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| February 1, 2007 Editor’s Desk by Aaron Selbig, insurgent49 It’s been a big, wild week here at Insurgent Headquarters. Big Wild Life. That’s it. That is the Municipality of Anchorage’s new “brand”, our spiffy new slogan meant to entice tourists and businesses to come to our fair city. That is what the city paid $80,000 (at least) to two advertising agencies to come up with. It took them several months to dream up “Big Wild Life”. Big Wild Life. Hmm … I have to say I’m a bit underwhelmed. Personally, I was looking forward to the big unveiling of the new brand. I thought it was a terrific idea to come up with a new slogan, logo, advertising campaign, etc. for Anchorage. Anchorage is a young city stuck between an Alaska stereotype and a reputation throughout the rest of the state as being a crime-ridden, dirty place. It could use a shot of identity. It has been more than twenty years since Anchorage had its last attempt at a slogan, “Wild About Anchorage”. Is “Big Wild Life” really all that different? And whatever happened to our cheesy mascot, Seymour the tuxedoed moose? Is he still part of the brand campaign? And, as long as we’re asking questions, what exactly is “Big Wild Life” supposed to mean? Are we “Big” overweight gluttons? Are we “Wild” partying alcoholics with a penchant for shooting each other? Is “Wild Life” supposed to be an allusion to our animal pals who live here (whom we like to kill if they get too close to our garbage)? And how wild is Anchorage anymore, really? I am trying not to be cynical about the new brand (really, I swear), but honestly, I was hoping for something more. I understand that such a big buildup to an ad campaign like this sets itself up for criticism, for people to naturally hate it, but still … I can’t help hating it. The video is cool, though. If you go and check out the website (yes, Big Wild Life already has a website), you can watch a three-minute video about life in Anchorage. “Life in Anchorage ranges from huge to epic to downright gargantuan”, exclaims the narrator, as images of folks kayaking, ice climbing and Nordic skiing flash across the screen. It’s not bad, and it’s a fair representation of the city’s culture (except I’d like to know where in the Anchorage bowl you can go whitewater rafting … Westchester Lagoon?) I guess I can understand what the Municipality and the ad agencies involved in this project were going for. They’re trying to paint a picture of an Anchorage that is young and full of vitality, a city that is surrounded by wilderness and likes to play hard in it. That’s all well and good. But “Big Wild Life”? I don’t get the slogan. It doesn’t say anything to me. It doesn’t sound like something that will get repeated by locals. It sounds like another lame attempt, like “Wild About Anchorage”, to cast ourselves as something we’re not. Anchorage is surrounded by wilderness, yes, but it is a city, and that fact is nothing to be ashamed of. I wish that our new brand would have embraced that fact a little more. Is it too late to start over? Can we get our $80,000 back? Aaron Selbig is an activist and media junkie who resides in an undisclosed location in downtown Anchorage. He is the winner of a 2006 Alaska Press Club award for Best Editorial Writing, host of KUDO 1080 AM's 'The Aaron Selbig Show' and a co-founder of Insurgent49. Aaron may be contacted at editor@insurgent49.com 'Editor's Desk' appears on insurgent49.com every Thursday. |
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January 25, 2007 January 18, 2007 January 11, 2007 January 4, 2007 December 28, 2006 December 21, 2006 December 14, 2006 December 7, 2006 November 30, 2006 November 23, 2006 November 10, 2006 November 3, 2006 October 27, 2006 October 13, 2006 October 6, 2006 September 29, 2006 September 22, 2006 September 15, 2006 September 8, 2006 September 1, 2006 August 25, 2006 August 18, 2006 August 11, 2006 August 4, 2006 July 28, 2006 July 21, 2006 July 14, 2006 June 30, 2006 June 23, 2006 June 16, 2006 June 9, 2006 June 2, 2006 May 26, 2006 May 12, 2006 May 5, 2006 April 28, 2006 April 21, 2006 April 14, 2006 April 7, 2006 March 31, 2006 March 24, 2006 March 17, 2006 March 3, 2006 February 24, 2006 February 17, 2006 February 10, 2006 February 3, 2006 January 27, 2006 January 20, 2006 January 13, 2006 January 6, 2006 December 30, 2005 December 23, 2005 December 16, 2005 December 10, 2005 December 2, 2005 November 25, 2005 November 18, 2005 November 11, 2005 November 4, 2005 October 28, 2005 October 21, 2005 October 14, 2005 October 7, 2005 September 30, 2005 September 23, 2005 September 16, 2005 September 9, 2005 September 2, 2005 August 26, 2005 August 19, 2005 August 12, 2005 August 5, 2005 July 29, 2005 July 22, 2005 July 15, 2005 July 8, 2005 July 1, 2005 June 24, 2005 June 17, 2005 June 10, 2005 June 3, 2005 May 27, 2005 May 20, 2005 May 13, 2005 May 6, 2005 April 28, 2005 April 21, 2005 April 14, 2005 April 7, 2005 April 1, 2005 |
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