Glee Coach (Jane Lynch) does a PSA Commercial

The following is a public service announcement that uses the popularity of the "Glee" show characters to emphasize the body of the message:



Like most public service announcements (PSA) this ad has no focus on a product or service, but rather it searches to bring a powerful message to the viewers. The comparison technique is bold and somewhat repulsive in its vivid imagery. It shows the viewer that the r-word “retard” is no different from past popular racial slurs by having people of those racial backgrounds actually say the racial term. Additionally they say it’s not ok to be called by these various terms. The aim of this PSA is to bring awareness that this often-used word is hurtful and derogative; like every other racial slur, and should never be used.

The idea of awareness is shown through a progression of celebrities via a plain-folks method where the viewer sees associated characters (the final character being the coach from Glee) and reverting them to common people dealing with this issue. The viewer sees the characters played by the celebrities, but also sees them as a regular person like themselves and this brings the message to a personal level. It’s this leveling of the playing field that makes this form of advertisement so potent.

The placement of the various characters (a restaurant, a school setting, a grocery store) are all vital in creating this idea without being the focus. It’s a crucial development to the overall image being created for the viewer. The ad itself is not long (about 30 second in duration), but the succession and repetition of the message gives the viewer a very powerful message easily understood on a very intimate level through familiarity.

The message becomes clear at the very end when a girl with learning disorders delivers the final message. Her careful explanation paired with her obvious impairments reinforced with Jane Lynch’s final words plant the idea in the viewer’s mind. The image is a very powerful one with careful influence that feels very persuasive.

The idea of understanding through hearing the racial slurs paired with the girl created a cringing feeling each time I heard the words said. However the sheer simplicity of the message in tangent with the very short span of the ad made me believe that the advertisement is actually being targeted at a younger generation. Somewhere within the teenage years to early twenties when ideas passed from previous generations is battled out with awareness brought from current circumstances.

This generation tends to try to push the limits by using words and phrases even though they don’t entirely understand the full impact of them. Additionally this span is a generation with a shorter attention span that has to be catered to with carefully tailored ads that deliver full impact with a very progressive and very blunt message. This ad meets this entire criterion and would leave a lasting impression even though the ad was borderline offensive. I found it be engaging and filled with a truth that couldn’t make the same impact by using a softer technique.