Apple’s New Campaign Slices Both Ways With Viewers

Readers have strong feelings about the new ads for Apple Computer Inc., which use images of such legendary figures as Mohandas K. Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. to establish Apple as the computer for creative people. More than 60 readers, most of them Macintosh owners, voiced opinions about the ads, with favorable comments edging out negative remarks 4 to 3. The ads were created by TBWA Chiat/Day in Venice.

I’ve seen one of the new Apple ads on TV, and it struck me as tragically ironic that the majority of the people depicted as “thinking differently” are dead! When the black and white montage of dead people is compared against the 1984 ad introducing the Macintosh, the contrast couldn’t be clearer: One mentality is rooted in the decaying past and the other is about taking control. Although I identify myself as a Mac person, I believe that Apple’s past and present management have lost their way.

STEPHEN McMANUS, Leucadia, Calif.

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Apple’s new ad campaign preaches to the choir. As a member of that choir, I appreciate the sermon. It reinforces my contention that my choice of a Mac over a PC is simply an extension of my other life choices, and it’s fun to pretend that choice makes me Albert Einstein. Even if Apple disappears tomorrow, I will always characterize myself as a Mac owner in a PC world.

RON GREEN, West Hills

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As a junior high principal, I am impressed with Apple’s new ad campaign. The focus is on risk-takers (Einstein, Gandhi, King) and not some dork named Dick. Since Apple appeals to a younger, more creative market, it seems only logical to use these cutting-edge faces to promote the Mac.

STEVEN KELLER, Brea

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In the ‘80s, Apple established a successful context within which the company did business. In the ‘90s, under me-too leadership, that context was lost. Now, through a focus on “Think Different,” Apple is reestablishing its uniqueness, thereby infusing employees, end users, software providers, retailers and investors with a positive sense of anticipation.

GUY DAY, Westlake Village. (Note: Day is a co-founder of Chiat/Day, now TBWA Chiat/Day.)