A Faded Flag? Americana in Branding and Advertising in 2024

On June 12, 2010, I was at Richmond, Virginia’s Penny Lane Pub for the U.S. vs. England match in the group stage of the World Cup. The place was packed, with roughly equal numbers of fans of Team USA and the heavily favored Three Lions (in case the name didn’t give it away, Penny Lane is a very English English pub) spewing all manner of good-natured vitriol back and forth as the teams went into halftime tied.

Then this commercial came on. The pub was silent at first as folks tried to figure out what we were watching…and then absolutely erupted when we saw George Washington behind the wheel of a Dodge Challenger, Betsy Ross flag flying out the passenger side window, followed by the only spoken words in the spot: “Here’s a couple of things America got right: cars, and freedom.” I like to think that the sheer delight this caused among the entire crowd – fans of both squads were repeating the line endlessly through the rest of the match – helped generate enough karmic momentum to keep England from winning.

Americana – What Is It?

While a soccer match may not be the first thing one thinks of when the word “Americana” is mentioned, the Dodge spot itself is a classic of the genre. In advertising, the term refers to ads with elements of national identity such as history (esp. the Revolutionary era, the Old West, and WWII/postwar), folklore, and nostalgia.

Americana’s been a staple of advertising since the beginning of the industry. It shows up most frequently in settings where mass appeal is important (like sports), but has also been leveraged to both portray and appeal to diverse audiences – even before inclusivity was considered a virtue. But with polarization seemingly ever-increasing, and the feeling among some that overt displays of patriotism or even the American flag itself have become a partisan signifier, I got asked a question: has Americana been fading out of advertising lately?

The answer, it seems, is not really. While I didn’t do a full-bore, academic-style longitudinal quantitative analysis, here are some selected proof points.

The Evidence

Exhibit A: Volkswagen’s love letter to America in this year’s Super Bowl. What’s more American than an immigrant’s story? Particularly one that’s drenched in some of the biggest cultural touchstones of the last 75 years.

Exhibit B: Impossible Foods’ 2024 campaign is about as red-blooded as possible for a plant-based food company. Mid-century imagery and palette are slathered atop Team America-esque lines like “let’s punch cholesterol in the face!” and “we’re solving the meat problem…with more meat!” Is it ironic and over the top…or is it juuust right? I’d say the answer is “yes.”

Exhibit C: The General insurance serves high-risk and financially challenged drivers are both more culturally diverse than the driving population at large. Since 2011, their mascot has been a pugnacious caricature of an army general with a handlebar mustache. They’ve tweaked his appearance a bit here and there, but his endurance is testament to his appeal among their target markets.

Whence the Enduring Appeal?

If Americana were truly divisive, a mass-market car company like VW would hesitate to alienate half their audience than lean into it. A plant-based food maker would almost certainly avoid the risk of pushing existing customers towards their competitors in an effort to chase the carnivorously-inclined. And brand equity or no, a car insurance company would abandon a problematic mascot with extreme prejudice. How, then has Americana persisted, even in the face of polarization?

It turns out rumors of patriotism’s demise have been greatly exaggerated. The “historic low” level of patriotism in 2024 is still pretty high; over ⅔ of us remain either “extremely” or “very” proud to be Americans. And even the most MAGA-leery can get plenty performative, or just plain thrilled to live where and when they do, when the right moment or mood strikes.

Getting Americana Right for Today’s America

So how to get Americana right in 2024 and beyond? First, don’t feel obligated to play it too straight or reverent; subverting expectations or adding a bit of tongue-in-cheeck over-the-top-ness can help mitigate what might otherwise seem jingoistic. After all, the only thing Americans love as much as we love America is making fun of America…and making fun of how we make fun of America (we’re a pretty meta-inclined people).            

Second, remember that Americana was never just a thing for and about middle class White folks! Like VW recognized, Americans of all backgrounds have had a great and growing impact on our culture since the beginning of the Republic. Celebrate that. And celebrate it in a way that’s authentic to the people and the experiences you want to portray. We’ll be happy to help you.

Author’s Note

Since I wrote this, there has been an attempted assassination of one of the candidates in the 2024 election. The attempt to deny, through violence, the American people their ability to choose who they can vote for is fundamentally un-American – no matter what one thinks of that candidate, his past actions, or his platform. The fact that un-American ideals and actions persist is itself part of the fabric of American life, and has been since the beginning, but that’s no reason not to try to ever-more-fully live up to the ideals expressed in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.