American Apparel critiqued


O, American Apparel! Whenever will the “culture jammers” solve the dilemma as to whether it is okay to shop there? Anyway, the above billboard, spotted in Soho, purports to be an American Apparel ad depicting the backside of a naked woman leaning over to display her ass while rubbing her privates from behind. Tasteful! Well, it was a spoof, as evidenced by the fact that it was replaced as of ten minutes ago this morning with a Joe’s Jeans ad, but in its short lifespan it managed to convince the advertising blogger Copyranter and my friend Don, which just goes to show you what we’ve come to expect from American Apparel. And to the culture jammers’ credit, this spoof looks like it could have been an “inside” job: the tag line: “Safe to say she loves her socks,” is the exact same tag line they used on an ad for their signature tube socks featuring the porn star Lauren Phoenix. And, if the email from internal AA sources last time we wrote about American Apparel is anything to go by, morale at the company is not all coked-up exuberance and bandeau-bedecked orgies!