http://www.theticker.org/about/2.8217/defending-lennon-s-legacy-1.2197122
March 22, 2010
by Lillian Rizzo
A few weeks ago, Yoko Ono authorized an advertiser to use John
Lennon's image and words for a Citroen DS3 automobile advertisement,
causing a controversy that led to an attack against her on the social
networking site Twitter.
What makes this dispute different than most involving Ono is that her
son, Sean Ono Lennon, came to her defense, and had to fend off
furious Tweeters.
While the cheesy ad did use obviously doctored old footage, the
attack against Ono seemed deeper than this. Fans have always looked
to the late Beatle's wife as a reason for why the group fell apart.
Her name already carried a negative connotation, and this commercial
just added fuel to the fire.
The Twitter battle followed on Feb. 23 after the release of the
advertisement, when a Twitter user created an account and began
'@'-ing Ono and Lennon comments about his fury. He begins his rant
with, "Citroen $000's for the Ono's! Enjoy the money...can't buy you love!"
Sean initially responded with a quip accusing the Twitter user of
being a "stalker" and having no life. But when the response
questioned the surviving family members' love for the late Beatle and
how they used his fame primarily for cash flow, Lennon's temper
flared, and an exchange between the two prompted other fans to get involved.
Sean Lennon made a final defense for the decision to use his father
in the advertisement. He wrote on his Twitter, "Look, TV ad was not
for money. It's just hard to find new ways to keep dad in the new
world. Not many things as effective as TV. Having just seen ad I
realize why people are mad. But intention was not financial, was
simply wanting to keep him out there in the world."
Fans couldn't understand his reasoning. But was it really so
difficult to get? The young Lennon was defending his surviving
parent, and said that he was fueled by love and respect, not greed.
With or without this ad, the mother and son are not exactly going
bankrupt, so the accusation of avarice is just silly.
It is also understandable that the family is trying to keep Lennon's
memory alive. While he will always be remembered as a Beatle, his
image and words are not as culturally prominent as they once were.
Yes, there could have been other ways to reintroduce us to Lennon,
but in a world that watches TV so much, it does make sense to reach
out to them in this way.
Those that posted outraged comments about the advertisement also
seemed to forget the hypocrisy of it all. The first concerns about
the Beatles' musical exploitation were in 1987, when Nike was sued
for using Revolution in an ad. But now it has become such a regular
part of society that it doesn't seem out-of-place to hear '60s music
selling mass-produced products.
This cyber war did not occur when Blackberry released its commercial
featuring the Beatles' song "All You Need is Love" months ago. While
the responsibility of this ad fell out of Ono's hands, Michael
Jackson, owner of the Beatles' music, did not come under fire for
this. The same song was also used in 2008 for diaper brand Luv's commercials.
When Lennon and McCartney sat down to write this tune, their
intention was not to sell products. It was simply to state that the
one thing this world lacks is love.
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