Patriotism Gone Awry

September 20, 2006

Has anyone else noticed lately the popularity of using an image of the American flag and similar patriotic themed images in advertising?

Last night on my way home, I drove past a local car repair shop that had an electronic, animated LCD marquee between the road and its front door. The message flashing on the marquee invites people to stop in and see how well they treat their customers. The business enhanced the invitation with a free cup of coffee. At the top of the flashing text message was an animated American Flag, used as a border, drawn out with the red LCD light bulbs.

As I read the message on the marquee, I wondered if the business owner believed that adding the American flag to the message made the invitation to stop more inviting? Or, was it just a thoughtless gesture; a way to add visual interest to the message?

It seems that the use of stars and stripes for marketing is becoming a cliché. Many of the local car ads I’ve seen in the past few years have had the stars and stripes splashed across them somehow. And I think about all the small, brandless businesses that have taken up red, white, and blue, stars and stripes for their image. The American Flag Store web site, even offers patriotic-themed signs for your business.

Now, I understand that since 9/11, it’s become hip to be patriotic. Remember how prolific the American flag image was in those first months after that horrific event? It seemed as though every car in America had a patriotic bumper sticker, or magnetic cling. I remember our local newspaper had even printed a full-page red, white, and blue flag to proudly display in your living room window. The flag was everywhere. At first, the gestures of patriotism were sincere. We came together as a nation, using the flag, and our patriotism as the glue to bond people of different race, religion, and culture into a single body.

I wonder how long it will take for the general public to see that simply adding the American flag to something doesn’t increase it’s branding strength. I also wonder if the recent popularity of commercializing the American flag is in some way a detriment to the symbol of our nation’s flag.

Filed Under Advertising, Design, Criticism

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