Advertisement Deconstruction

Jim Beam TV Spot for Red Stag Bourbon

I first found this ad while watching television, on the Investigation Discovery Network, and then again on the Food Network, as these are the two channels that I watch primarily. Typically, I watch television in the evenings once I get home from work, so it's likely that the advertisement was run after 6 p.m. The total cost to run this advertisement was unable to be found during an internet search, but I would imagine that it cost at least over ten thousand dollars, because of the animation involved.

I suppose that there is a mild connection between  the channels that I viewed the commercial on, and the product being sold. Since the advertisement was for an alcohol, it makes sense that it would be shown on the Food Network, a channel that dedicates itself to food and wine. The Investigation Discovery Network is a channel that is very graphic and shouldn't necessarily be viewed by children without parental discretion, and so it makes sense that a commercial promoting alcohol would be shown.

The target for this audience is primarily adults, aged twenty-one and older. Even so, I can see how this advertisement would appeal to a younger crowd as well, mainly teenagers. The slogan is something that I can see adolescents asking and bring drawn too, just as much as an older crowd. The suggestion that alcohol could solve such a conundrum is also something that many people are likely to buy into as well.

I feel as though bourbon ads typically reach out to an older audience, as younger drinkers tend to go for beers and wines, especially underage drinkers. I think this advertisement is a valiant attempt to get a younger crowd attracted to bourbon.

I think this advertisement brings about a feeling of adventure, the emotion of “taking life by the balls” for a lack of a better term. The commercial portrays power, breaking ground, and cutting new paths. It's successful in evoking these emotions, I feel. 

I feel as though this advertisement assumes that bourbon is the type of drink that urges you to tread a new path, or take on challenges head first. I don't believe these assumptions are true, because I find that alcohol tends to inhibit a person's decision making process, often leading to incorrect assumptions and/or decisions. Of course this isn't true for everyone, but it's something that is well understood and accepted. In this way, I find the message and the reality of the advertisement contradictory. Alcohol doesn't help you leave the ordinary behind, it just helps you forget about it for awhile. It shouldn't be a solution, and it shouldn't be portrayed as one.

 I did not see a gender bias in my ad...I honestly didn't. While bourbon can be seen as a male drink, I would say that there would be more of a male bias if the announcer was a woman talking in a sultry voice. [I personally found his voice attractive and it got my attention, and I am female].Not to mention that there was no overt sexuality in the ad at all. Towards the beginning, when they go on about how the liquor is infused with honey, green tea, and cherry..I find that to be something that women would be more interested in than men. Since I saw the ad going both ways for this reason, I didnt feel like there was a bias - though I can understanding a differing opinion on this.