american patriotism - is it done well?

'American Pie' by Madonna

I've been recently thinking of how America portrays its patriotism in almost any situation, in both victories and tragedies, it is likely that some sort of patriotism traces can be seen, but today I am wanting to focus on American patriotism in the media.

What inspired me was seeing the music video of Madonna's cover for the song 'American Pie'.

The music video is quite simple, showcasing Madonna as well as a vast number of cast portraying different backgrounds of American culture (such as first responders, working class families, people of various colours and sexual orientations etc.) which delivers a message of not only patriotism as all these people are posing in shot with the American flag for most of the video, but also a message of unity, which ties in nicely with the patriotism.

While this is one example of American patriotism and its presence within pop culture, there are plenty more.

Screenshot taken from Madonna's music video [Source]

Screenshot taken from Madonna's music video [Source]

Screenshot taken from Madonna's music video [Source]

Coca-Cola #AmericaIsBeautiful 2014 Olympics Commercial

Screenshot taken from Coca Cola's advert [Source]

Coca-Cola is known for its well thought and produced advertising and the 2014 olympics commercial was no different. it features a patriotic, multilingual song in the background as it showcases a vast range of people from different backgrounds, once again tieing in patriotism and unity and sending the message across that despite ones characteristics, they are still American. The message conveyed within the short advert intends to send a message meant to positively impact the cultural and social scene, by sending the message that the American identity transcends culture and language.

Conclusion

American patriotism within the media seems to be the most mainstreamed and prominent I have personally seen, I rarely see any other countries portraying patriotism in such ways, and while I am sure there are displays present of patriotism for other nations. Americas has been by far the most common one I had seen and I do not expect that to change anytime soon. It's interesting seeing adverts,music videos and even cinema appealing to their more patriotic audiences and then sending a message across once their interest has been captured and it's certainly effective if done right.