It was a nicely done ad but it's an AD for gods sake!

[Kablooie]

It was not created to inspire Americans, it was made to sell soda.

It was deliberately made with a political bias because they knew that would stir up a hornets nest of discussion all over the country, and all of it centered around the word "Coke".

The right wing loudmouths will keep this in the public consciousness for a long time to come, and most of them will still buy a Coke when they become thirsty.

It was a calculated move and a very clever one.

So enjoy the feel goodness of the ad but don't fall for it.
It's not about what it says it's about.

[Ron Green]

1. K&R. This is what it's really about, and DU, of all constituencies, should get it.

[ZombieHorde]

2. I didn't see the ad.

What is the ad about?

[steve2470]

5. here it is

[ZombieHorde]

10. Thanks.

I am pretty drunk right now, so I don't to offer my opinion of those who would be offended by that.

[KansDem]

45. Uh-oh! DWI!!! DWI!!!

("DUing While Intoxicated&quot

[ZombieHorde]

56. I know. It's pretty dangerous.

I think I made it through without too many embarrassing posts.

[truth2power]

39. +Thanks. I just watched the 5 minute one - I thought it must have cist them a zillion $$.

[steve2470]

6. I would also watch this, which is about the ad's production

&feature=player_embedded

[RandySF]

3. I'm enjoying the meltdown. And yes, it's an ad, but it's also more.

Coke has something that Pepsi will never have. It's an American institution, for better or worse, with a 100% market penetration. It's as much an American symbol as the flag. And the right wing is melting down because, one by one, their 'merca' is disappearing. And, by the way, not only was it multi-lingual. It also showed a gay family.

[tblue]

11. You can say that again.

[CanonRay]

55. Exactly right

but it makes a statement and presents a point of view which is the polar opposite of the right wing hate. Good on Coke. I'd go out and buy it, but I do anyway. The right wing reaction to this simple statement of human spirit shows what evil creatures they truly are.

[Behind the Aegis]

4. Yeah, it was an ad for G-d's sake.

I can just see the masses of liberals and progressives rushing out, knocking down patrons to get their precious Coke in order to drink "diversity!"

[steve2470]

7. I think I would rather have seen polar bears !

Actually the polar bears' ads are worse because they are exploiting the animals. This is a step up for Coke. We humans can't be exploited as easily.

[RandySF]

8. But Coke is also an American symbol

It's been around since 1892. And I don't think you would have seen this level of reaction if Pepsi did it.

[steve2470]

12. the reaction would have been a tad more muted, yes

Coke is right up there with motherhood, apple pie and babies. I've drank it off and on my entire life. For a capitalist TV advertisement, you can't do any better for long-term social values IMHO. Too bad Coke doesn't sell organic wheat or something nutritious.

[Downwinder]

16. In line with the 1971

"I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke" by The Hillside Singers.

[steve2470]

17. That was a good ad also

As soon as I saw your post, I knew exactly the ad you were referring to. 43 years later and I still remember it instantly.

[Downwinder]

47. Multicultural.

[JI7]

13. that's why foreign countries who go on anti american protests always tear down coke signs

and break windows of things like kfc and mcdonalds.

[Behind the Aegis]

15. I agree, but the bizarre reaction from the RW and others has been nothing if not predictable.

Some are acting as if this ad was put out by the GOP or the Nazis (yes, that comparison has been made).

[pnwmom]

20. Oh, yeah? Kids in gay-led families need to see themselves in ads, just like everyone else.

When you're pictured in a Coke ad, you've hit the mainstream. That's what it means to the children of gay parents.

In my whole life I've never seen an ad like that -- two fathers, holding hands at a skating rink, with a little girl? Wow. It practically jumped out of the screen at me.

[Behind the Aegis]

22. Are you being sarcastic as well?

[pnwmom]

24. Not.One.Little.Bit.

Do you think it was easy being the child of a gay father in the 60's and 70's? Having to keep your parents' secret? Feeling exposed when the cover is suddenly ripped off your whole family?

A long time ago, black people weren't depicted in ads. Now finally gay families are making inroads. It IS progress. Like I said, it means something to the kids, if no one else.

[Behind the Aegis]

25. Then you obviously missed the sarcasm of my post!

Do you think it was easy being gay...EVER? My post was a sarcastic remark to the OP for missing the importance of the ad, thus the .

[pnwmom]

26. Is this the sarcastic post you're talking about?

"I can just see the masses of liberals and progressives rushing out, knocking down patrons to get their precious Coke in order to drink "diversity!"

I can see it's sarcastic, but not that it pointed to the importance of the ad.

Of course it's not easy being gay, although it's better in most places now than it used to be. But I didn't get that from your post.

[Behind the Aegis]

27. Then you missed the point of sarcasm.

The child of gay parents wasn't the only importance of the ad. My sarcastic remark was because the OP missed the forest for the trees and is as silly and simplistic as the RW'ers freaking out about the ad.

"Of course it's not easy being gay, although it's better in most places now than it used to be. But I didn't get that from your post."

Of course you didn't.

[joshcryer]

29. Relax. It's all good.

pwnmom obviously missed the sarcasm. It's all good. They may apologize but the whole subthread is pretty hostile. I trust that pwnmom didn't mean any ill intent and that they misunderstood the intent your post. Sometimes the sarcasm tag is necessary.

[Behind the Aegis]

30. thought the rolling eyes were enough...she seemed to get that part.

[joshcryer]

33. See her post #19.

Given you are basically in agreement I think she definitely missed the sarcasm and went on the defensive, it sucks, it happens. It's all cool. We're all on the same page here.

[pnwmom]

35. Yes, that is what happened.

But can you take a whack at explaining to me why, even assuming the poster was being sarcastic, that post was supportive of gay people being in the ad?

This was the quote: "I can just see the masses of liberals and progressives rushing out, knocking down patrons to get their precious Coke in order to drink "diversity!"

If that's sarcastic, then what is s/he saying exactly?

My feeling was that it doesn't matter whether liberals rush out and buy Coke or not. The ad is significant for what it's saying to gay families.

[joshcryer]

42. The OP warned against liberals "falling for" the ad.

Beyond was sarcastically indicating that no, liberals would not, in fact, suddenly go out and start drinking Coca-Cola because of it. I agree with Beyond because the OP is being silly. No one is going to "fall for it."

Quote from OP:

So enjoy the feel goodness of the ad but don't fall for it.
It's not about what it says it's about.

[pnwmom]

43. Okay, I'm starting to get it now. Thanks.

[Behind the Aegis]

38. We are on the same page that the ad marks something important...but that is all.

Simply read her response to you.

[pnwmom]

44. Do you have a problem with what I've been saying, other than that I didn't understand your post?

[pnwmom]

34. What I don't understand is how even a sarcastic understanding of your post

points to the importance of the ad. You said:


"I can just see the masses of liberals and progressives rushing out, knocking down patrons to get their precious Coke in order to drink "diversity!"

Taken sarcastically, that means something more like, "I can't really see . . . " So how does that support the importance of the ad?

[Behind the Aegis]

36. It isn't difficult to understand.

It was not created to inspire Americans, it was made to sell soda.

It was deliberately made with a political bias because they knew that would stir up a hornets nest of discussion all over the country, and all of it centered around the word "Coke".

The right wing loudmouths will keep this in the public consciousness for a long time to come, and most of them will still buy a Coke when they become thirsty.

It was a calculated move and a very clever one.

So enjoy the feel goodness of the ad but don't fall for it.
It's not about what it says it's about.

You really didn't understand my sarcastic remark?

[pnwmom]

40. Obviously, I REALLY didn't understand what you meant, sarcastic or not.

I'm saying that even though it was just a cold, calculated move to make money, and whether or not it ever sells a can of Coke, it's sending a visual message to gay-led families that they're just like everyone else in the damn ad.

A visual demonstration that I can't remember ever seeing in an ad before, that would have made a difference to me when I was growing up.

Okay?

[Behind the Aegis]

49. You obviously don't, that is clear.

What I was saying is despite this being a corporation trying to sell a product, they created an ad that not only depicted a gay couple with a child, it depicted a gay couple (a FIRST for a Superbowl ad), but showed Muslims, Jews, Asian-descent, and many others as AMERICANS! It sang a song about the US in MULTIPLE languages, further demonstrating the DIVERSITY of the US.

The OP seems to be saying "hey, that's cool, but remember, this is an evil corporation hocking its wares," and ignoring the importance of the ad's content. Maybe like your misreading my post, I have misread the OP, but I doubt it given what I have seen tonight. If the OP was sarcastic too, then I owe her/him an apology.

ETA: Seems josh has made it more clear.

[joshcryer]

50. I loved the Filipino American reference.

My nephew is Filipino American and I've practically been raising him the last year. And the best part is the little girl in the video was not your typical Filipino American, but one of the lighter skin tones, which my nephew is, I know this may not be important to many, but in the Filipino culture it is a pretty rare thing and he can expect to have a rougher go of things because of it.

edit: the ad doesn't actually express that part unless you know beforehand the languages, but the little girl in this video explains her ethnic background: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024434743

[TheMathieu]

9. I'm not falling for anything.

I bought Coke before the ad.

And will continue to do so.

People should get off their high horses and enjoy what was a beautiful ad.

You are not superior if you don't drink Coke.

[dionysus]

14. actually, sir, scientific studies conclude pepsi drinkers are superior to coke consumers in a myriad

of ways.

[Wounded Bear]

18. actually, sir, some people conclude pepsi drinkers are superior to coke consumers in a myriad

of ways.

FIFY

You're welcome.

[lisby]

21. Agreed.

I also remember the "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing" ad. This was magnificent and as much of a statement as that original ad was, in its day.

[pnwmom]

19. But I've never seen a family like mine in a Coke Ad. Or maybe, any ad -- certainly not one that

got this kind of exposure.

When I was a kid, if there were ads like this on TV, it would have made all the difference between feeling like a freak, and feeling like a regular family. And we're still living in a country where, if there are gay characters in a movie, it's almost never G-rated. If there's a kiss, the filmmakers are lucky if they can get a PG-13 rating.

It might be just an ad, but it's also an ad that tells us something. The WAR is over and we have won.When a gay-led family is being used to sell Coke, we can practically hear gay marriage bans falling all over the country.

[Ichingcarpenter]

23. Fry on the superbowl

good ad but its an ad from a major corporation who has a history in south america.

[delrem]

37. Killer Cola

http://killercoke.org/

[merrily]

28. Regardless of Coke's motivation, the more things we see around us,

on TV and IRL, that show gays as normal, unremarkable, etc., just another part of the human family, the better, IMO. Especially for gay kids. And, when it happens on the most watched commercials of the year, so much the better.

[joshcryer]

31. What leftist is going to "fall" for that ad?

If anything they'll do what happened to Cherios after their interracial ad. Put on the pressure. (Yes, after Cherios' interracial ad liberals petitioned them to get rid of GMOs, and they did!)

Coca-Cola just opened themselves up to the potential of being forced to get rid of HFCS or at the minimum stop leeching from foreign aquifers to sell Cola overseas.

[dipsydoodle]

41. .

Last edited Mon Feb 3, 2014, 07:32 AM - Edit history (1)

Do people still watch adverts ? I just listen to the music and most of the time have no recollection what on earth the product was.

[Cryptoad]

46. After watching Bob Dylan

do his commercial, nothing surprises me!

[countmyvote4real]

48. The only time I ever "boycotted" Coke was back in the '80s when they changed their formula.

It was the "new" Coke and it didn't sell because millions didn't buy it. I wasn't crazy about the ad message at the time, but I still tried it and was very disappointed by the product. And they changed it back (although with HFCS.) I stopped buying the product, not the brand. Good on Coke for appealing to the constant demographic changes of 'merca.

[countryjake]

51. I didn't fall for anything, never even saw it til we came home...

from the SuperBowl party where we went to watch the game. None of the people I spent the afternoon with gave a shit about any dumbass commercials and I watched it right here on DU for the first time. It was well done, and yes, it was produced by corporate capitalism, but I never do expect to see much of anything else whenever I watch a television. I even agree that it was very clever capitalist propaganda, because I despise Coca-Cola and the damn thing made me feel good to see and hear the words, the song, and all of the people in it. But it sure didn't make me feel like having a Coke, anymore than the Gatorade Bath that they gave Pete Carroll at the end of the game made me feel like drinking that disgusting crap.

[justiceischeap]

52. But what you and some others seem to be missing is this

Ads and entertainment, sadly, seem to have more influence over the average American than, say, news or politics or even reality. Yes, this is an ad intended to sell a product. It's also a way to communicate ideas from a level that most people don't get to communicate from. Coke basically told anyone watching the Super Bowl that America is made of many different types of people and that's what makes America beautiful. The right saw and heard something other than themselves in that ad and got all frothed up over it--displaying their xenophobia yet again. Showing that as much as they like to idolize the Founding Fathers, they would have hated living in that time because America was just as diverse then as it is now. That everyone on American soil was an immigrant escapes them.

This ad that isn't only an ad does a lot to shine the spotlight on some very unsavory aspects of the America we currently live in and it needs to be given credit for starting this conversation we're having right now and others are probably having concerning the outrage that a simple ad can spark.

[Skidmore]

53. Undoubtedly, but the message is still important and is one that

you don't find much in media now. Many of the newer television programs, particularly reality programming, are steeped in creating conflict and divisiveness. Millions of people consume this product and if a message of unity and harmony and recognition of the "other" becomes a tag for people to also recognize, then it isn't bad. DU continually bashes corporations and media for playing everyone off against each other to tear at the fabric of society. This one instance of getting on the right message, even if it is to sell can of soda, should be acknowledged and reinforced for media. You don't have to insist that people grind each other in the dust to move forward. It is that simple. Reinforce the message. You don't have to buy the product but the message that we are all in this together is the very thing we need now.

[CBGLuthier]

54. Baaaaaa Baaaaaaa

Baaaa Baaa Baaaaaaaaa

Sorry, but the sheep have spoken. Make all the poison you want but sell it with love, a smile and DIVERSITY and you are the second coming of FDR.