Bug Light

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xl_lxl3fdU8&feature=player_embedded#at=16

Several commercials construct images of racial stereotypes in order to advertise to specific races. As Michael Omi says “…the necessity to define characters in the briefest and most condensed manner has led to the perpetuation of racial caricatures” (458). This is because most stereotypes tend to try to define the people of any given population. They make generalizations about populations but apply it to individuals. Thus, stereotypes are hurtful because they hold people to certain standards regardless of how different they are. They are often condescending since bad things are expected of some people regardless of their individuality. People from diverse cultures are narrowed down to a few identifying characteristics. In the Bud Light Super Bowl Commercial above, they are several instances of racial stereotypes. First off, the commercial starts off with comedian Carlos Mencia claiming that American girls like accents. He is then seen sitting at a table with a five other people of different races. He then instructs them to go hit on the girls at the bar as they drink Bud Light. The first man tells the woman, “You have the thighs of a Sherpa”. The man is brown skinned with medium length hair and a very distinct accent. Even before, I looked up what “Sherpa” means, I knew that the man was supposed to be Indian, Pakistani or from one of the neighboring countries. He was made to look like a typical Indian guy. He talked with a familiarly heavy accent. He also seemed so out of touch with American culture that he compared a woman’s thighs to a Sherpa; which is an ethnic group that lives in the Himalayas. This commercial perpetuates the stereotypical image of an Indian. The man was made to look like what every foreign Indian guy should look like. A second guy then goes up to talk to the girl. He is Asian and wears glasses. He also has a very “typical” accent and is wearing a buttoned polo with the collar down. He tries to say “Hi” but says it too strongly and then botches his second attempt by saying “Hi, hi, hi”. He has glasses, looks nerdy and was socially awkward. He was made to match the popular stereotype of Asians being nerdy and not being able to communicate effectively. This is stereotypical because he wasn’t portrayed as a normal American; he was shown as a foreigner with familiar attributes in order to look recognizable. The third man then goes up to talk to the woman and is shown randomly holding a chicken. He then tells the woman in a thick accent that she has the eyes of the bird. From his accent, complexion and textile clothing, he looks to be of African origins. Once again, this man is portrayed in a stereotypical sense. Even though he offends the woman, he looks like he doesn’t know any better and smiles the time. All the foreigners had certain characteristics that set them apart and the chicken was supposed to set this man apart. Since several African countries aren’t as industrialized as the rest of the world, the chicken was symbolic of his supposed sync with nature. As Omi stated, this commercial used these stereotypical images because people are familiar with them. Since the images used are so typical, people don’t mistake the message being sent and the characters are seemingly more “believable”.