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UNICEF Turns Santa Claus Into Poor-Hating Jerk In Christmas Ad Campaign

By Tim Graham | December 20, 2011 | 00:12

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If you find it off-putting that Best Buy is sticking it to Santa Claus in its "Game On, Santa" ads, that is nothing compared to a new ad by UNICEF (much better known for Halloween.) The New York Daily News is one of the few major media outlets to notice UNICEF turned Santa into a jerk.

"Santa won't bother going to poor countries this year, so the United Nations Children's Fund will go instead," reporter Roque Planas, "or at least that's the message behind a satirical new UNICEF advertisement released in Sweden."

 

 

In a sometimes confusing and grammatically questionable rant, Santa then explains why health care doesn't make for good Christmas presents.

"This ain't no Christmas gift. So, you buy this products for your friend, and all this stuff goes to poor kids? Like in Africa?" Santa asks, before skeptically examining a vaccine bottle with a magnifying glass, shaking a bottle of pills and squirting the contents of a syringe into the air.

The Santa depicted in the commercial doesn't care much for the accompanying Christmas cards either.

"What am I supposed to say when I hand this out? Ho! Ho! Ho! Here's your picture of the gift you never got?" Santa says, while holding up a card branded with the UNICEF trademark.

"I don't do poor countries," Santa says in a villainous tone.

The commercial closes with a written message from UNICEF saying "We go where Santa doesn't -- Buy your Christmas gifts at unicef.se."

Though the Stockholm-based firm Forsman & Bodenfors produced the ad in English and Santa rails against the world's poor in an American accent, the UNICEF Web site referred to in the commercial is written exclusively in Swedish.

UNICEF's stocking stuffers include malaria tablets, rehydration bags and polio vaccines.

Why on Earth would jolly old Saint Nicholas resent aid for the poor? Is this just another way the UN bureaucracy asserts its own moral superiority?

About the Author

Tim Graham is Director of Media Analysis at the Media Research Center. Click here to follow Tim Graham on Twitter.
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Comments

Well yeah...

Submitted by Tugboat Phil on Tue, 12/20/2011 - 12:25am.

But on the other hand, Santa won't be raping any kids in refugee camps either. That's what the UN is for.

President Obama is a Muslim (from his own lips), Kenyan (read it from his publicist) a homosexual (read it on a news magazine cover) and a Socialist (I'm alive and can see it for myself)

But there is no war on

Submitted by Boudin on Tue, 12/20/2011 - 12:32am.

Christmas,

Seek Truth, Defend Liberty

I'm glad Bust Buy had the

Submitted by Rowane on Tue, 12/20/2011 - 12:39am.

I'm glad Bust Buy had the Game on, Santa commercials this year...saved me a lot of money by doing all my electronic gift buying online. tigerdirect.com FTW!

*******************************

You've got to stand for something, or you'll fall for anything. (Aaron Tippin)

Defund the UN!

Submitted by LAM SON 719 on Tue, 12/20/2011 - 12:51am.

Defund the UN!

Non, je ne regrette rien. "You aren't angry because I might be a racist, you're angry because you know I'm right".

Common theme this year

Submitted by sciborg3k on Tue, 12/20/2011 - 12:56am.

How about the Xfinity (aka Comcast, aka Time-Warner, aka Turner Broadcasting) ads where Santa comes across as a petty vindictive a$$hole.

You're a mean one, Mr.

Submitted by The Glen on Tue, 12/20/2011 - 1:04am.

You're a mean one, Mr. Grinch... or whatever the name of whoever thought up this piece of tripe.

I'm guessing

Submitted by HockeyKid on Tue, 12/20/2011 - 7:31am.

UNICEF's donations drop precipitously as a result of this "cleverness". The UN is a sham, from top to bottom.

"Beauty is only skin deep, but liberal's to the bone." - me

I hardly consider the Best

Submitted by Ed Gregory on Tue, 12/20/2011 - 8:09am.

I hardly consider the Best Buy ads as "sticking it to Santa." Not sure how many there are, but two of them are pretty funny.

As for the UNICEF ad, it's just further proof that liberals are devoid of humor and joy.

If the Left had its way,

Submitted by kareling on Tue, 12/20/2011 - 8:56am.

If the Left had its way, UNICEF's idea of Christmas would be how Christmas is for everyone in the world: Instead of getting what you want because that's selfish and greedy and might be more equal than what others get, like everyone else you get something basic you need just to stay the hell alive. Because that's fair!

World Vision

Submitted by GW on Tue, 12/20/2011 - 9:06am.

has a nice catalog of gifts you can give kids every year. The gifts include things like goats, chickens, buying a share of a well, blankets, etc.

I wonder if UNICEF allows you to contribute to an abortion machine for Christmas.

"Unfortunately, some people use belief-based facts rather than fact-based beliefs." -Par for the Course on Wed, 04/18/2012 - 5:38pm

I like the Best Buy ads. They

Submitted by inquiringmind on Tue, 12/20/2011 - 9:57am.

I like the Best Buy ads. They are well done.

One more reason for the US

Submitted by ohio granny on Tue, 12/20/2011 - 11:03am.

This is just one more reason for the US to resign from the United Nations and kick them out of the US entirely. They are mostly a bunch of thugs (of course that is why the dem/libs love them) and not at all helpful to insuring "world peace".

I say not one more dime for the UN at all, not for anything.

UN goons shouldn't be allowed anywhere near children

Submitted by Dave. on Tue, 12/20/2011 - 9:19pm.

You know, if we would stop funding this criminal organization, it would die a slow and painful death.

-Dave

Vote for the American in November

most GOP candidates for president want to reform the UN

Submitted by lrgon on Wed, 12/21/2011 - 2:29am.

That's like trying to reform desease.

"Trick or treat for UNICEF!" Lefty parents took the joy out of halloween for their kids by making them collect money for the UN agency. Some of that UNICEF money collected went towards terror organizations, funding an abortion campaign and anti-Israel propaganda. http://rightwingnews.com/abortion/unicef-trick-or-treat-for-abortion/

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