Out Now's campaign for Amro Worldwide is making news. The "So Gay" campaign is getting a lot of media attention in the US market. South Carolina and its politicians are involved. Unfortunately South Carolina is so NOT gay based on what we are seeing.


Ian Johnson, Out Now
July 12, 2008

Homophobia is alive and well in the American South.

To say that watching the current media swarm around this campaign was pleasant is not true. It just profoundly disappoints me -- personally, and professionally.

The homophobia, political hypocrisy and prejudice rampant in South Carolina which this campaign has revealed is a real eye-opener.

The basis of the Amro Worldwide 'So Gay' advertising campaign currently appearing at Leicester Square Underground is to sell travel. It also needs to attract the attention of 2 million busy commuters in the few seconds they have as they pass by. It also has the opportunity to try and take the sting out of the phrase "so gay" which young people use as an insult these days, and which lesbians and gay men find disrespectful.

Attaching the phrase "So Gay" to a destination - even South Carolina, serves to do all of the above in a matter of seconds.

The fact the campaign uses "So Gay" as a positive phrase, not a negative one, has been largely ignored in much of the politically inspired media coverage about the campaign.

One fact, for the record -- the campaign has not been "canceled". Not at all.

The Amro Worldwide ads, including those for South Carolina, are still there for all to see at Leicester Square Tube station in London.

The advertising

The original campaign (with apologies for the busker music -- will try to post a better edit here this week) is able to be seen at our YouTube.com/GayMarketing channel.




You may also find this local TV news report on the Amro "So Gay" story enlightening.

What happened is this

Last week Out Now, our client Amro Worldwide and the London representative for South Carolina Tourism were approached by a journalist working for an online blog, The Palmetto Scoop.

We were asked how much money the campaign had cost the South Carolina Parks, Recreation and Tourism Department (SCPRT) -- a taxpayer funded body.

I knew the amount to be only £2,500 -- a little over $4,800 when the campaign was costed, some months ago.

But we were asked to direct all inquiries to the SCPRT representative. So I did not respond.

Then this week a 'shock, horror' story appears in said blog, doctoring the actual image of the South Carolina advertisement to make it appear only about the headline, conveniently erasing the fact that the advertisement is about selling travel to gays and lesbians in the UK.

Politics crushes business, tourism and equality

The South Carolina economy is doing badly apparently and could really do with some pink pounds at the moment -- but as a result of the hamfisted approach Friday of those running the SCPRT body, I expect the State will see reduced tourism for years to come.

Not just from gays and lesbians. But from their families and friends.

Politics triumphing over logic and good business is not a nice thing to watch.

I found myself on the inside this week watching the way politicians and bureaucrats behave. Sickening. To say there are some 'creative' re-interpretations of the facts would be an understatement. To witness that at firsthand is really quite depressing.

The comments out there on the blogosphere are not always nice reading either.

There was one though that I liked, left at the original blog report on this, where the (gay) commenter wrote:

We are everywhere: we fix your car, cook your food, clean your house, invest your money, take care of you when you’re sick, write your books, pave your roads, haul your trash, manage your hotels, counsel your needs, hear your court cases and even pass your laws. You don’t have to like it or even approve it, but you better get used to it because we are not going anywhere.

South Carolina so gay? Not at all apparently and now many millions of dollars worth of gay consumer spending will very swiftly find its way elsewhere. To somewhere more welcoming.

South Carolina ranks 49th (second last) on the league table of US states for educational achievement. That might help explain the actions of their politicians. What a silly political decision motivated by misunderstanding. And tourism businesses in South Carolina will suffer for years to come as a result. How disappointing for them.

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