Every once in a while, I stumble across an article on my early morning perusal of news that highlights something so outlandishly stupid, I can’t help but bring it to the table as-is, in full light and with an apple in its ugly little mouth.
Today appears to be a ‘once in a while’ kind of day.
According to a report from VisorDown, South Korean Corporation Kia has just released an advertisement for the new Kia Soul Lane-Keeping Assist. The Lane Assist itself is a great feature for the Soul, purportedly installed to increase safety and awareness in Soul users worldwide.
The Lane Assist feature is not the issue, nor are Kia’s automobiles, which I am sure are lovely.
The problem lies in the advert, which has been embedded at the top of this article.
Keep in mind the perspective of the advert: This is one of a multiple-episode series meant to show the Kia Soul’s place in all aspects of culture.
In the commercial, a driver in a white Kia Soul is overcome by a motorcyclist, geared in black and obviously planned by the advertisement’s director to fit a certain ‘troublemaker’ stereotype.
The driver is distracted by the rider sharing the lane and moves to give room – until the Kia lane-keeping alarm goes off.
At this point, the advert turns dark; in one fell swoop, the driver shouts, “This lane is taken,” swerving towards the motorist and forcing the overwhelmed rider to preserve himself by slamming on the brakes, skidding away from a gnarly accident – and what would have been an absolute mess of a Kia advert.
A bit of research later, and it appears most are equally triggered by the dangerous message of the video – at least, gauging by the 1.1k of Youtube users that have given the original video a hefty ‘thumbs down’ and followed up with a long list of commentary.
To the 14 viewers that gave the advert a ‘thumbs up,’ I ask on behalf of all motorists: Share the road, and for the love of all that’s on two wheels – keep the ego at home.
(EDIT: The advert at the top of the article is a stand-in; the original advert has been made private since the publishing of this article.)