Buchli 1

Kayli Buchli
English 110
Olivia Stoltman
Spring 2019

Can You Get a Six-Pack from a McPack?

In 1985, McDonald’s published an advertisement for their new product called the

“McPack.” They put this advertisement on magazines, billboards, and commercials, and the

advertisement became very popular. This popularity did not just come from McDonald’s

releasing a new menu item; it came from a well-known athlete appearing on the cover of their

advertisement: Michael Jordan. McDonald’s was one of Michael Jordan’s first endorsements,

and two years later Jordan even partnered with McDonald’s to publish an anti-drug video

(Bastanmehr). Their partnership demonstrates how two big entities can benefit from one another,

and the long-lasting partnership further proves to the audience Jordan’s commitment towards

McDonald’s. This advertisement shows that McDonald’s partnered up with Michael Jordan to

bring in a new audience of athletes. McDonald’s was also trying to change society’s perspective

of fast food by normalizing the consumption of McDonald’s food that was once known as

“unhealthy.”

Obviously, in the 1980s, people didn’t know as much as we know today about the harm

that fast food can do to our bodies, but that decade shows signs that people were starting to

become aware of the issue. In the mid-1980s, London Greenpeace published an article titled,

“What’s Wrong with McDonald’s?” and people began seeing McDonald’s as more and more

unhealthy (Bailey). By publishing this advertisement with Michael Jordan, a famous athlete that

people would assume eats as healthy as possible to become the best athlete possible, McDonald’s

was trying to fight the stereotype. If someone as athletic as Michael Jordan eats McDonald’s,
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shouldn’t it be safe and healthy for all of us to eat? According to McDonald’s, if the McPack is

“fuel for Air Jordan,” then the McPack can be fuel for all of us, athletes or non-athletes.

By releasing an advertisement like this, McDonald’s had multiple purposes, such as

bringing in a whole new audience. This advertisement appeals to athletes, especially fans of

basketball and Michael Jordan, demonstrating that it is completely normal and even beneficial to

eat at McDonald’s, even if you are a star athlete. McDonald’s is also appealing to the general

population of people who criticize McDonald’s and other fast food chains for being unhealthy

and to people who just like having a healthy lifestyle. If people see Michael Jordan on the cover

of a McDonald’s advertisement, smiling with his lean muscles showing through his uniform,

they may realize that McDonald’s isn’t so bad after all. Like any successful company,

McDonald’s knows that it is essential to bring in as diverse of an audience as they can.

McDonald’s is also normalizing fast food in this advertisement. They are showing that no

matter who you are or what you do, it’s completely acceptable to eat at McDonald’s. By

publishing this advertisement, McDonald’s is basically telling all their critics it’s wrong to say

that their food is unhealthy because even people like Michael Jordan use it as fuel. Nowadays,

the general population might be more critical of this advertisement. We now have the technology

and knowledge to think of the concept of Michael Jordan eating McDonald’s every day as a joke.

However, this advertisement was probably seen as normal by people in the 1980s and early

1990s because they just didn’t know as much about the effects of eating fast food from

restaurants like McDonald’s can have on your body if you eat it every day. So, this

advertisement would be much more successful during the time it came out in 1985 than if it were

published today. This is mostly thanks to the presentation of the McPack.

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The execution of this advertisement was probably very successful for the goal that

McDonald’s was trying to achieve: bringing new audiences and normalizing their product. The

advertisement shows Michael Jordan smiling as he’s enjoying his McPack, showing that Jordan

definitely is enjoying his “fuel.” He is also wearing a shirt that purposely shows off his muscles,

so this further shows how a McPack is proven fuel for the muscles of athletes like Michael

Jordan. Jordan’s appearance in this advertisement is no mistake, as we can see that he isn’t only

thoroughly enjoying his McPack, but he is also gaining muscle essential for basketball and is

becoming more fit for his games. The illustrator’s choice of the placement of the phrase,

“McPack. Fuel for Air Jordan,” is also important in the advertisement’s execution. It’s in bold

and all-caps, but it’s small enough so that you see Michael Jordan first. This shows the

importance of Jordan to McDonald’s and the execution of this advertisement. The audience can

infer that Michael Jordan is either fueling up for a hard workout or refueling after a big game, or

even both! Either way, McDonald’s wants us to see that their fast food is actually not bad for you

after all. McDonald’s brought a point across, making it seem like if star athletes can get away

with eating McDonald’s, we all can. But, not everybody is going to think this same thing.

The presentation of the McPack advertisement may be very successful in bringing in a

new audience of athletes, Michael Jordan fans, or even just healthy eaters, however it has

limitations that may steer away different audiences. People who may “outsmart” McDonald’s

could just blow this advertisement away, knowing that Michael Jordan doesn’t eat this every

single day. Another group of people that this advertisement would not phase are people who

don’t like Michael Jordan or people who generally just don’t care about sports. Michael Jordan’s

career was just getting started in the year that this advertisement was published in 1985. He

graduated college in 1984, so he was just beginning to become a professional athlete in 1985
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(“Michael Jordan Biography”). This means that not as many people knew about him back then as

they do today. So, there was probably a huge portion of the audience that had no idea who this

man on the cover of a McDonald’s advertisement was, meaning that this advertisement could

have just gone right past these people’s eyes. All of these limitations may not phase certain

audiences, and they could even steer some people away. This is why McDonald’s could choose

from multiple other alternative options.

There is also another prominent limitation that comes with this advertisement: some

people may not know who Michael Jordan is, especially in the 1980s when he wasn’t as popular,

so McDonald’s could have a different model. If they wanted to stick to sports, they could have

chosen a more popular athlete to appear on their advertisement. This could be someone as

popular as Usain Bolt or Michael Phelps are to us today. If they wanted a whole other audience,

McDonald’s could have a family enjoying their fast food or a busy construction worker eating a

McPack. There are so many different models that McDonald’s could have used to attract certain

audiences, but each audience comes with its own set of limitations. Nonetheless, McDonald’s is

going to achieve the goal of attracting a certain audience.

The McPack advertisement shows that McDonald’s was attempting to bring in a new

audience and was trying to normalize the consumption of McDonald’s. By putting Michael

Jordan in the spotlight of the advertisement, it’s almost as if McDonald’s was telling us, “if you

want to be an athlete, you have to eat like one.” McDonald’s wants us to think it’s a good thing

to put their food in your body, despite what the stereotype says. This advertisement is definitely

trying to give McDonald’s a good reputation, making it seem okay for all of us to eat there. You

cannot deny Michael Jordan’s athleticism and fitness, and therefore you cannot deny all the

“health benefits” of McDonald’s!

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References

“Athletes & Fast Food.” Zeus Food, Weebly, 1 May 2014, zeusfood.weebly.com/zeus-blog/athletes-

fast-food.

Bailey, Renee. “How Has McDonald's Been So Successful for So Long?” Franchise Direct,

Franchise Direct, 12 Apr. 2017,

www.franchisedirect.com/information/markettrendsfactsaboutfranchising/thesuccessofmcdonald

s/8/1111/.

Bastanmehr, Rod. “#TBT on THC: Michael Jordan Was the Most Insidious Tool of the War on

Drugs.” Merry Jane, Merry Jane, 27 July 2017, merryjane.com/culture/tbt-on-thc-michael-

jordan-mcdonalds-1987-super-psa.

“Michael Jordan Biography.” Biography, A&E Networks Television, 29 Apr. 2014,

www.biography.com/people/michael-jordan-9358066.