Let's Talk About The Wells Fargo Ad

By Lewis Boob on September 22, 2016

Just recently, the bank Wells Fargo had released an advertisement for their “Teen Financial Advertisement Day” event. This advertisement was something that stood out to me, because in it we see an unfair comparison between the arts and science fields.

“A ballerina yesterday. An engineer today.”
“An actor yesterday. A botanist today.”
“Let’s get them ready for tomorrow.”
(twitter.com)

Wells Fargo is promoting, through the release of this advertisement, that the arts are a thing of the past and that you will have a much more rewarding and financially stable future as an engineer or botanist.

Before I continue on, I would like to say that I have no problem with this ad because it favors the STEM field. I admire and have a lot of respect for doctors, teachers, scientists, and many more people in this job field.

I have a problem with this advertisement, because of the fact that many people have probably seen this ad before it was released and said nothing about it. I have a problem with this advertisement, because it lessens the importance of the arts. I have a problem with the advertisement, because of the word choice used to express the message.

To quote Laura Benanti’s tweet, “YOU GUYS!! APPARENTLY ‘TOMORROW’ WILL HAVE NO ARTISTS IN IT JUST A SHIT TON OF BOTANISTS AND ENGINEERS!”

As someone studying for a career in the arts, I know for a fact that I might not be making as much money coming straight out of college than someone else in the sciences but that doesn’t make it right to have that fact thrown in my face by Wells Fargo.

I’m not saying that the advertisement should have promoted the arts over the sciences, because that is another unproductive solution. People are allowed to change their minds. I think the very first thing I wanted to be when I grew up was a math teacher and now I’m studying theatre and media writing. I have also talked to people who have done theatre when they were younger, and they are now studying biology in college. Interests change and people change their minds on the daily.

This advertisement could have and should have taken a universal approach by inspiring people to follow their dreams no matter what they want to do. It shouldn’t tell someone or even promote that one way of life is better than another; it should be objective.

They later issued this statement:

“Wells Fargo is deeply committed to the arts, and we offer our sincere apology for the initial ads promoting our Sept. 17 Teen Financial Education Day. They were intended to celebrate all the aspirations of young people and fell short of that goal. We are making changes to the campaign’s creative that better reflect our company’s core value of embracing diversity and inclusion, and our support of the arts. Last year, Wells Fargo’s support of the arts, culture and education totaled $93 million.”

Think about it this way Wells Fargo: Imagine creating an advertisement, where there are little kids dressed up like what they want to be when they grow up. The text instead maybe could have said something like this: ”Their future yesterday may not be their future tomorrow. Their future tomorrow might still be their future yesterday. It’s okay, but let’s get them ready for it.”

Don’t promote a future where little kids think they can’t be their own Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jeremy Jordan, Laura Benati, Sierra Boggess, or Misty Copeland. Don’t devalue the arts. The arts can inspire kids to use their imagination, to create, and to inspire others. The arts can also teach kids viable skills that they will need in any job market.

Don’t promote a culture where people already view the arts as “easy” and “pointless.” Trust me when I say this field is not easy in the slightest way. It is filled with a lot more physical exercise than you’d think, Shakespearean monologues to memorize, a lot of reading to dissect and analyze, and long rehearsals, but it has taught me to step out of my comfort zone, it taught me how to open my mind to others, and it has taught me more about myself than I would have ever learned elsewhere.

Think about that before you release another advertisement, Wells Fargo.

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