian) and Brooke Burke, the FTC said research underlying the claims was suspect.
The Skechers sneakers didn’t just fail to live up to their purported fitness claims, the FTC says. They they may have had the opposite effect. Consumers not only “didn’t lose weight, they gained weight,” says David Vladeck, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.
Consumers who bought any of the Skechers sneakers covered by the settlement can learn more and file for a refund at ftc.gov/Skechers.
-LD
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Local Comedians Make Creative “Get Well Glenn” Video. The entire NBC10 family (along with Glenn himself) has been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support for our chief meteorologist Glenn Schwartz in the past week. As we first told you last Wednesday (or as Glenn first tweeted), Glenn underwent double bypass heart surgery after a 99% blockage in one of his arteries. Every Facebook post and Twitter update has led to considerable viewer feedback, and we updated everyone yesterday that Glenn was going home to recover, and for that we are even happier.
In the meantime, three local comedians took to Youtube to create their own “Get Well Glenn” tribute. The 7+ minute video, posted on Wednesday, features Andrew and Paul Sigwart (both of Berlin, NJ) and Kristen Campbell (of Magnolia, NJ). It chronicles their “we don’t know how to dress accordingly because our on-air meteorologist is so distractingly attractive” syndrome, includes “Glenn Vision Glasses” and more.
We caught up with Andrew Sigwart (donning the bowtie at the beginning of the video) Thursday to ask him about the work:
NBC10: What led you to create the video?
Sigwart: The exaggerated concept of Glenn needing to report the weather at some point in the evening (in addition to Sheena) was kind of a running joke I’ve had (the whole thing stemming from someone walking into the room on Thanksgiving while the news was on and clearly not paying attention to the forecast).
NBC10: How much time did it take to produce?
Sigwart: Not long. I wrote the script on Saturday, we all met to shoot it on Tuesday, I edited it Tuesday night, let it render out into Wednesday morning, and then I uploaded Wednesday morning before I went to work.
NBC10: What was the message you were trying to get across?
Sigwart: I just wanted to try to get a laugh from Hurricane. As the cliche goes, laughter is the best medicine. I just remember the promos he used to do with John Bolaris, and they were really funny, so I figured he had a good sense of humor about him and wouldn’t mind the skit.
NBC10: Is there a message beyond “Get Well Glenn” that you’d like to send to our chief meteorologist?
Sigwart: Aside from get well soon…if he ever wants to make a cameo in a Youtube video, just let me know. Also, I hope we were able to get him to laugh!
-LD
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Pop Chips Pulls Ashton Kutcher Ad. The company behind the controversial ads that are buzzing around the web has responded.
From TIME:
Following an Internet outcry, Pop Chips pulled the clip of the character, “Raj”, from its official YouTube and Facebook pages, the New York Times reported. If you haven’t seen it, you didn’t miss anything (an abbreviated version exists here). The campaign featured Kutcher doing fake dating service videos dressed as four different characters–a stoner, a biker gang-type, a Karl Lagerfield-esque guy, and then Raj–all “bachelors” looking for love. They each got their own clips and all of them shared a penchant for a certain brand of potato chips. While the other characters were mostly just unfunny one-dimensional cut-outs, having Ashton dress up to give a canned Indian impression in brown-face came off tacky and pretty offensive.
Pop Chips founder and CEO Keith Belling responded on the company website Wednesday, saying:
We received a lot feedback about the dating campaign parody we launched today and appreciate everyone who took the time to share their point of view. Our team worked hard to create a light-hearted parody featuring a variety of characters that was meant to provide a few laughs. we did not intend to offend anyone. I take full responsibility and apologize to anyone we offended.
Chime in: Do you think the Ashton Kutcher/Popchips ad is racist?
-LD
Pop Chips, TIME, New York Times, Youtube
Photo: Youtube
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April Fools Day: Philly Launches Specific Sidewalk Space for People Who Can’t Walk Without Texting. UPDATED at 3:30 p.m.: The City has confirmed that this was an April Fool’s joke to raise awareness to the issue of walking and texting.
The City of Philadelphia jokingly launched (with the above Youtube video) what they’re calling the E-Lane (Electronic Device Lane) for those who can’t look up from their phones long enough to actually walk down the street. While the campaign is a hoax, the first E-Lane was actually painted on the 1400 block of JFK Boulevard (across from City Hall), and was described as “a dedicated sidewalk space exclusively for pedestrians who wish to use electronic devices while walking,” in a release on the Wordpress blog for the Mayor’s Office of Transportation and Security.
“Stand on any sidewalk in Philadelphia and you will see fellow citizens with busy lives who can’t take the time to look up from their IPhones, BlackBerries and other electronic devices,” says Mayor Michael Nutter. “The E-Lane is a safe and convenient option for those distracted walkers and should make sidewalks safer for the rest of us. More Philadelphians than ever before rely on mobile technology to do business and stay in touch with family and friends . We need to accommodate them.”
Again, the Mayor’s office has confirmed that this campaign was made as a hoax to raise awareness to the issue.
-LD
[Youtube, Mayor’s Office of Transportation and Utilities, h/t The20’s @dpbell]
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Philadelphia Union Not-So-Friendly in Costa Rica. The Union are on a preseason tour of Costa Rica in preparation of the MLS season. Yesterday, their opponent was AD Belen, and let’s just say the match didn’t end as planned. With Belen leading 2-0 midway through the first half, the game was called off due to some kicking and shoving between the teams (as seen in the video above). It is not really clear from the video what really started the bad blood.
As translated by local soccer blog “The Brotherly Game,” Belen’s website declared that the Union had played “anti-football” and did not consider the game a friendly.
The Union have declined to comment on the incident.
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USA Beats Italy For First Time Ever In Soccer Friendly. 78 years and 11 games was all it took for the United States Men’s National Team to beat Italy in soccer, and it happened Wednesday. Clint Dempsey, who is a veteran of two World Cups, scored the decisive goal in America’s 1-0 win. Surprisingly, he’s only the fourth U.S. player ever to score against the Italians in those 11 games.
The20 reacts below:
@dhm: USA beats Italy in soccer! Legally, they have to take Snooki now.
@BrianPHickey: USA USA USA USA! Way to go Clint Dempsey et al.
-LD
[NBCSports.com, Youtube, @dhm, @brianphickey]
Photo: Getty Images
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Bethlehem Bashes Foursquare After “Least Romantic City” Rating. We told you Tuesday about social networking site Foursquare ranking Bethlehem, Pa. the second least romantic city in America, based on check-ins to places deemed “romantic” for couples, including French restaurants, wine bars, flower shops and lingerie boutiques. The release happened to coincide with Bethlehem’s “Week of Romance,” drawing multiple complaints from Bethlehem residents. Now the town has decided to take on Foursquare.
To refute Foursquare’s claims, the Downtown Bethlehem Association has released a video mockery of the location-based social networking site, depicting a man trying to propose to his girlfriend during the “Week of Romance” before he is repeatedly interrupted by her act of “checking-in.”
Quick and well-done, Bethlehem. Your move, Foursquare.
-LD
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The Chipotle Ad That Stole the Show At the Grammy’s. Yes, Sunday night was very much about Adele sweeping with six awards at Sunday’s Grammy Awards, along with Jennifer Hudson performing a moving tribute to Whitney Houston. But it was burrito-chain Chipotle’s “Back to the Start” ad, which featured Willie Nelson covering Coldplay’s “The Scientist,” that still has people talking.
The spot, which actually was released online last August, has picked up over 5 million views on YouTube (over 1 million in the past 36 hours). But why was it so interesting?
Talking about the company’s long-held “food with integrity” stance, AdAge explains:
“The two-minute spot is the chain’s first national TV ad…The ad takes viewers through one farmer’s journey, from a huge industrialized farming compound to one with more-sustainable and humane practices. Chipotle encouraged viewers to download the song at iTunes, with proceeds going to the Chipotle Cultivate Foundation.”
The20’s @anniemal weighed in with another interesting idea for Chipotle’s next commercial (is it Chi-pol-tee or Chi-pote-lay):
@anniemal: I’d like to see Chipotle do a spot where they explain how to pronounce their name.
What did you think of the commercial?
-LD
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![David Beckham Embarassed by Super Bowl Ad. It appears the H&M ad that showcased soccer player David Beckham in underwear embarrassed the man who appeared in it. From Vogue UK:
“When we were watching the Super Bowl yesterday in a room of about 20 people and it came on and I actually didn’t know where to look,” Beckham told a US radio station Monday. ”I’m very shy. It was kind of embarrassing,” he admitted.
Following a promotional event for H&M in London Wednesday, Beckham said even his kids were uncomfortable with his newest promotional foray. Beckham confessed their reaction was,
“Oh my god daddy, not again. It’s good, but everyone is going to see you in your pants!”
In related news, Beckham added his “naked days are over”
-LD
[Youtube, Vogue UK, h/t The20’s @PhillyGG]
Photo: Getty Images](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lz3b3ewA1I1qfnxkko1_500.jpg)
David Beckham Embarassed by Super Bowl Ad. It appears the H&M ad that showcased soccer player David Beckham in underwear embarrassed the man who appeared in it. From Vogue UK:
“When we were watching the Super Bowl yesterday in a room of about 20 people and it came on and I actually didn’t know where to look,” Beckham told a US radio station Monday. ”I’m very shy. It was kind of embarrassing,” he admitted.
Following a promotional event for H&M in London Wednesday, Beckham said even his kids were uncomfortable with his newest promotional foray. Beckham confessed their reaction was,
“Oh my god daddy, not again. It’s good, but everyone is going to see you in your pants!”
In related news, Beckham added his “naked days are over”
-LD
[Youtube, Vogue UK, h/t The20’s @PhillyGG]
Photo: Getty Images
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Ferris Bueller’s Super Bowl Ad Officially Released. The internet was buzzing last week when a mysterious Ferris Bueller teaser ad popped up on the web. Who was the ad for? And what would it include?
Well, Honda ended the speculation and released the official ad Monday morning (an “extended version” at 2:25) on YouTube.
Watch and share your reactions below.
-LD
