Selling a Dream

Ever watch TV and groan when you realize a favorite song has been transformed into a commercial jingle? I got that sinking feeling — but worse — last night. Alcatel's new TV ad exploits the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. Is nothing sacred?

The idea behind the whole campaign, according to Alcatel, is to emphasize its role in connecting the world by bringing to life poignant speeches in history. The first TV commercial in the series begins with King delivering his famous speech to an empty Washington Mall on Aug. 28, 1963. The voice-over begins, "Before you can inspire, before you can touch, you must first connect…" Then the camera reveals the full crowd that was actually present.

Did Alcatel even read the entire speech before creating this commercial? King's dream wasn't about having his image used to hawk products by huge corporations. The dream was about ending segregation and racial discrimination and about opening "the doors of opportunity to all of God's children." Segregation may have ended, but racial discrimination still runs rampant.

How far has Alcatel come in realizing that dream? It seems that Alcatel's top management doors are open, if you're white. A look at photos on the company's Web site reveals that of 19 top executives, 17 are white. (One photo is missing.) The only apparent diversity in top management is Krish Prabhu, Alcatel's chief operating officer, who is originally from India. With Prabhu's help over the past five years, the U.S. has grown into Alcatel's largest single market.

Alcatel isn't alone in appropriating King's speech. Cingular also used the speech as part of one of its TV ads recently. However, Cingular's top management appears to be slightly more diverse than Alcatel's. Out of 11 top executives, its senior vice president of human resources is African-American and its chief information officer is Hispanic.

A while back, I watched a video of King delivering the entire "I Have a Dream" speech. It gave me chills. It's heartening to know that there really are courageous people in the world who are willing to stand up for what is right. I get the same feeling each time I read Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.

So what's next? "Four score and seven beers ago," in a Budweiser ad?

Copyright © 2004 Ziff Davis Media Inc. All Rights Reserved. Originally appearing in The Net Economy.