Dodge is promoting the 2009 Ram pickup with a miserable, testosterone-laden ad campaign called the Dodge Ram Challenge. This multi-part "webisode" by Tony "Top Gun" Scott is a dusty and dirty reality show-style competition featuring Ram pickups driven through an orgy of pyrotechnics and destruction.

Contestants are divided into four Village People-esque teams labeled “Cowboys," “Firemen," “Military" and “Contractors.” Each team is flown to some remote location in a Huey like a scene out of "Apocalypse Now" and given an ’09 Ram to race through an obstacle course. And after a whole lot yelling and grunting, the host fires a shotgun to kick things off.

Americans should be insulted by this mockery. Just this past weekend Chrysler, the beleaguered automaker that produces the Ram, received a $4 billion lifeline from the government. That’s fine. It's great that Uncle Sam finally stepped up to help the ailing auto industry. But how can Chrysler justify this multimillion, multimedia game show? And given the state of the economy, not to mention the fact no one's buying big honkin' trucks anymore, is the “Ram is all that is man” motif perpetuated by this so-called “challenge” the best advertising angle to be taking?

Don't get us wrong. The ’09 Ram is probably the best all around heavy-duty truck Dodge has offered in years. It's got a sweet Hemi V-8, an overhauled interior, and it's anvil-tough. But, who cares whether you can drive it through a burning house? We're pretty sure there's no one on the planet who needs a truck capable of doing that.

One of the '09 Ram's most defining features is a new and improved cylinder deactivation system which allows the truck to achieve a much better fuel economy than years past. This, however, is hardly worthy of mentioning in the new ad campaign, and the logic behind this is inexplicable in an era when consumers have made it clear they value fuel efficiency.

Step back from the flash and the fury of the Dodge Ram Challenge, and you’ll see a metaphor for the mess Chrysler - and all of Detroit, for that matter - finds itself in. The company needs to get in touch with reality. It says it “will produce cars and trucks people want to buy.” You wouldn't know it from this ad campaign. It is almost as if the company doesn’t even have a clue. Or maybe it just doesn’t care anymore.

The Challenge's multimedia Web site opens with a disclaimer says it all: “Chrysler, LLC, Dodge and its Agencies insist that no one attempt to replicate the activity on the site.” Thanks for the advice, guys. Will do.

Photo by Chrysler.