Advertising: Away from the Youth Image

Like most auto manufacturers in headlong pursuit of the youth market, General Motors Corp. has saturated much of its car advertising with the hip jargon of the dragstrip. Yet for many consumers, including the young, the ads, with their mod vernacular, seemed as strained and unbelievable as a middle-aged matron attempting to dance the watusi. Now, faced with an uncertain economy and slumping car sales, G.M. officials have apparently decided to end their fixation with power and youth in advertising and focus it instead on value and comfort.

The first hint of the new advertising policy came in an unusual...

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