What Does Budweiser Appeal To African Americans?

The Budweiser advertisements that ran in 1962, subconsciously suggests white supremacy over African Americans. This idea arises when readers see both advertisements, one that ran in African-American magazines and the other in white-oriented family magazines. At first glance, the advertisements imply that the only way to have a good time is by drinking Budweiser and it appeals to both African Americans and Caucasians, but when the two advertisements are contrasted there are significant differences that indicate unintentional racism. 1962 was a time period of Civil Rights Movement initiated by African Americans to gain equal rights whites had. Blacks had endured years of segregation and discrimination from whites. Jim Crow laws were passed
that created isolation between blacks and whites, this created the feeling of inferiority among African Americans and even though they were prevailing in their fight for greater rights, they were still regarded as being subordinate. Many Whites still perceived blacks as uneducated and unable to become dominant figures in society. So when Budweiser released the two advertisements, the paradigms used implied different notions for each audience. They portrayed African Americans as unproductive and unable to take leadership and Caucasians as powerful and authoritative people. In the Budweiser advertisement intended for the white audience, it illustrates a group of Caucasian men resembling business associates dressed in suits hanging around the kitchen drinking Budweiser. It appeared to be nighttime and they just came home from a productive day at work. The tablecloth on the kitchen table was red and silky which signified it was expensive and the refrigerator looked upscale and costly. In the bottom of the advertisement it states, “ out in the kitchen… what’s more fun than shooting the breeze with your friends? If the Budweiser holds out, maybe you’ll solve all the world’s problems.” The ad was implying that because they are Caucasian they are equipped and capable of bringing solutions to all of the world’s problems. In the ad targeting African Americans, it portrayed a group of Black men dressed nicely hanging around drinking Budweiser. However, unlike the other ad, the refrigerator wasn’t nicely built and looked inexpensive. The tablecloth was yellow with a checkered print that resembled a picnic blanket and looked outdated. It also appeared to be daytime, which is an odd time to be drinking. Drinking at that time of the day most likely implies that the men do not have anything productive to do. Usually people drink at nighttime after having a long day and in the other advertisement the white men were drinking at night. In the bottom of the ad it says, “ the neighbors… out in the kitchen, swapping ideas with good friends. This is fun and this calls for Budweiser.” The ad was essentially making assumptions about African Americans, implying that blacks can gather around and swap some ideas but their ideas are just going to be ideas that are not going to be implemented. “ This is fun” is downplaying and deemphasizing any ideas African Americans have. The ad does not precisely represent African Americans as diligent and hard working people compared to the ad intended for the white audience.
It provokes the feeling of insignificance within African Americans because Budweiser suggests that friendship is their limit in society by stating “the neighbors… out in the kitchen, swapping ideas with good friends. This is fun and this calls for Budweiser.” Looking at the ad you can imply that the men are not business associates, but just neighborhood friends having fun. However, in the advertisement targeting Caucasians, Budweiser implies that whites are hard working and affluent people and goes as far as saying they can solve all the world’s
problems.
Furthermore, the socioeconomic status of blacks is presented to be lower than whites. In the advertisement proposed to whites, the refrigerator had two separate compartments with two handles, but the African American ad only had one handle with the compartments separated inside .The tablecloth and wallpaper used in the ad were old fashioned and outdated, but the ones depicted in the white ad were stylish and trendy. This leads to the belief that Caucasians are wealthier than African Americans. Additionally, Budweiser changed the statements on both of the ads, giving the Caucasian ad the empowering statement that provokes action and the African American ad the ineffective statement. Budweiser’s primary objective was to sell beer by appealing to both white people and African Americans who were taking part in the Civil Rights Movement.
The goal of the ads was not to degrade anyone but to appeal to the masses to essentially gain more buyers and expose their product to a different culture. After analyzing the advertisements, I’m able to see how African Americans have overcome the discrimination they’ve gone through in the past and how society has reacted to this change. However, Some African Americans are still discriminated against today, certainly not as bad as before, but many still face obstacles that whites do not. One prime example of this can be seen in President Barack Obama. When he campaigned for presidency in 2008 many people were amazed that for the first time in U.S history an African American man was running to be in office. He gained a lot of support from the black community because he gave them a feeling of hope that their voices would be heard and all though he had many supporters, he also had people who criticized and opposed his actions for the part being that he’s black. They couldn’t succumb the idea of being governed by an African American man because they have the notion that blacks are inferior and unable to take leadership. So when he became elected president, many of his opposers started becoming way to harsh on him and attributing every negative occurrence in society to him. This just comes to show that many people are still
unable to accept the idea that African Americans are prospering in society and they will continue antagonizing them.