Sample Deconstruction
by Christie McAuley, NMMLP

Corvette "Driving Fantasy"

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Who created this media message?  Why?

General Motors, which makes Chevrolet Corvette, paid an advertising agency (Campbell-Ewald) to make this ad (directed by Madonna's husband, Guy Ritchie) and to air it on TV stations.  They paid for it because airing TV commercials is not free-this is how TV networks and cable stations earn money.   

Who is the target audience?  What text, images or sounds suggest this? 

Both kids and adults--especially males--are being targeted. More specifically, the target audience would include people who are attracted to rebellion, adventure and risk-taking lifestyles, of the sort shown in the ad.  The commercial might appeal to young boys who may have the same fantasy as the boy in the ad.  It might also appeal to the kid inside many grownups - the people who actually buy and drive cars.  Typically, younger adults are the target of sports car ads; however, the song playing in the ad, Jumpin' Jack Flash by the Rolling Stones, was popular in the late '60s and into the '70s and would appeal to people who were growing up during this time who are now older. The images of driving fast, recklessly and being airborne would be appealing to people who are rebellious, adventurous and risk-takers.   

What is the text (literal meaning) of the message?   

A school-aged boy drives the car of his dreams - a red Corvette.  His classmates and teacher are in awe as they see the car soaring through the air.  Music begins  (Jumpin' Jack Flash by the Rolling Stones) and the pace of the commercial increases.  In a series of jump cuts, the boy races through the streets of New York City, across the Brooklyn Bridge, through tunnels, spinning out and burning rubber.  While sailing through the air, the boy passes another Corvette whose driver, a young girl, winks at him.  Then, his speeding car lands on a street and skids to a stop in a trail of smoke.  When the smoke clears, we see an image of this same school-aged boy, opening his eyes, standing on the sidewalk with a skateboard in one hand, who has obviously been fantasizing in a daydream about the car parked in front of him:  a Corvette.  A voiceover says, "The all new Corvette:  the official car of your dreams" while the music fades out and the tagline, "An American Revolution" appears above the parked Corvette.   

What is the subtext (unstated or hidden message)?

There are many subtexts in this ad; here are a few: 
-You'll be popular by becoming a rebel, skipping school and driving a fancy sports car. 
-Driving a Corvette allows one to have power and control. 
-It's easy to drive fast and recklessly. 
-It's fun to take your parent's car for a drive by yourself. 
-Adults will become kids again when they drive a Corvette. 
-When you drive the right car, you'll attract people of the opposite sex. 
-Your dreams will come true when you buy a Corvette. 
-Everyone will notice you when you drive this car.  

What tools of persuasion are used? 

-Nostalgia:  The old song that was played brings older folks back to a time when they were young. 
-Hyperbole: Supposedly, driving a car is always full of daredevil stunts; it's always fun. The boy's reckless driving is exaggerated. 
-Repetition: Song lyrics repeat "Jumpin' Jack Flash, it's a gas, gas, gas..." 
-Symbols: The boy is a symbol of youth; reckless driving is a symbol of rebellion; the airborne car is a symbol of freedom and power. 
-Flattery:  The tagline is "The Official Car of Your Dreams"-in other words, you have good taste and expensive taste in what you want. 

What healthy messages are communicated?

-There is a disclaimer promoted in print at the beginning stating "This is a dream.  Do not drive without a license.  Obey all traffic laws."
-Most of the kids shown in the ad are in school as opposed to skipping school. 
-Ironically, the boy appears to be wearing his seatbelt when he's driving.   

What unhealthy messages are communicated?  

-Kids are rewarded for rebellious behavior: The boy gets lots of attention from his schoolmates and the girl in the other car.  
-Driving recklessly is a danger to oneself and others. 
-Driving without a license before you have the necessary experience is not safe-or legal.  

What part of the story is not being told?  

This ad, like many other messages we are exposed to in the media, makes no mention of the consequences of risky, thrill-seeking behavior.  

When the ad began airing during the 2004 Summer Olympics, it generated a storm of controversy.  Auto safety groups said the ad sent a dangerous message to kids that it's all right to slip behind the wheel of a fast car. "Ads glorifying speed and high performance are common enough these days," the groups said, "but this is one of the worst and most reprehensible examples produced by the auto industry."   Soon after a 5-year old boy in East St. Louis, Ill., drove his uncle’s Cadillac into a fence, General Motors pulled the ad off the air.

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