Audi is taking the occasion of Super Bowl 2017 to drop some truth bombs. In a commercial called “Daughter,” the car manufacturer presents a father worried about his young daughter.
He watches as she competes against a group of boys in a tense cart race, thinking about her future.
“What do I tell my daughter?” he asks, in a voiceover. “Do I tell her that her grandpa’s worth more than her grandma? That her dad is worth more than her mom? Do I tell her that despite her education, her drive, her skills, her intelligence, she will automatically be valued as less than every man she ever meets?
Lo and behold, she wins the race. Not the gender equality or pay equity one, mind you, the cart one.
“Or maybe,” the father continues, “I’ll be able to tell her something different.”
All of this is to say that “Audi of America is committed to equal pay for equal work,” and that “progress is for everyone.”
So … working women are careening downhill in a cart race, just hoping they edge out the men?
The carmaker cites a 2016 report from the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee finding that women, on average, were paid 21 percent less than men.
“Audi of America is committed to supporting pay equality, inclusivity, and the growth and development of all employees,” the company said in a statement, pointing to an internship program that requires 50 percent of participants be female and initiatives to support women in STEM, business and film.
But just to be clear, a girl winning a downhill cart race would not, in fact, achieve pay equity.
The ad, which promotes the Audi S5 Sportback, will air in the third quarter of the game.
Amy Kuperinsky may be reached at akuperinsky@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @AmyKup or on Facebook.
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