Brandjack News

By Quentin Langley

It is Superbowl Sunday in a few days, and one of the obsessions in the media is the ads that will run in one of the most expensive slots of the year. Sometimes companies deliberately court controversy to get maximum coverage around the ad, as well as the exposure of the slot itself.

Is that VW‘s plan with this ad:

A white guy, apparently from Minnesota, with a Jamaican accent. Is that racist? Well, not all Jamaicans are white, and someone “from” Minnesota could have previously lived in Jamaica. But there is no doubt that the Jamaican accent is most often associated with black people. This may be less so in the US than in the UK, where a significant proportion of the black population are of West Indian descent. 

Using the Jamaican accent to communicate happy and laid back would seem to be an example of stereotyping. Is it negative stereotyping? Well, potentially. Labelling black people as laid back may seem complimentary, but it also implies someone who is not driven and career focused. 

So far, VW seems to be doing quite well in the debate. The Jamaican government seems happy, and thinks the ad may boost tourism. It is probably worth exploring the fact that for a German company, this is a counter-stereotype. VW may be trying to communicate that, as a company, it is not just efficient with excellent engineering, but its products can be fun too. 

But stereotyping is usually best avoided. This consultant would have advised against.