Obay

Recently strange ads for a drug called "Obay" began appearing around Toronto. The ads were pretty obviously satirical, but who was responsible for them? The Church of Scientology was an early suspect, since they're well known for their anti-psychiatry stance. But it turned out they had nothing to do with the ad campaign.

The Torontoist tracked down the real culprit. It's an advocacy group called Colleges Ontario, which represents twenty-four colleges in Ontario. The Torontoist writes:

Rob Savage, Colleges Ontario's Director of Communications, called Torontoist moments ago to confirm that Colleges Ontario is indeed behind the ads, and the organization just sent out a press release with information about a media launch event next Monday at (fittingly) Centennial College that promises to reveal "the news behind Obay and its side effects on Ontario’s Post-secondary Education." Torontoist will be there.

Advertising Health/Medicine

Posted on Fri Feb 22, 2008


Comments

No matter how you slice it, the ad campaign is HILARIOUS...
Posted by Christopher  on  Fri Feb 22, 2008  at  06:31 PM
It wasn't until my second viewing just now that I realized the Obay(TM) / obey connection. Stupid me...
Posted by Taed  on  Fri Feb 22, 2008  at  07:44 PM
". . .and the organization just sent out a press release with information about a media launch event next Monday at (fittingly) Centennial College. . ."

Why is it fitting that it be Centennial College?
Posted by Accipiter  on  Fri Feb 22, 2008  at  09:39 PM
>>Why is it fitting that it be Centennial College?<<

I was wondering the same thing.
Posted by The Curator  in  San Diego  on  Sat Feb 23, 2008  at  10:05 AM
Very funny - and very true - exactly what drugs like Prozac and Ritalin do. (I'm not anti-psychiatry, I just think most problems 'solved' by drugs are nothing more than people acting outside the norm)
Posted by Nona  on  Mon Feb 25, 2008  at  05:31 AM
We know this product isn't real because every kid in North America isn't being forced to take it yet.
Posted by Big Gary  on  Tue Feb 26, 2008  at  06:20 PM
how subversive is it to go to college, unless this is an anti-university campaign, and then the colleges should be ashamed of how many high school grads are eliminated from programs in favour of university-educated kids

definitely a two-tier system even within the colleges
Posted by lylaone  on  Sun Mar 02, 2008  at  01:13 PM
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