We’ve all had that moment, watching a movie or an ad where someone is doing some serious stunt driving.  I have that all the time while watching a Fast and Furious film.  It’s a fantasy to want to rush out and hop into a car and attempt to replicate the outrageous stunts.  However, a recent ad for the Jeep Cherokee has some critics concerned it is endorsing dangerous driving.

The Guardian points to complaints over in England having issues with a Jeep radio ad that encouraged drivers to drive the Jeep Cherokee dangerously in winter weather.  The ad featured a weather forecast calling for a ton of snow.  A voice-over comes on saying, “Time to play” with a cut away to hearing “snow mode activated” in an electronic voice.  The tag line was then announced: “Make winter your favorite sport with Jeep.  This season, get the new Jeep Cherokee.”

The line of “time to play” is what is causing Jeep the most grief.  A massive amount of 6 people complained that this specific line was the culprit for irresponsible driving.  This line proved that Jeep was secretly informing drivers to use the Jeep Cherokee no matter the weather, and lizard people are real.

Fiat-Chrysler’s response was that the line was meant to single that the Cherokee is ideal for winter weather and has modes made to help drivers out on the ice and snow.  The RACC, the clearance body of commercial radio’s advertising, agreed with Chrysler’s statement.  However, the Advertising Standards Authority did not.

They saw the “time to play” line as “…subsequently encouraged unsafe driving practices.”  It is hard not to shake my head at this.  We have, as a public, been widely informed on how marketing works.  There’s even a popular TV show centered on the people who use media to manipulate emotions to get people to buy products.  There is always the question of when does marketing cross a line and with the world of car commercials out there, I can’t say this one did anything egregious.  Chrysler is right that the “time to play” is in reference to the people who enjoy Jeeps for what they can do, especially in bad weather.  To say that it encourages bad driving is just silly.

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