Abstract

Advertising narratives constitute a decisive discursive set to the functioning of contemporary sociability, founded on consumerism and dynamized by mediatized audiovisual experiences. In this context, in the field of communication of organizations, it is clear that marketing advertising discourse, which historically is not linked to social and political-cultural causes, has been investing in inclusive campaigns, anchored in the diversity agenda. Advertising films are a recurring resource in these initiatives, dialoguing with the expressive audiovisuality in contemporary times. It may seem unusual to link commercial advertising to sociopolitical causes, just as the discursive mismatch between the market and the growing planetary movement of conservatism and disruptions in liberal democracy in the political-institutional realm can be suggested. With a theoretical-conceptual review and case study of two advertising films made by the company Mercado Livre, one of the giants of online commerce in Brazil and present in 18 countries, on the occasion of the International LGBTI Pride Day (28/06), we present a critical reflection on the strategies and motivations of advertising campaigns focused on narratives of diversity and inclusion, precisely in a political-institutional environment increasingly inhospitable to human and civil rights of minorities and marginalized populations.