More details in ‘S.C. is so gay’ ad controversy - Brit execs say state officials are lying?
by Matt | July 22nd, 2008 |
Yeah… it pretty much sounds as though British advertising execs Ian Johnson (Out Now Consulting) and Andrew Roberts (Amro Worldwide), who’ve spoken extensively with Q-Notes, are calling South Carolina government officials liars.
According to Q-Notes, Johnson and Roberts say that South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism (SCPRT) officials made “knowingly incorrect statements” regarding the ad campaign’s approval. For days, officials — mostly through spokesperson Marion Edmonds — have said a “low-level employee” approved the ads without permission.
However, Edmonds admitted to Q-Notes that no written policy regarding a prohibition on niche marketing of this type existed prior to this controversy. Further, it was only until the anti-gay flare up of S.C. Gov. Mark Sanford that all ad campaigns will now have to be approved by SCPRT department head Chad Prosser. And, going further, a marketing plan in which the “So Gay” campaign would perfectly fit was found by South Carolina LGBT activists.
That plan read, “Develop and update advertisement creative to showcase the diversity of the state¢s tourism product (new creative will continue to support the traditional up-scale market with a broadened appeal to the middle-income family market; additionally, new creative will continue to include South Carolina’s developed product of golf, beach and sun while simultaneously highlighting additional product niches such as entertainment, shopping, outdoor adventure, historical sites, state parks and Heritage Corridor as relevant to each market; where appropriate creative will support the overall advertising campaign of the agency).”
The lead on the plan was Randolph Romaine, SCPRT’s International Sales Manager for the U.K. and Ireland. Edmonds confirmed to Q-Notes that SCPRT no longer employed Romaine and said his position was more “mid-level management” rather than that of a “low-level employee.”
Read up on the full details at Q-Notes Online.
Matt, 22, is an LGBT journalist, activist and youth advocate currently living and working in Charlotte, N.C., where he serves as the Editor of Q-Notes, the Carolinas' LGBT news source. A native of Winston-Salem, N.C., Matt attended the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and is still continuing to pursue his bachelors degree. He is the Owner & Editor of InterstateQ.com and has been active in LGBT advocacy work since the age of 14.
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