The Impact of Ageism in Advertising: A Closer Look at E-Trade's 2018 Campaign

In 2018, the trading platform E-Trade played an advertisement that portrayed older people working different jobs ranging from DJing to office jobs. The advertisement’s main message was that ⅓ of Americans have no retirement savings and end up working their entire life. Lea Stendahl, chief marketing officer at E-Trade, stated that “right now, it’s the right message at the right time.” While I agree that working a job you dislike for your entire life is a sad reality, the messaging of the ad fell flat and the portrayal of older people was disheartening.

The Message and Its Shortcomings

It is conceivable that E-Trade’s choice to place older people in unconventional jobs was an attempt to challenge prevailing biases against the elderly. However, further analysis of the advertisement reveals that the portrayals are far from empowering. The older people are reduced to caricatures that reflect society’s view of older adults. For instance, one segment from the advertisement features an older man in tech support wearing an overly formal suit with splashes of colour, with his mouth wide open, wearing glasses, and riding a mobility scooter through the office. He is juxtaposed with a younger man riding a hoverboard, with a tablet in his hands and AirPods in his ears. The man in the mobility scooter looks up at him with a bewildered look. This quick scene is riddled with ageist stereotypes: the older man is not physically fit enough to walk around the office and he is confused by the technology that the younger man is wielding. Later in the ad, we also see an older woman walking through a revolving door dropping the mail that she was tasked to deliver and a firefighter getting thrown about by the water hose he is holding. These depictions portray older people as physically inept. They are demeaning and present older people as frail, confused, and inept. Despite presumably benevolent intentions from the creative team at E-Trade, the advertisement does not successfully empower older adults in their financial freedom. Instead, it presents older adults in a satirical light that perpetuates the exact ageist stereotypes that marginalise older adults in the workplace.

The Harmful Effects of Ageism

Prejudice against older adults in the workplace is harmful. The stereotype that older adults are not fit for work is one of the reasons why we have harmful work policies and why so many above 50 struggle to find employment^1. Furthermore, staying active and working into your later age can be good for the body and mind. Amanda Sonnega, associate research scientist at the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research, states “that continuing to work has benefits for cognition.”²

The Right to Work vs. the Right to Retire

Ultimately, the conversation revolves around the balance between the right to retire and the right to work. Society must recognize that older adults are capable of contributing meaningfully to the workforce if they wish to. By reducing ageist stereotypes, we can ensure that older individuals are not unjustly marginalized or excluded. This will lead to more inclusive workplaces and better quality of life for those over 50.

The E-Trade advertisement, despite its good intentions, missed the mark by reinforcing negative stereotypes. It's crucial to address the biases that marginalize older adults and advocate for a fair and accurate representation in media. In doing so, we can empower them to pursue both financial security and fulfilling careers.

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_{1. “The Right to Work versus the Right to Retire.” Corporate, www.allianz-trade.com/en_US/insights/ageism-labor-market.html. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.}

_{2. Lankford, Kimberly. “Why You Should Keep Working after Retirement.” AARP, AARP, 17 June 2022, www.aarp.org/work/careers/working-after-retirement/.}