Beyond 'Brand America'
The rise of the exotic and the ethical
Simon Anholt Earthspeak
In 1997, British Airways took the fateful decision to graduate from mere national carrier to global travel brand. It did so by dropping the explicit reference to its country of origin and replaced the Union flag with images from many different nations on its tailplanes. Like many companies, as it strove towards the vague nirvana of 'globalness', it was attempting systematically to remove every clue of its country of origin from its products and services.
But in its rush to appear global, BA overlooked the...