If Amy Sedaris pitching Downy in a perky new campaign rings a bell, it's because celebrities have been sudsing up for brands since the early days of Hollywood. Think back to the golden days of radio, when Jack Benny plugged Jello in his opening line, "Jello, everybody, this is Jack Benny," and Bob Hope promoted Pepsodent toothpaste. And in the early days of television, George Burns and Gracie Allen peddled Carnation Milk, Groucho Marx touted Prom Shampoo and Ozzie and Harriett shilled for Aunt Jemima Pancake Mix. Before he was President, Ronald Reagan stumped for Chesterfield cigarettes.

In today’s world of 24/7 social media, celebrity endorsement, backing and entrepreneurship (from Gwyneth Paltrow's Goop to Jessica Alba's Honest Company) have reached new digital platforms. This week Stamped, a mobile app and website that lets people share reviews of anything they like, announced new celebrity backers including Justin Bieber, Ryan Seacrest and Ellen DeGeneres, and investments from Columbia Records, Eric Schmidt and The New York Times Company, bringing its financing to over $3 million.Continue reading...

Just when it seemed that almost every Super Bowl ad already had been revealed or teased, brand marketers' buzz machines continue revving up. GM is promoting their Super Bowl XLVI spots on Chevy's YouTube channel — including talking insects on a Chevy Sonic and Volt-enchanted aliens, which you can watch below — with YouTube-only clips with Rainn Wilson encouraging fans to share, engage and vote for their favorite spots.Continue reading...

Larry King is back! With his wife Shawn! For BreathGemz! Er, sorry, Lar... not a great follow-up to your cameo in Arnold Schwarzenegger's The Governator. You're turning your golden years into our golden fears.

Below: Chipotle goes for the gold, a shaggy dog's tale and more.Continue reading...

Miracle Whip is launching "a brutally honest and expensive TV commercial on that popular show on FOX that begins at 8pm EST. It's about how much people love us. Or can't stand us."

So says the tongue-in-cheek full-page newspaper ads taken out by the Kraft-owned brand today, touting an ad buy on American Idol and directing people to miraclewhip.com (which redirects to its reskinned YouTube channel) for a free sample.

The campaign, which also features Jersey Shore's Pauly D, Democratic strategist James Carville, and comic domestic goddess Amy Sedaris is part of Kraft's commitment to increase its advertising spend in order to capture more market share for its bands.Continue reading...

Barnes & Noble has a new e-reader device, and it is named the “Nook,” as in: “it hopes to corner at least a nook of the e-reader market.” But there's stiff competition to be the next iPod of literacy.

And like the iPod, there will probably end up being one dominant brand of machine, with all others lucky to maintain their respective nooks. Of course, after Amazon’s Kindle sucked all the air out of the room during its introduction a few months ago, competitors have been trying to catch up. Barnes & Noble is expected to price its Nook to match the Kindle (about $250).

Meanwhile, Sony is pushing its e-reader full bore, with an exasperating “Experts” campaign that is not only maybe culturally insensitive but also preposterously expects a viewer to know who both Payton Manning and Amy Sedaris are. But Sony’s Reader Pocket Edition aims to offer more for less, featuring music features and larger storage for about $50 less.Continue reading...