Bob CollinsIn a country where an ongoing war didn’t even register a blip as an issue in two consecutive presidential elections, America’s corporations have filled the vacuum by tying their products to Americans returning from a war observed by most Americans with magnets on their cars.
It’s a fine line, as we’ve noted in the past. At what point does a company (or sports team as the case may be) exploit a soldier to sell a product — beer, for example?
Today, Budweiser unveiled a teaser for its Super Bowl ad, which will honor a single soldier: Lt. Chuck Nadd, receiving a surprise hero’s welcome home—from Bud and his entire town of Winter Park, Fla., the AdFreak blog reports.
“The festivities included a full ticker tape parade, complete with marching bands, antique military vehicles, the VFW motorcycle club and an appearance by the world-famous Budweiser Clydesdales—all a complete shock to Lt. Chuck Nadd, who expected only to see his family waiting for him,” the brewer says.
A-B says it was originally planned as a 30-second spot, but expanded to a :60—bringing the company’s total time in Sunday broadcast to four full minutes. Its other spot, “Puppy Love,” also a :60 and a sequel to last year’s “Brotherhood” ad with the baby Clydesdale, is expected to hit YouTube on Wednesday morning.
It was a heck of a celebration that was held on Jan. 8. Or was it a commercial?
In other news from the war: Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai, supported by the United States with billions of dollars and a few thousand American lives, is alleging that the U.S. is behind recent insurgent attacks in Kabul and elsewhere in his country. He’s including the bombing of a restaurant in which 21 people were slaughtered, including three Americans.
It’s a story that’s not getting much recognition today — virtually none, actually — because, well, who cares?
Maybe if a team of Clydesdales told the story?
