Chrysler Group LLC's U.S. dealers swung into action on Wednesday to rebut complaints that the auto maker's emotional Super Bowl ad provided support to President Obama's re-election campaign.
"We have no doubt that this ad had no political agenda of any kind but rather [was] a statement of fact and hope for the future for all of us and America," the company's National Dealer Council said following an emergency meeting.
The single airing of the auto maker's "Halftime in America" two-minute commercial on Sunday during the Super Bowl sparked debate from living rooms to dealerships across the country. The controversy boosted viewership with more than five million people viewing the ad on YouTube, reported The Wall Street Journal.
Oliver Francois, Chrysler's chief marketing officer and architect of the ad, said he finds the controversy perplexing. "It was designed to deliver emotions and I don't think emotions have a party. There was zero political message. It was meant more of a rally cry to get together and what makes us strong is our collective power and not our individual disagreements."
At issue is whether the ad's intent was to sell cars or to help President Barack Obama in this fall's presidential campaign. His administration provided bailout funding and ushered Chrysler and rival General Motors Co. through a quick bankruptcy protection process in 2009.
"To say it was a political favor is bull hockey," said Valdosta, Ga., dealer Cass Burch, who owns two Chrysler stores. "That comment makes me want to fistfight somebody. Here I was overwhelmed with emotion and pride…It is bush league for them to take something that is so heroic and so patriotic about our company and to make it political."
In the spot actor Clint Eastwood intones: "Seems that we've have lost our hearts at times. The fog of division, discord and blame, made it hard to see what lies ahead but after those trials we all rallied around what was right and acted as one. Because that is what we do. We find a way through tough times and if we can't find a way then we'll make one. All that matters now is what's ahead. How do we come from behind? How do we come together and how do we win?"
The following day, the advertisement became fodder for talk shows after Republican commentator Karl Rove told Fox News he was offended by the commercial. He described it as "a sign of what happens when you have Chicago-style politics and the President of the United States and his political minions are in essence using our tax dollars to buy corporate advertising."
David Axelrod, Obama's strategist, and Dan Pfeiffer, the White House communication director, praised the spot in tweets they posted to Twitter. Their reaction fueled complaints the ad touts the Detroit bailout ahead of the fall presidential election. The White House has said it wasn't involved in the ad.
So far, the firestorm has had little effect on the Chrysler brand or on its sales, according to dealers and research companies that track consumer sentiment by monitoring social media websites, blogs, news websites and message boards.
Zeta Interactive, a New York-based marketing firm that mines 200 million different blogs and social media sites, said the buzz around Chrysler's ad has been 83 percent positive. Collective Intellect, a tracking firm in Boulder, Colorado, said its research shows that since the spot aired, consumers' affinity and favor of the Chrysler brand has increased.
Auto-shopping website Edmunds.com said it saw a 27 percent jump in consumers looking for information about Chrysler after the ad aired. The ongoing debate seems to have helped keep that momentum going. Edmunds.com said Tuesday's traffic for the auto maker is showing a 23 percent increase, down slightly from Monday, but higher than all but two of the other auto brands that appeared in the game.
"Chrysler and its dealers have to be in heaven right now," said John Durham, advertising professor at the University of San Francisco. "The shelf life of this ad has been significantly extended." Super Bowl buzz "typically dies out shortly after the game."
Some branding experts believe the political uproar isn't resonating and is unlikely to tarnish the Chrysler brand.
"It is more of them talking to themselves," said Charles Rashall, founder of brandadvisors, a branding firm in San Francisco, Calif. "Most people are fed up with that stuff."
