got problems? got milk.

Got Milk?

The slogan has been around since 1993 when advertising agency, Goodby Silverstein & Partners, was approached by the California Milk Processor Board to come up with an ad campaign that would make people drink milk again.

The ads, which featured every celebrity (and character) from Heidi Klum to Batman and David Beckham, showed the superstars with the infamous milk mustache plastered on their face for all of us to swoon over.

The campaign was likable, cute and sometimes even funny (check out some of the ads to the left). But lately, milk has been working to shed that cutesy image and try something a bit more…controversial.

Their new campaign, which was launched a few weeks ago, is called, "Everything I do is Wrong" and as The Washington Post states, "plays on the idea that men don’t know how to handle women as they approach their period".

 

What does that have to do with milk, you ask?

Apparently, studies from the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology (1998) show that milk (and other dairy products that contain Vitamin D and Calcium) help reduce the symptoms of PMS.

Yes, ladies! Milk helps relieve symptoms of PMS. You know, that time of the month were you feel groggy, irritable, bloated and just plain pissed off. Now just eat some cheese, yogurt or milk (4 servings) and feel less groggy, irritable, bloated or just plain pissed off!

Anyway, the campaign has turned many heads and raised quite the debate after releasing a micro site (everythingidoiswrong.org: which featured a "Puppy Dog-Eye-zer" and an "I'm Sorry Video Generator" for men to use), billboards, posters and social media pages.

Their micro site has since been redirected to GotDiscussion.org, where you can find comments, videos and the actual study which prompted this campaign. The comments vary from completely insulted to "lighten up" because some men think it's accurate and some are insulted. Some women think it's educational and some think it's sexist.

The California Milk Processor Board's intentions? Just to be funny. Sadly, as the website AdRants explains, "Oh it's a dangerous road to travel when marketers decide to poke fun at, well, just about anything these days."

And just like that, the ad campaign was pulled.

So what's the problem? Are people nowadays too stuffy and can't take a joke? Or are the ads seriously sexist? Decide for yourself. Click here to watch the CNN segment.