How is politics similar to advertising? During the election race, politicians make many promises. Advertisers do the same, claiming that their product is the best of the best. However, sometimes all this is combined, albeit without the consent of the leaders of the countries, which leads to loud scandals.
There were also cases when presidents voluntarily took part in commercial projects. But first things first.
Let’s start with the misuse of images of presidents in advertising campaigns. True, such advertising did not exist for long. For example, in 2011, posters appeared near the Moscow Central Department Store depicting Medvedev and Putin in white shorts and polo shirts.
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Allegedly, Russian politicians advertised the spring-summer collection of a Moscow department store. As expected, the advertisement did not last long, despite the fact that the unknown artist who acted as the author stated that it was simple street art.
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During his presidency, Barack Obama appeared on a billboard advertising the Weatherproof brand with the slogan “Stylish leader.” It turned out that the American leader was actually photographed in a jacket of this brand, though not for advertising. However, the company considered this permission to use the image. However, at the request of the White House, the advertisement had to be removed.
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Although there was a case when Obama deliberately starred in an advertisement while still being president. And he advertised the medical reform, which was named after him. The goal was to attract users to the site, which introduced digital services in healthcare.
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But Ronald Reagan liked to advertise tobacco products. And this is not surprising, because before his political career he was an artist. And in the 50s of the last century, they did not see anything seditious in this. The most popular advertisement with his participation was a poster of Chesterfield cigarettes, blocks of which the president sent to his friends as a Christmas present.
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The first and last president of the USSR, Mikhail Gorbachev, liked to flaunt in advertising. He first advertised Pizza Hut in 1997. In the video, visitors thanked the Soviet leader for the appearance of the institution in the country and “clinked glasses” with slices of pizza under Gorbachev’s joyful smile.
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After that, advertising campaigns rained down with offers. As a result, in 2000 he appeared in an advertisement for the Austrian railways, and then in 2013 advertised accessories from Louis Vuitton.
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Two years before Gorbachev, Donald Trump and his first wife also advertised the same pizzeria, demonstrating how to eat triangular pieces wrong.
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The Czech writer and the last president of Czechoslovakia, Václav Havel, took part in the ad while already retired. In 2011, he promoted automotive distributor AAA Auto. Moreover, the ex-president did not take money for his participation, but asked for one of the cars, which he advertised. True, he did not leave it to himself, but transferred it to his charitable foundation.
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Well, let’s end with another illegal advertisement, which clearly surpasses all those mentioned. We are talking about the appearance of Angela Merkel on the poster of underwear Bruno Banani. Needless to say, it shows her in a brand kit, as well as several officials behind her.
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The most interesting thing is that there was no reaction, and to all questions regarding this topic, the ex-chancellor modestly stated: “No comment.”
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