The Beijing Olympics begin in less than a month, which means the Olympics-related advertising is only getting started. Here's hoping it gets better over time. The first Beijing ads have an interesting theme: "unity." Here, for example, is a new ad from Coca-Cola, a major Olympics sponsor:
There are some NBC spots that hit similar cues. Why is "unity" an interesting choice? Because it is actually the total opposite of what the Olympics are about. The Olympics are about national competition, not cooperation. That is certainly the view from Beijing, anyway, which sees next month's Olympics as China's biggest step yet on the road to great power status. That is why Beijing invited world leaders to the opening ceremonies: so that the Chinese Communist Party can demonstrate its new power to them. You can be sure Chinese state media coverage will not stress "unity" and global convergence. The coverage will stress Chinese nationalism and supremacy. China wants to win. It sees the Olympics as another competitive platform - not for athletics, but for the great power competition that increasingly characterizes the international system. Must we pretend otherwise?