The Texas Governor’s Office of Economic Development and Tourism has awarded Dallas-based advertising agency Slingshot the much sought-after tourism marketing and ad services account. After a two month review, the Governor's office decided to leave TM Advertising (also in Dallas), and hand the task over to Slingshot's new "Team Texas", which includes the agency's team as well as the creative boutique Belmont Icehouse and a couple other international partners. The account will be managed in Dallas, but Slingshot is planning on opening an office in Austin. Stroll down memory lane with TM's archive of Texas Tourism materials and get to know Slingshot's work to make guesses as to which Willie Nelson song and what kind of cowboy boots will get featured in the upcoming campaign. Tell us: Do you think we're in for a complete overhaul of our tourism advertising, or do you think we'll just get a new spin on the "It's Like a Whole Other Country" tagline? more ›

Since Tim Pawlenty is now out of the race, Rick Perry snatched up his ad wizard Lucas Baiano. Baiano appears to favor Michael Bay-esque sequences. Surprisingly, there's no image of the Capitol Records building toppled by an earthquake or the White House being taken out by a ginormous wave in this new Perry ad. Instead, the ad shows spaces void of people to represent the lack of job growth (we think that's what it symbolizes) and then a whole heck of a lot of quick edits spin to Perry and how "it's time to get America workin' again." And when we say quick, we mean quick -- towards the end, the video throws up random images so quickly it's like a strobe light trying to send subliminal messages. What do you think? Does this make you want to buy what Perry's selling? (Remember, he won't be bought for $5,000.) more ›

• Mubarak resigns!!!
• Earlier: Protesters enraged after the Eqyptian army confirmed its support for Mubarak.
• Meanwhile in Iran, "Death to Mubarak!" and: "Death to America!"

• Just imagine if you got to the Super Bowl, and they didn’t have a seat to match the ticket you bought from their lottery! Here’s a first-person account of an SMU journalism professor who was part of the Super Bowl’s XLV’s ticketgate.
• People are immigrating illegally from India via Brownsville?
• There’s an opera about Anna Nicole Smith opening in London?

• Why the spectacle of the Super Bowl is a snapshot of our society, aka a "pop culture nexus point."
• Quelle horreur! There weren’t seats for some of the Super Bowl ticket holders! This is ironic, given that it totally wasn’t a problem getting a seat at the first Super Bowl.
• Looking at the Super Bowl commercials with the crazy idea that women are people.

With a summer full of posturing and rhetoric, the campaign season officially began after Labor Day. Six days in, on this past Sunday, Incumbent Governor Rick Perry released his first television ad, featuring South Congress businesses Farm to Market Grocery (seen at 0:04 of the ad) and Avenue Barber Shop (0:05). more ›

I was sitting here trying to put into words why an interview - or a panel- about 'dignity in online advertising' is relevant to more people than those of us who are oh-so-lucky to be involved in the industry. And as I was engaged in one of those all-too-frequent Google-powered, attention-deficit-inspired, search episodes looking for something or other, I came across this piece on Coudal.com titled, 'What We Talk About When We Talk About Work.' Now in addition to the title making me smile a whole bunch, it hit on something really important. The piece ends with, "We suppose there are a lot of reasons people don't say what they mean. We just can't think of any good ones." It's copy so smooth that even Don Draper would be jealous. But the best part is, it's true. Common sense. And often times, it takes a whole lot of talent and smarts to realize that sometimes the obvious answer is the best answer. So when I talked to Jim Coudal about the concept behind his ad network, 'The Deck', I wasn't surprised by his general thoughts on the matter. Why not just be honest about this whole advertising thing, right? "Making it simple… makes it simple," he said. more ›

• UK troops pave way for super massive blackhole NATO Afghan assault.
• Toyota’s chief apologizes, says company is in crisis.
• Knife-wielding politician refuses to step down in IL lt. governor's race.

In yet another move to dismantle Enfatico, the $4.5 billion powerhouse agency created to handle all of Dell's marketing needs worldwide, several of the top executives on the creative side have been laid off. more ›

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott is suing Darque Tan owner Robbie Segler and his affiliates for false marketing claims stating that searing your flesh with carcinogenic light bulbs is actually good for you and can reduce your risks of some cancers. In a follow up to a story that originally broke in May, Darque Tan’s marketing material in both print and online video ads suggests that their tanning beds increase Vitamin D levels in the body, thereby reducing customers’ risks of contracting cancer. The state is arguing that those claims violate the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, Deceptive Trade Practices Act and the Texas Health and Safety Code which prohibits tanning salons from saying that their tanning devices provide any benefits of the health or medical variety. The FDA has not approved tanning beds as a way to reduce cancer risks or absorb more Vitamin D. Any advertising claims that state otherwise are considered false and in violation of the law. more ›

During the State Republican convention, Sen. Cornyn's folks put together a little something-something to show the convention attendees: this laugh-out-loud introduction/refresher on "Big John" Cornyn. Only in about 15 seconds of the video is Cornyn shown without a cowboy hat, while a man with a deep bass voice tells us that John "is doing the Lord's work for Texas" (oh, God was against the updated GI Bill?) and a choir keeps singing in the background, "Big Johhhhhn." more ›

UT Law student takes on misleading advertising by Darque Tan. In these ads, the company advocates the resounding health benefits of UV tanning, such as increased vitamin D production and UV’s ability to convert cholesterol into vitamin D (which, technically, is true), but fails to address the popular concerns on the health risks associated with UV tanning, such as various types of skin cancer. more ›

Former White House press secretary Scott McClellan blames President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney for efforts to mislead the public about the role of White House aides in leaking the identity of a CIA operative. Police Chief: "Missing Student Ignored Due to Race." A drunken man broke into a central London park and attempted to have sex with a fence: Daniel French, 24, made "sexual motions" towards metal railings in Leicester Square Gardens... more ›

The mysterious post that showed up on the John Edwards campaign site last week turns out to have originated from Waxahachie, Texas, a city roughly 30 miles south of Dallas. In it, the enraged parent of a Texas high school student described how his son had had been suspended for wearing an Edwards t-shirt to school — details were scarce, so we weren't sure what the grounds for suspension were. Some Austinist readers speculated that... more ›

Authorities in New York arrested 43-year-old Paul Devoe III, the man believed responsible for a grisly quadruple homicide that happened in Jonestown, Texas, this weekend. Devoe is also allegedly linked to the murder of a bartender in Marble Falls last Friday, as well as another slaying in Pennsylvania. Details remain scarce, but a spokesman for the Travis County sheriff's department described Sunday's crime scene as "fairly bloody, fairly gruesome." The Capital Area Metro Planning... more ›

The folks at the Austin Film Festival have just released three slightly bizarre, but intensely cool new animated television spots. The ads feature actual interviews with longtime festival attendees, animated using an unconventional stop-motion technique that's best described as "creepy / awesome". The spots were created by local filmmakers Don Swaynos and Cameron Petri, who've made the AFF's animated television spots for the past three years (ever since winning the AFF trailer competition and an... more ›

Austin-based advertising firm LatinWorks scored a major honor last week. The local company earned a bronze lion from the Cannes International Advertising Festival for its "Classroom" commercial featured during Super Bowl XLI. Why let Saatchi & Saatchi have all the fun? According to the synopsis provided by the folks at Cannes, the "spot showcases Carlos Mencia's comedic humor to demonstrate that the love for Bud Light crosses any cultural boundary." Lesson learned: never let your... more ›

We've developed a very quick survey to check in with our readers. We hope to use the information to improve the site, from developing our content areas to picking promotional and advertising partners. If you have a few minutes (it's very short!), we'd appreciate it if you could answer. Thanks! Update: Thanks for the tremendous number of responses, folks! Photo by Patrick Dentler on flickr... more ›

Yesterday, we told you a little bit about the films of gore wizard Herschell Gordon Lewis. But what we didn't tell you is that since his days in the movie business, Lewis has become one of the world's foremost experts on direct marketing. A prolific author, columnist, and all around brilliant guy, Lewis recently took time out of his busy schedule to chat with us about movies, showmanship, and the current state of advertising. Firstly,... more ›

As we mentioned Monday, a new development is launching near Webberville 15 minutes east of Austin that could put our city on the worldwide film, television and music production map at long last. A designer's sketch of Villa Muse Studios, the production zone that forms the core of Villa Muse and constitutes Phase One of the Villa Muse project. It’s called Villa Muse, a sort of self-sufficient creative-industry village that’ll consist of some of the... more ›

Austinist is honored to present the second installment of Spot the Spank, an ongoing modern dance treasure hunt taking place throughout this great city we call home. As mentioned during the madness of SXSW, Spank Dance Company has partnered with Austinist to promote their original contemporary dance piece titled 4Red Lines. Performed in an outdoor public venue, the dance addresses the barriers between performer and audience, the concrete and the abstract. Ellen Bartel, choreographer... more ›

This Sunday, the SXSW Film Festival will host the world premiere of Jennifer Venditti's much buzzed-about documentary Billy The Kid. The film follows Billy Price, a fifteen-year-old boy who overcomes obstacles with courage and wisdom to spare. This one looks really interesting—apparently, Venditti is a casting agent who's famous for her "street scouting", where she travels around finding real people (as opposed to, you know, actors) for advertising, fashion and film roles. She encountered Price... more ›

Following the precedent set by Barack Obama's well-received rally at Auditorium Shores two weeks ago, the two remaining contenders for the Democratic presidential nomination, Senator Hillary Clinton and former Senator John Edwards, will be making brief appearances in Austin over the next two weeks. Unlike Mr. Obama, however, neither are easily accessible to the public. Edwards will be in town on Thursday to film an episode of Texas Monthly Talks, set to air next Thursday,... more ›

Hometown rock stars I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness have finished two quick jaunts to Europe, are working on a new album, put together a terrifyingly beautiful music video for "The Owl" with Emmanuel Ho, and will be playing at SXSW. If you aren't already familiar with their unique brand of Peter Murphy meets Nick Cave inspired minimalist (but fist-flinging urban) post-rock, change your ways: you don't want to miss them live. Recently... more ›

UPDATE: We found the video of Sean Stevens and Peter Berdovsky placing the "fake bombs" around Boston. Plus, the bidding war reached a little over $5,000 before the item was removed from Ebay. The stunt that brought Boston police and transportation its biggest scare since 9/11 yesterday was one Austin is very familiar with. Bostonist has all the coverage. Pictured above, this LED-lit advertisement stood over South Congress just north of Oltorf for more... more ›

As you might recall, former Austinist co-editor Matthew "OK" Odam left our humble publication a few weeks ago in search of power, prestige, and proper press passes over at the Austin American-Statesman. Today, our favorite thirty-something renaissance man and aspiring screenwriter makes his fabulous debut on Austin360's frontpage as their newest blogger. Barely three days old, The M.O. already features some killer commentary on a variety of subjects, including new South Congress restaurant The Woodland,... more ›

Hot on the heels of Emo's being listed as one of Playboy.com's top rock clubs, Nightclub & Bar magazine today published their annual Editors' Choice Top 100 rankings of bars and clubs in the country. VICCI and Stubb's BBQ both made the list. The two venues couldn't be more different: the former is a ritzy, bleached-blonde dance club in the swanky Warehouse District, while the latter serves up Texas-sized helpings of rock and roll... more ›

What do you do if you have a shit ton of money and all of your taste is in your mouth? Well, if you're Governor Rick Perry, the answer is rip-off one of the most asinine advertising campaigns in recent memory to produce a xenophobic and homophobic slander of your opponent Chris Bell. Using voiceover and music approximating the horribly obnoxious Bud Lite Real Men of Genius ads, Perry and his band of communications fools... more ›

Highways need an ad campaign like sexy needed to be brought back. Nonetheless, TxDOT has decided to spend $1.8 million on billboards, "bus-wraps" (we love that -- the only thing better would be advertising on the inside of the bus), print ads, radio spots and direct-mail, all in the hopes of encouraging use of the newly constructed Loop 1 extension, Texas 45 North and Texas 130. These highways are already further sprawlifying Austin. Taurus... more ›

"Don't Mess With Texas," the anti-littering slogan launched over two decades ago, officially became the top ad slogan today in a national contest held as part of Advertising Week. Besting the likes of "Take a Bite Out of Crime!" and "A Diamond is Forever," the famous phrase is now to be plastered along Madison Avenue and has also earned a spot in the not-yet-open Advertising Icon Museum. In total, over 400,000 people voted for... more ›