Progressive Corp.’s advertising team met several weeks ago to plan a coming commercial that shows the insurance giant’s pitchwoman, Flo, fleeing a bowling alley to help someone whose car was mangled by a falling basketball hoop. A debate broke out on the video call over a sensitive issue: Should the characters in the spot be wearing masks? It is the sort of discussion advertisers are having in 2020. Madison Avenue has always been mindful of the nation’s mood, airing patriotic ads during wartime and nostalgic spots with vintage jingles during recessions to remind consumers they have come through bad times before. “It’s a perfect storm of disasters that advertisers have to navigate,” said ad-industry veteran Jeff Goodby, co-founder of Goodby, Silverstein & Partners.

Source: Wall Street Journal October 03, 2020 03:56 UTC