Agency Chief tells Mums to get off Facebook and play with their kids?!

[Cornflakemum]

"Gerry Graf thinks the Internet is getting a little out of hand. So, the longtime TBWA\Chiat\Day and Saatchi & Saatchi creative director, who recently opened his own agency, Barton F. Graf 9000, whipped up the video below called "The Log Off," encouraging moms everywhere to put down the Facebook and play with their kids instead. "

Check out the YouTube video here

Whilst I understand the sentiment, why just MUMS?? ] anger

What about all the Dads on their ipads and blackberrys all weekends?

(Clearly designed to be controversial and drum up support for his new agency, but I bet it will backfire spectacularly!)

AdWeek article with video embedded at the bottom of the page.

He's been talking to Alan Sugar!

(Graf, that is.)

Graf served as creative director, copywriter and art director on this ?viral? video, which features a cutesy tune and lip-synching children who just want some time with mommy, though she?s too busy social networking away on Facebook.

Maybe now that Graf?s hired an old TBWA\Chiat\Day NY colleague, he hopefully won?t have to shoulder so much of the creative responsibility on the next project.

(Ha ha ha. Love it. Taken from AgencySpy here )

I'm ignoring DS2 as we speak. Am working from home and I absolutely can't leave my computer to play with my kid or I'll be in the merde. It's only been for an hour every three days this week as nursery can't take him past 4pm this week. He's watching the Gruffalo, seems happy enough.

Am I in trouble with Gerry, do we think? (And do I really care?!)

Today:

I sorted out breakfast and washing and had a wash while DD watched CBeebies.
Played on the chalkboard with DD.
Put DD down for a nap. Spent a good 1 1/2 on MN while she was asleep.
Cooked lunch with DD.
Pootled in the garden with DD. Had a look at interwebs while she was occupied and I was bored.
Now I am back on MN and she is playing with playdoh next to me.

She is in bed by 7.30, so I'm perfectly entitled to spend all evening online if I want too, though I tend not to unless there's something particularly interesting going on.

I am always available, I'm also PG and hitting the brunt of that first trimester knackeredness atm so spend a fair amount of time crashing on the sofa. DD comes and says hello and brings me toys and books and it's not hard to give her my attention when she does that.

If I start finding that difficult I take a break from being online at all or go back to my 2pm rule.

I do agree that you can spend too much time online in an addictiony type way. But I think if you're a mum and you're doing that it's probably got more to do with being distracting yourself from something you're unhappy about than deliberately avoiding your DC.

sorry - the point of the above was that you can have a big online footprint without it adding up to as much 'neglecting dc time' as it looks like!

This campaign has much in common with the Garry Lacey 'Career women make bad mothers' campaign.

Both have the same real target audience - Marketing Directors in big corporations.

Both have a similar message - traditional advertising channels are superior and still relevant.

Both use mothers as their scape-goats.

This campaign is smearing Facebook as a social ill. Reassuring Marketing Directors that it's ok if they don't understand how to use social network marketing because it'll not last.

To me it's all a bit sad and desperate. And it makes me angry that it'll make women feel bad about themselves (yet again).

OOh - how exciting - the first thread I've had make 'Discussions of the Day' for ages....

Agree he's a knob...

Unfortunately they are US-based, so I probably haven't got a reason the ask him to pitch for my multi-£-million ad budget and then tell him he didn't get it 'cos he's a sexist tosser

But I'm sure hundreds of senior women in advertising will do it for me ....

Do I really have to leave the computer and join ds as he plays outside with his friends like he does after school every single day in decent weather?! I fear I'm a bit too old for killing dinosaurs with lightsabers or whatever they do.

Although I would at least score points with the let children play outside instead of spending time with their needy and overinvolved mothers people... or whatever the fuck mothers are also blamed for.

DH is home already and playing with DD in the garden.

I'm not sure why I am required also, having played with her for many hours today!

Don't give twunts like him headspace.

In our house it should be "log off mumsnet mum!"

Well, if I wasn't on MN at the moment, I'd be sitting here twiddling my thumbs, as I'm keeping an eye on DD2 as she plays outside on her bike. The computer is conveniently placed in the office window so I can happily surf while she and her friends play :)

Oh another dinosaur campaign from a dinosaur chief in a dinosaur industry.

I'm not holding my breath for his campaign telling fathers to get off the sports channels and the porn sites.

The twat.

what a dick

I have been out for nine hours with my dds today, during the course of which they humiliated me by:

-in Waterstone's (by asking loudly and repeatedly if one of them "was a racist" for not wanting to go halves and buy a book on Egyptology)

-on the 24 bus (speaking in ridiculous cod scoooooatish accents- also if you hiss to one of them to pipe down a bit she has developed a habit of saying loudly "ooh, harsh")

-on train kicking their travelling companions with their filthy crocs despite constant warnings- and then sniggering because the woman opposite was drinking Highland Spring- cue more whispered scooooatish

after seeing that toss, I am now mostly going to stay on the computer all fucking night. If 15 Peter 20 or whatever the fuck his name is wants to take off his wank pod headphones and put down his knob/i pad/whatever and give the little sods a bath and read them a glitter fairy book he is MORE than welcome.

prick.

In a 3 year old this would be called attention seeking behaviour. In an adult you get paid for it and its called PR. Now, any damn fool Mother knows that you should only give attention to positive behaviour and you should ignore the bad. So sorry Gerry.. .

I can't quite believe he has the balls to be quite so offensive. What a moron. Having moved away from all our friends recently Facebook is a brilliant medium for me and the kids to keep in touch with our friends and whats happening in thier lives. Will supposedly educated, intellectuals please just give parents a break. we are allowed some interatiojn with other people and I suspect most of us only do it when our children are either asleep, at school/nursery or generally otherwise happily and safely occupied. I totally agree with the idea of a campaign against daytime telly it can be incredibly patronising viewing.

Mr Ad Agency.....just do one fella ok?

ooopps type-o I meant interaction. sorry my rant was full on !

so was mine, Lottee

my keyboard was fair smokin'

I agree with it

mmm, wonder if he talks to his wife like that.

You know what, men really hate women getting together and talking about stuff that's not about them. That's why so few films show women together talking about somethnig other than a man. Our lives should revolve around them.

That's why they hate the internet. Thousands of women talking to each other, exchanging details about our lives, supporting each other, laughing with each other and encouraging each other to expect more from men (if they're in our lives), without men controlling our conversation. Twats like this know what a threat it is to piss-poor men like hiim.

Completely agree Herbeggs.

herbeggs, i think you have a good point

alot of people esp press/media seem to be quite threated by us mumsnetters as a community

perhaps they realise the strength we have together
you only have to see they way the policitions try to canvas us at election time, to know they see us as influential people