Who created this media message?  Why?

General Motors created this ad to promote their luxury line of Cadillac DTS vehicles. These are “high end” automobiles with a base price of $42,345 (source: http://www.cadillac.com). The more Cadillac is promoted, the more cars will be sold and the greater the profits will be for General Motors. This ad appears in Out, Instinct and The Advocate during the spring/summer months of 2007.

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

The target audience is most likely men, aged 18-35. In particular, men of an upper socioeconomic class are being targeted, as the Cadillac DTS holds such a high price tag. The ad shows a scruffy but nicely dressed, attractive young man in the driver’s seat, as well as another young man in the passenger seat. The fact that these men are alone together alludes to a relationship between the two, perhaps suggesting a gay male target audience.

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

The text is a small “cadillac.com” at the upper right hand corner, followed by a prominently displayed Cadillac logo at the top of the ad. Underneath the logo reads “Life. Liberty. And the Pursuit.”  In the bottom, left-hand corner there is white text that says “2007 Cadillac DTS 275 hp Northstar V8 Available touch screen DVD-based navigation with voice recognition 8-speaker Bose sound system with CD/MP3 player Nicely equipped at $47,355”.

What is the subtext (unstated or hidden message)?

Driving a Cadillac DTS is the path to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.  You will be young and hip if you drive this car. Cadillac is qualified to represent and align itself with gay culture.

What kind of lifestyle is presented?  Is it glamorized?  How?

An urban lifestyle is presented through the use of clothing, lighting and locale. The men are wearing clothing that could be considered typical of a young, urban and affluent set.  The photo, which is blurred except for the young men, enhances the logo. The lighting creates an atmosphere that could be outside of a club, or a general urban setting. The actual product, the Cadillac DTS, is not what is being sold in this ad. What is being sold is a lifestyle, possibly of excess.

What values are expressed?

Values expressed are the “American” ideals of “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness”, as indicated by the text. Upper-class values are also expressed, as this is a luxury car that only a small fraction of the general population would be able to afford.

What tools of persuasion are being used?

- Plain folks: This Cadillac DTS ad uses models that are not celebrities.

- Beautiful People: The model in the foreground is an attractive man, leading the audience to believe that beautiful people drive the Cadillac DTS.

- The Big Lie: Driving a Cadillac DTS is not indicative of life, liberty, or lasting happiness, nor is it a guarantor of a hip, urban lifestyle.

- Flattery: Cadillac, by creating a gay themed ad campaign, is validating a social group who often does not see themselves represented in mainstream media.

- Timing: By running this ad in gay publications during the spring and summer months leading up to the Gay Pride month of June, the Cadillac brand is strategic in targeting the gay male population.

See "The language of persuasion"

What healthy messages are communicated? What unhealthy messages are communicated?

In this ad, the healthiest message is that both of the models wearing seat belts. Unhealthy messages that are being communicated are that purchasing a Cadillac DTS will make you happy, that material wealth can create actual, sustained happiness, that “buying power” creates a valid identity within the gay community.

What part of the story is not being told?

-General Motors is promoting excessive spending while the corporation itself lost $8.6 billion in 2005 (source: cnnmoney.com).

-Persons within the gay community can have “Life. Liberty. And the pursuit” without a Cadillac DTS.