Wondering what the advertising company paid to promote New Mexico--the same one that put out a casting call for "light-skinned" actors--finally came up with?---
Introducing "New Mexico True," the state's new slogan, per Texas ad company Vendor, Inc. The catchphrase appears in a new ad spot depicting the fun to be had in our state: clay pot making, a photo op with llamas, and doing that wave thing with your hand outside the car window.
The premise of the video is that tourists seek authenticity, and New Mexico has that. It definitely has a leg up on some others states' slogans. Some seem kind of desperate: Tennessee: "We're playing your song!" and Pennsylvania: "You've got a friend in Pennsylvania." (No you're not and no I don't). Then there's Virginia's, which is just kind of embarrassing: "Virginia is for lovers!"
Still, "True" is an undersell. When the best thing a state has to say for itself isn't particularly ambitious, it makes it sound like they were really digging deep to come up with something positive about their state. Kansas' "As big as you think" is basically an acknowledgment that you probably don't want to vacation there. Ours is essentially saying, "New Mexico: Not Fake." (Notice they don't show any turquoise jewelry in the ad.)
Alternatives:
New Mexico: Not Arizona!
New Mexico, ´Ese!
New Mexico: Home of the heroin burger
New Mexico: Hispanic...but light-skinned!
New Mexico: Sunny skies, shady dealings
