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.
-Lillian Rizzo ‘10
Journalism major
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