Introduction

= Introduction =

 For my second Critical Reading Paper I choose to analyze a commercial. I wanted to step away from strictly looking at literacy events that centered around children. This experience game me the opportunity to focus on an literacy event that targeted my age demographic.

 It should be noted that this commercial aired during the 2011 Superbowl. The  advertisement was part of the Doritos and Pepsi Max "Crash the Super Bowl Contest." Prior to this year Budweiser took the winnings. The Pepsi commercial "Love Hurts," ranked #5 during this years Superbowl. The commercial  was created by Brad Bosley a white 28 year-old from male from Los Angeles, California. The aspiring writer and director made the commercial with a measly budget of $800. The airtime however for these coveted advertisements are often the highest priced of the year. Fox estimated the cost for a brief thirty second slot of airtime can run up to three million dollars! Why? These commercials are playing for audiences of one hundred million people plus. Just think of the impact a commercial reaching that many viewers can have.

As I examine this commercial though a critical lens I intend to unpack who was marginalized through this advertisement as well as explore further the effects of power, culture, and race. Jones notes that an imperative part of engaging in critical literacies is to have the ability to read from multiple perspectives (Jones, 2006). One step I took as a part of my analysis was to create a list of my "cultural locations," and re-examine the commercial multiple times through a different lens. During this process I asked myself did I read this commercial differently as a female, as a single? I found was that this was very useful in the unpacking process. (For a more complete list of my "Cultural Locations" click HERE or on the side navigation bar.)