Shades of difference
Alltold charted a roughly analogous trend when it came to representations of people of color. Those with dark complexions were essentially absent in 1969’s Super Bowl ads, for example, but have steadily worked their way into visibility. The inclusion rate for people with darker skin tones stood at just shy of 32% this year, up from just below 27% in 2023.
Even so, this year’s figure still represents a decline from the 35% rate seen in 2021. “After 2020 there’s definitely an increased focus on racial equity and social justice initiatives following the murder of George Floyd,” Gregory said.
A few spots that gave over half of their pricey seconds to people of color included Frito-Lay’s “Victory” and the irrepressible E*Trade babies, one of whom was Black.
For her part, Amy Chen, director of experience for brand agency Siegel+Gale, was encouraged by the prevalence of people of color in last night’s ads.
“Doritos’ ad with Jenna Ortega and her abuelas is not only fun and colorful but also manages to break down some significant barriers to representation,” she said. “An all-Latino cast of characters features abuelas who are together a force to be reckoned with despite their golden years.”
Missing faces
Speaking of golden years, now it’s time for the not-so-good news. When it comes to other historically underrepresented groups—larger Americans, people with disabilities and the LGBTQIA+ community—the spotlight appeared to be elsewhere.
Onscreen inclusion of older people has never been great and, according to Alltold’s long-term data crunch, seniors weren’t much more evident in 2024’s spots than they were in 1969’s. After the AI tool finished reading last night’s ads, it found that 44 spots afforded older people less than 20% of screen time. (A notable exception: BMW’s “Talkin’ Like Walken”: The actor is now 80, and he carried the whole ad.)
People with larger body sizes got even less time on advertising’s big stage, with 60 ads giving them 20% screen time or less. Only two ads afforded this group between 41% and 60% of screen time.
Those with disabilities that are physical and observable—which is necessary for AI to detect them—fared even worse: Only six ads featured them. That said, 2024 was better than other years, though that may not be saying much. Since 2000, there were 10 years in which only one person with a disability appeared and five where there were none at all.
Of course, statistics can sometimes belie the outsized impact of a single ad. Google themed its entire minute-long spot around the experiences of Javier Kussrow, a visually impaired actor. Shot deliberately out of focus by blind filmmaker Adam Morse, the spot showcases the Google Pixel phone’s Guided Frame technology, which uses AI and voiced directions to help visually impaired people take photos. The spot just placed first in the annual Kellogg School Super Bowl Advertising Review for “connecting with viewers in an unexpected, emotional way.”
