NEW JERSEY, November 25, 2001: Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family.

It's that time we share a bountiful feast -- or three -- what with all the leftovers. And time to give thanks for all the good things we have: health, prosperity, family. The roof over our heads. The food on the table. The relaxing in front of the TV.

Which brings us to the issue: watching the television this weekend, I saw a spot for Snickers candy bars that -- well -- angered me. If you haven't seen it, I'll set it up for you:

A gridiron coach is addressing his team in the lockerroom. Although his words of encouragement are filled with gusto and volume, they make no sense -- he tells his team to get out there, get back on the bus, go home, and play video games.

What caused his psychotic speech? It's a nasty side effect of being hungry. If only he had eaten a Snickers candy bar, this "disaster" could have been avoided. The spot concludes with an on-camera announcer making a very "stern" warning: "Don't let hunger happen to you."

Whoa.

Have they even looked at the statistics on hunger?1 In the US alone, the number of Americans seeking food assistance this year rose to 23 million, up 7.5 percent from the last survey four years ago. That's according to a study by a national network of food-aid organizations.

"The rise in the number of hungry Americans over the past four years is striking because it occurred even as the wealthiest and most food-abundant nation in the world was emerging from one of the strongest economic climates in recent history," said Robert Forney, president and chief financial officer of America's Second Harvest.

And hungry kids kids are particularly vulnerable. Second Harvest found that children are disproportionate victims, with nearly 9 percent of those seeking food aid this year were under 5 years old, and 30 percent were aged 6 to 17 years.

The figures are particularly alarming in light of studies that show poor nutrition can hurt a child's long-term cognitive, psychological, social and physical development, the study's authors noted.2

Considering that Snickers targets children, it's nearly inconceivable that a campaign like this could be approved. To suggest that the concept of hunger and its consequences should be avoided -- like a disease -- and that it can be alleviated with a candy bar -- what are we to think of this company?

Callous? Insensitive? Irespsonsible? Take your pick. Even from a corporate perspective, it's bad business.

Not only is Snickers alienating itself -- during the holidays, no less -- with a cold and flip campaign, it dropped an effective and practical one: previous spots suggested if you're going to be in a meeting or situation for a long period of time, better bring a Snickers bar -- to tide you over. This at least made sense, and, we bet, sold a lot of candy bars.

Moreover, according to a recent issue of the Economist, social responsibility is good business. Consumers, the article states, recognize value -- and values -- in a brand. They connect with the qualities and shared concerns that embody a corporation. If a company is ignorant about these important factors, they'll pay the consequences.

Snickers can, we believe, dig out of this mess by donating to a charitable hunger-relief organization. If they can demonstrate that they truly don't want hunger to happen, for real, maybe the campaign can be saved. Not to mention some young lives, as well.

Can you imagine if an Rx company took such a flip attitude toward marketing an Rx brand?

Frankly, we can't.

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