An Ad Insulting 9/11 Tragedy?

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One of New York's Bravest is objecting to the use of his likeness in a poster marketing the services of a New York law firm that specializes in 9/11-related illnesses.

The ad in question features a firefighter holding a photo of the devastated World Trade Center site, accompanied by the words, "I was there. And now, Worby Groner Edelman & Napoli Bern is there for me." And therein lies the issue: the man in the ad, Robert Keiley, didn't become a firefighter until 2004.

According to the New York Post's Reuven Fenton and Jennifer Fermino, Keiley is particularly upset that the photo in the poster was manipulated from a generic promotional photo for the department--of Keiley holding his fire helmet. The law firm's ad agency, Barker/DZP, swapped a picture of the World Trade Center in place of the helmet. They then debuted the poster at a fundraiser, the World Police Fire Games Event Gala; a move Keiley thinks makes him look like a "scumbag."

"It's an insult to the Fire Department. It's an insult to all the families who lost people that day," Keiley, an ex-cop who also works part-time as a model and actor, told the Post. "It makes me look like I'm cashing in on 9/11, saying I was there even though I was never there, and that I'm sick and possibly suing, trying to get a chunk of money."

The ad sparked the ire of popular anonymous advertising blogger Copyranter, who expressed to us that the ad reinforced his long-held belief that "law firms shouldn't advertise" because it's "unethical, and they just plain don't know how."

"The 'Fake Testimonial' is a popular sleazy creative method used in advertising -- particularly by hospitals, pharmaceutical companies and in business to business ads," he wrote in an email to The Lookout. "But from what I've seen in my 20 years in this sleazy business, this takes the sleazy cake."

Sadly, this isn't Worby Groner's first brush with 9/11-related controversy. Fenton and Fermino note that the firm was blasted by a federal judge last year for trying to assess a contingency fee of one-third of whatever it wins for its 9/11 responder clientele. The judge stepped in and reduced the fees.

Kim Tracey, a spokesman for Barker/DZP, told the Post that it was fully legal to use and manipulate the image of Keiley in any way the agency and its client choose, saying that in signing the release last year, "he really signed his rights away."

But Barker/DZP did an about-face Monday afternoon, emailing The Lookout a statement offering its "sincerely apologies" for the flap and noting that it had "voluntarily withdrawn from this assignment."

"While our mistake was entirely inadvertent, we understand why the ad has caused hurt, we regret its use, and we accept responsibility," Barker/DZP president John Barker wrote. "We sincerely apologize to Firefighter Keiley, as well as the New York City Fire Department, and the brave firefighters who fearlessly served their city and gave their lives on 9/11."

(Article from Yahoo News by By Brett Michael Dykes)


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