Generalization Generation

In my last blog post, I discussed the Clint Eastwood / Chrysler commercial from this year's past Superbowl, because of how much I loved it. It played on all the key elements of rhetoric, and completely sold me. I ate it up.

However, in my search for an advertisement to analyze in my speech, I remembered one of my least favorite commercials of all time.

I decided not to analyze it for my speech -- but it's a perfect subject on which to compose a blog.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKpZ_6BSDhU

This commercial shows a group of teenage or college-age kids creating a homemade slingshot / bungee jump. A majority of the commercial shows the kids connecting a girl to the slingshot — then, hooked onto the back of a truck, the truck drives away from the slingshot, causing the bands to stretch and extend, until the girl slingshots off the truck bed and into the air, bouncing back and forth.

Initially, it's unclear as to what is being advertised. Also, it's unclear as to how the audience should feel -- we're just witnessing this event, unsure as to how it's going to turn out. Is the girl going to be hurt, and the commercial is preventing alcohol or drug abuse? Is the commercial trying to advertise all the activities you can do on a vacation to a certain location, no longer having to resort to manmade bungee jumps? What exactly is being advertised?

As we see the girl slingshot back and forth, a voice plays over that says, "This year, three million young adults out there will get their driver's license. Better get yourself a safe car."

Turns out that this advertisement is appealing to car owners to purchase the new 2011 Hyundai Sonata, in order to keep themselves safe from the new young drivers soon to be screeching and speeding on the roads and highways.

...What? Excuse me?

I was outraged the first time I saw this commercial. As teenage drivers, we already have to deal with the joking comments from relatives when we get our licenses -- things like, "Oh no, I'll have to watch out for you on the road!" or, "Be careful, pedestrians are people too!"

Now, this commercial was exactly pinpointing those misinformed adults who are terrified of young -- and therefore uneducated, reckless, and deviant -- drivers, and encouraging them to buy a car.

Because of course all teenage drivers are unsafe when driving.

Because of course only teenage drivers are unsafe when driving. (Because adults never talk/text when driving. Because adults never try to multitask when driving. Because adults never get tickets when driving.)

Because of course all teenagers do things like create homemade bungee jumps, or do other stunts.

Because of course all teenagers who create these types of things are automatically bad drivers.

Does this math add up to you?


Yeah, me neither.

The commercial is using incredible ethos to sell the product. When it comes to ethos in commercials, we are used to seeing the reliable ethos of a celebrity. If Tiger Woods recommends a brand of golf club, chances are that's a good golf club. Or if Alessandra Ambrosio advertises a skin cream, you can bet that skin cream is going to sell good. Unfortunately for us teenagers, however, Hyundai is banking on our bad ethos -- since we are somehow all totally unreliable, Hyundai makes up for it with a super-safe car to protect adults against the big bad teenagers.

Thanks, Hyundai. Nice work. You just completely insulted a generation of people about to look for first cars. Good luck to ya.


Question for you: I know we all have favorite commercials -- but are there any commercials that just make your blood boil?