Anybody Watching Celebrity Apprentice?

[joekerstef]

Non-political post, I promise!

 

So for the final task on this season of Celebrity Apprentice, the two finalists have to come up with an ad campaign and a 15 minute variety show for Carnival brands, specifically Carnival, Princess, HAL, and Seabourne. Arnold Donald, CEO of Carnival Corp., when contrasting these four brands called the HAL type "midwestern, although not necessarily living there" which honestly not being from the midwest myself I'm not really sure what he means. By contrast, Princess was southern California polo shirt. Carson Kressley of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy fame, who is helping on one of the teams, immediately piped up "I've been on all the dam ships!" which I found amusing (I would love to run into him in the Crow's Nest at happy hour). Anyway, this will play out tonight and next Monday night. Right now the teams are on Ruby Princess doing photo shoots for their campaigns. It'll be interesting to see what they come up with and how they portray the brands and what Mr. Donald thinks of their efforts. Am I the only person watching this? Curious what anyone else thinks.

[craftygrandma]

I'm watching, he makes it seem like Dam ships are stuffy. I don't see the difference in Princess and Holland.

[taxmantoo]

Carson was part of the "Dancing with the Stars" groups that were on HAL a few times. There are videos of him on YouTube singing with Joey Fatone (NSYNC) in the Piano Bar.

 

[true45]

I watched it.

I've been on lots of cruises but only a couple on Carnival & Princess.

I don't see myself in any of the targeted groups as the CEO described them in Carnival's various lines. He must be correct.

[emoji6][emoji907][emoji225]

 

 

 

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[serendipity1499]

I'm watching, he makes it seem like Dam ships are stuffy. I don't see the difference in Princess and Holland.

 

I'm watching it too.. I don't get Arnold Donald's idea that HAL is a Midwestern type ship either.. But it was fun to watch it tonight & plan on watching it next week too..

[sammiedawg]

I struggled watching the first hour all about the Honest company. I changed the channel before the Carnival segment.

Princess has a breezy California feel. But I don't get the Midwest association for Holland America. I'll have to watch.

Years ago we were on Sapphire Princess and they filmed an episode of the Biggest Loser during our cruise. I watch a lot of reality TV (not Celebrity Apprentice) so I was very interested to watch them film. It even more fun to see it on TV. The footage of the ship was gorgeous and Princess had to be thrilled with the promotion.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

Thanks for the info..

[dchip]

We are watching too. I have no idea what "midwestern" demographic is supposed to mean either!

 

We were on the Ruby in June for our 50th anniversary. It's fun seeing the ship being shown in such a wonderful way.

 

Cheers, Denise

[slidergirl]

To me "midwestern" always contours up the family farmer as my first image. Solid, but pretty rigid for doing the same thing like it has always been, as in "well, it's worked for us for the last 30 years, why fix what isn't broken." Not really into exploring new things - "why do I need an iPhone - my landline has worked great all this time and I don't know anyone to text to, anyway," "why do I need to visit Hawaii - I can go to the pool at the community center." Excitement is sitting together and watching TV and early to bed to get up for work. Don't go out much, if at all. Solid meat & potatoes dishes for dinner, eggs & bacon for breakfast. Going out for a fancy dinner usually means the Elks Club special night or a reception for a wedding.

My one uncle and aunt were exactly like this, maybe that is why I always think of this as "midwestern."

 

Not trying to demean anyone, but I was asked...

[sailinglisa]

""Arnold Donald, CEO of Carnival Corp., when contrasting these four brands called the HAL type "midwestern, although not necessarily living there""

 

To me Midwestern means rooted in tradition, conservative, liking things the way they always were and hating change but tolerantly accepting of it after checking it all out. Being nice and friendly. Taking care of those who serve you while on vacation and treating them as humans instead of servants.

 

If you ask me, that is what HAL is about. I don't think that is all that bad.

[Herfnerd]

We watched it last night and was a bit confused about Donald's HAL description as "Midwestern" - I thought there might have been better ways to describe the line.

 

 

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[jobinhume]

As a midwesterner these descriptions are fascinating to me! I've lived in MN my whole life and I've never met a farmer. I don't take offense but I don't know anyone who fits the descriptions you are writing about.

 

I only know a handful of conservative people, and we have one of the most diverse dining and theater scenes in the country in Minneapolis.

 

It is always interesting to me when I hear similar sentiments from friends in New York or LA.

 

You all should come visit Minneapolis or Chicago and see if your definition changes!

[travelnap]

I was watching last night as well, and when he was describing the various cruise lines he referred to HAL as having mid western values, but that did not mean they all lived in the Midwest. Being from the Midwest, I don't think he was referring to just conservatives as Midwest values are pretty diverse. Usually Midwestern values are associated with being more down to earth type people than those on either of the coasts. East coast values are different from west coast values. I think each geographic area has different values. The southern values are probably more conservative than most geographic areas are, the coasts probably have a little more liberal values than the Midwest or the South. There are liberal areas and conservative areas in all geographic areas, everyone knows that. I think he was just looking at the overall area when he said that on the show.

 

In my experience with HAL, most of the people that I have met aboard have all been very down to earth, genuinely nice people, no matter what part of the country they came from. Look how many Canadians love HAL, and most people would probably agree that the Canadians are usually about the friendliest, down to earth people you will meet on the ship. This is just my opinion but I think that is what he was trying to get across when he referred to HAL having Midwest values.

[euro cruiser]

You could try backing into what he meant by looking at what HAL offers. How about "don't need the latest and greatest and/or all the bells and whistles to have a good time and be happy" for a start?

[Cruise_More_Often]

HAL cruisers are definitely not the stay-on-the-farm types. Just look at the HAL CC members' signatures. I wouldn't even venture a guess what he meant.

[Herfnerd]

When I hear "Midwestern", I think of Penny from The Big Bang Theory, lol!

[mame42]

Perhaps someone should ask him what he meant.

[slidergirl]

As a midwesterner these descriptions are fascinating to me! I've lived in MN my whole life and I've never met a farmer. I don't take offense but I don't know anyone who fits the descriptions you are writing about.

 

I only know a handful of conservative people, and we have one of the most diverse dining and theater scenes in the country in Minneapolis.

 

It is always interesting to me when I hear similar sentiments from friends in New York or LA.

 

You all should come visit Minneapolis or Chicago and see if your definition changes!

 

Funny - I never thought of MN as Midwest - I think of them as "Northern"...

Midwest to me brings right away Iowa and Kansas to mind. Miles and miles of fields. Movies like "Country." The political "flyover states."

Maybe like HAL because it provides the "cocoon" of mostly the same thing all the time so they are able to stay in a comfort zone. When someone posed the question of best/favorite food on HAL, it was usually a "well prepared" piece of meat, not many of the other adventuresome choices of entrees HAL has.

Steady and solid. Like the family farmer...

[cruisemom42]

The generally accepted "midwestern" states are: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin. Quite a variety in that bunch.

 

I don't think the person on "The Apprentice" meant it to be taken verbatim about HAL being like "midwestern values" -- it's just typical marketing short-hand.

 

My parents are transplanted mid-Westerners, and always felt very comfortable on HAL. Thinking about the HAL I've experienced and the midwesterners I know, the descriptors that come to mind are: somewhat traditional but not stuffy or snobbish, like getting good value for money and dislike waste, friendly but not afraid to speak their mind, tend to be very comfortable with who they are and what they believe. I think a good many prefer a top-notch steak or chop to a fancier meal with more adventurous proteins and au courant sides. They enjoy travel but like cruising because it's still in their comfort zone.

[serendipity1499]

The generally accepted "midwestern" states are: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin. Quite a variety in that bunch.

 

I don't think the person on "The Apprentice" meant it to be taken verbatim about HAL being like "midwestern values" -- it's just typical marketing short-hand.

 

My parents are transplanted mid-Westerners, and always felt very comfortable on HAL. Thinking about the HAL I've experienced and the midwesterners I know, the descriptors that come to mind are: somewhat traditional but not stuffy or snobbish, like getting good value for money and dislike waste, friendly but not afraid to speak their mind, tend to be very comfortable with who they are and what they believe. I think a good many prefer a top-notch steak or chop to a fancier meal with more adventurous proteins and au courant sides. They enjoy travel but like cruising because it's still in their comfort zone.

LOL That person on the Apprentice was Arnold Donald himself & not just a salesman! He's the one who should know how HAL compares with the three other carriers, & we really don't understand his comparison..

[Herfnerd]

LOL That person on the Apprentice was Arnold Donald himself & not just a salesman! He's the one who should know how HAL compares with the three other carriers, & we really don't understand his comparison..

 

 

Yep - I would think the CEO of Carnival Corp would have the best grasp of who they market each brand to. "Midwestern" just has too many off connotations.....

[kevingastreich]

We are watching too. I have no idea what "midwestern" demographic is supposed to mean either

 

Cheers, Denise

 

In the Midwest, they fly the flag, they don;t burn it.

[jobinhume]

Who is burning it?

 

 

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[slidergirl]

Who is burning it?

 

 

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Uh Oh. Sounds like a political gauntlet was thrown...

[POA1]

In my previous life, I worked on some fairly large scale demographic modeling systems for this little tiny company: AT&T. I'll be the first person to tell you that I don't know exactly what the CCL CEO meant by "midwest," but I kinda doubt that it's a whole lot different from the way most Fortune 500 companies model it.

 

Starting from the west and the north and working your way towards Florida, you have:

 

• The Dakotas (Janet & Todd)
  
• Nebraska
  
• Kansas
  
• Minnesota
  
• Iowa
  
• Missouri
  
• 'Sconsin
  
• Illinois
  
• Michigan (Upper Peninsula and the Mitten Peninsula)
  
• Indiana
  
• (The) Ohio (State)
  

The area, for the most part, is associated with a strong work ethic, family values, and primarily agrarian/industrial employment.

 

 

 

If you want to drill down on some demographic data, here are some links to The Statistical Atlas.

 

 

 

1. Overview of the US Midwest region
   
2. Population Density
   
3. Age & Sex Distribution (The "Detailed Age & Sex Distribution" graph is shaped a lot like the front of a cruise ship. Coincidence?)
   
4. Race & Ethnicity
   
5. Household Types
   
6. Marital Status
   
7. National Origin - and - Ancestry
   
8. Language spoken at Home
   

Make sure you scroll down to play around with the drill down maps.

 

 

1. 
   
2.