Is the Jingle Dead?

The jingle, as anyone with a television knows, is a vanishing art form. According to the Boston Globe writer Joan Anderman, "It is too quaint, too corny, too oldschool for our ironic times. Naming your product in a commercial for your product is just tacky, say advertising executives. Modern pitchmen prefer pop songs that create a mood or spark an emotional association or conjure up some sort of vague but potent lifestyle-oriented craving that, if all goes as planned, attaches to a product and translates to a sale." Anderman joins us to discuss the implications of this cultural change. Also: legendary jazz singer Anita O'Day pays a visit to our studio on the eve of one of her rare performances. She looks back on her musical career, which got off to a jump-start in the late 1930s and is still going strong.
Additional Resources:
» Joan Anderman on Jingles
» Anita O'Day's website