Use of Cultural Reinforcement in Advertising

The Super Bowl, America’s most viewed telecast. But why do people watch the Super Bowl? Who are these people watching the Super Bowl? And what makes the Super Bowl unique when compared to other events being telecast on national television? Is it the because we enjoy watching professional athletes collide with one another on a major stage for the entire world population to observe, or is it how a major company such as Nike is willing to spend millions of dollars for an entertaining, thirty-second ad that is advertising their $115 typical “performance” sneaker? In reality it’s both. And though we may or may not fancy the teams participating in the Super Bowl or remember the final score, the ads are the first thing we discuss with our friends, co-workers, or spouse come that Monday morning. But what is about these ads that make them so memorable? In his essay, “On Reading a Video Text,” Robert Scholes explains how a thirty-second ad is much more than just “selling” a product but rather how an ad narrates a story a story which at times reflects our culture. And, as Sholes claims, when we understand the story being presented to us in a thirty-second ad, we prove our capability and validate our participation in society. Cultural reinforcement, as Scholes emphasized, is demonstrated in many ads and illustrates our ability to understand the simple story that a company, such as Nike, illustrates in their ‘“Fate’ Leave Nothing” commercial.

This commercial tells the story of two well-known football athletes, LaDainian Tramayne Tomlinson and Troy Aumua Polamalu. The plot presents short clips that document important and revealing experiences in their lives from fetus to grown adults playing as professionals for the National F...

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...dominate the other in a single play. Both players seem to get up from the collision and congratulate one another. Culturally we don’t expect opposing players to “congratulate” one another during a game. We expect players to be ruthless and in a sense “dirty.” But Nike is also sending the message of friendly competition the idea that one can be great and have a great attitude while playing any sport. It’s not just about winning but having fun too!

Cultural reinforcement illustrates our ability to understand the simple storyline that ads illustrate and by understanding the storylines we in return feel part of this society. Nike’s ultimate goal is to sell their products but yet they tackle our emotions with a simple storyline: Hard work pays off. And because we know what hard work looks like we feel that we too can achieve it and make our goals become a reality.