It’s ad-vantage Earth now, says Gore

“The way nations and societies make up their minds in the modern age has much more to do with mass advertising than many of us purists would like, but that’s the reality,” Gore said by telephone from California. “Since we face a true planetary emergency, we have to give the planet a PR agent.”

Gore, through his environmental group, the Alliance for Climate Protection, has sent invitations to advertising agencies to submit 15-, 30- and 60-second “ecospots” explaining the global warming phenomenon and urging action to address it.

Submissions are due by September 12, and the spots will be judged by a panel of activists, scientists and celebrities like Cameron Diaz and George Clooney. The alliance may choose to broadcast several of the entries; a Toyota Highlander hybrid SUV will be awarded for the best spot.

Gore said that the ads would begin showing this fall as the vanguard of what he said would be a three- to five-year campaign to ignite global action on the issue.

Gore said he planned to raise millions to place paid spots on commercial and cable TV. He said he expected wide distribution through his cable channel, Current TV, and on the Internet though YouTube, MySpace and various sites devoted to environmental causes.

“It’s going to have very serious funding behind it for a significant period of time. We are not playing around with this,” he said.

He cited as an example of an effective spot a 45-second ad known as “Black Balloons” that illustrates how normal household tasks like brewing coffee or watching television contribute to global warming because they are powered by the burning of fossil fuels. The spot culminates with a thick cloud of black balloons representing carbon dioxide emissions swirling into the sky.

The ad originated in Australia as part of a local educational project in the state of Victoria. A version on the alliance Web site (at climateprotect.org/ah12/) was given a new voice-over by the actor Tommy Lee Jones, Gore’s college roommate and longtime friend.

Greg Stern, chief executive of Butler, Shine, Stern & Partners, an advertising agency in Sausalito, Calif., endorsed the idea of user-generated content, particularly on an issue that stirs intense emotions.

“Tapping into the passion on this topic is brilliant,” said Stern, a pioneer in user-generated advertising. “The idea of turning to consumers to spread the word is very smart.”

Stern had one criticism, however. “It’s unfortunate that the prize in the end is an automobile,” he said, “even if it’s a hybrid.”