Naeemah Clark, associate professor of communications, offered her insights for an article that looked at the automotive company's decision to use civil rights leader the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in a Super Bowl commercial.
A recent piece by NBC News examining the decision by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles to use the words of civil rights leader the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. during its Super Bowl ad for Dodge Ram trucks features the insights of Naeemah Clark, associate professor of communications.
The ad has proved controversial, with some taking issue with the use of audio from a 1968 speech by King that touches on service to others to try to sell Ram trucks.
"The spot was supposed to create a positive impression of the company's volunteer efforts," writes reporter Clair Atkinson "Instead it turned into every company's nightmare when other parts of the same speech delivered by King exactly 50 years ago on Sunday — known as the "drum major instinct" sermon, from Feb. 4, 1968 — warned of the dangers of advertising, including paying too much for automobiles."
Atkinson reached out to Clark, who has extensively researched a lack of diversity in the media and the unfair portrayal of marginalized groups, for the piece, with Clark saying that she initially thought that the ad was in poor taste, but changed her mind.
"I've decided to celebrate the fact that in 2018, MLK is being used as a mainstream voice," Clark told Atkinson via email.
Read the entire article here.