GM Stops Suicide Robot Spot

Filed in archive Announcements on February 16, 2007

Political Correctness Gone Amok

Don't ask me why, but this story amuses me. It turns out that General Motors has caved to pressure from a suicide prevention group and agreed to change an ad that featured an assembly-line robot throwing itself off a bridge after making a mistake.

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention went after them last week, saying that the ad -- which appeared in the Super Bowl -- is a dangerous and insensitive message.

"The ad, in its carelessness, portrays suicide as a viable option when someone fails or loses their job," the group says. "Research has also shown that graphic, sensationalized or romanticized descriptions of suicide deaths in any medium can contribute to suicide contagion, popularly referred to as "copycat" suicides."

Apparently, there must also be research that links fictionalized robot suicides to actual suicidal tendencies, too!

UPDATE on February 16

Oh, the humanity.

Volkswagen also had an ad that features a distraught man standing on the ledge of a tall building. The fellow eventually decides not to jump after finding out that Volkswagen offers three vehicles for less than $17,000.

Guess what group protested that, too, and guess which advertiser complied.