Halftime in America: Chrysler Commercial
Halftime in America: Chrysler Commercial
Brandon Pierson
Hum 186
April 24th, 2012
James Harrison
Halftime in America: Chrysler Commercial
The Chrysler commercial during the 2012 Super Bowl was extremely well done. It stars Clint Eastwood delivering a muscularly optimistic message about Detroit and its auto industry. Clint talks about America and how it has been hurting due to the poor economy and the unemployment rate. He does this through an interesting allegory of football and halftime.
Chrysler does well targeting a very broad audience of American auto consumers. This particular commercial uses a fear tactic through a lowly lit background and the unmistakable growl of Clint Eastwood to reach the target audience. Chrysler attempts to tug at the proverbial heart strings or emotions of the auto consumer by playing on the fears of people and their lack of faith in the American economy. Americans want to believe that America is great and will pick itself up from the dire straits it is in. This commercial does a good job at trying to light that patriotic fire.
This commercial was definitely well thought out. At a cost of $3.5 million per 30 second time slot (halftime in America was 2:00 minutes long) Chrysler spared no expense. The 2012 Super bowl had 111 million viewers, a calculated move no doubt ("Super Bowl Ads Cost Average Of $3.5m", 2012). Detroit has been a long standing icon of American ingenuity and manufacturing; Clint Eastwood is an American acting icon; so it is no surprise that Chrysler put the two together to make a commercial. Chrysler, being rooted in America is reaching for brand recognition though perceived “Americanism”. It is an effectively persuasive tactic, though tasteless in my opinion. I say this for the simple fact that auto industry is no longer bound by borders; it is a global industry where many “American” autos are made with parts manufactured overseas. “For the third straight year, Toyota Camry, a product of Japan 's largest
Brandon Pierson
Hum 186
April 24th, 2012
James Harrison
Halftime in America: Chrysler Commercial
The Chrysler commercial during the 2012 Super Bowl was extremely well done. It stars Clint Eastwood delivering a muscularly optimistic message about Detroit and its auto industry. Clint talks about America and how it has been hurting due to the poor economy and the unemployment rate. He does this through an interesting allegory of football and halftime.
Chrysler does well targeting a very broad audience of American auto consumers. This particular commercial uses a fear tactic through a lowly lit background and the unmistakable growl of Clint Eastwood to reach the target audience. Chrysler attempts to tug at the proverbial heart strings or emotions of the auto consumer by playing on the fears of people and their lack of faith in the American economy. Americans want to believe that America is great and will pick itself up from the dire straits it is in. This commercial does a good job at trying to light that patriotic fire.
This commercial was definitely well thought out. At a cost of $3.5 million per 30 second time slot (halftime in America was 2:00 minutes long) Chrysler spared no expense. The 2012 Super bowl had 111 million viewers, a calculated move no doubt ("Super Bowl Ads Cost Average Of $3.5m", 2012). Detroit has been a long standing icon of American ingenuity and manufacturing; Clint Eastwood is an American acting icon; so it is no surprise that Chrysler put the two together to make a commercial. Chrysler, being rooted in America is reaching for brand recognition though perceived “Americanism”. It is an effectively persuasive tactic, though tasteless in my opinion. I say this for the simple fact that auto industry is no longer bound by borders; it is a global industry where many “American” autos are made with parts manufactured overseas. “For the third straight year, Toyota Camry, a product of Japan 's largest
References: Super Bowl ads cost average of $3.5M. (2012). Retrieved from http://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2011/story/_/id/7544243/super-bowl-2012-commercials-cost-average-35m Report: The two 'most American ' cars are Japanese. (2011). Retrieved from http://content.usatoday.com/communities/driveon/post/2011/06/ranking-the-two-most-american-cars-are-from-japanese-makers/1#.T5c5nqtYs3c