United States Army trying to get the attention of an increasingly elusive group: Generation Z. Pentagon plans for spend millions of dollars on sponsorship and reach young people aged 18 to 24. Main ways analyzed to promote recruitment? call of Duty, Halo D streamers from Twitch and YouTube.
The information became known from the report Vice, which received internal US Army documents. They revealed the infusion of large sums of money into eSports competitions and influencersto capture the attention of an increasingly sought-after audience. But not only that, because, in addition to the age range, it was intended for more specific groups such as women, African Americans and Hispanics.
Between December 2021 and November 2022, the US Army offered $1 million in sponsorship HBCU autopsy. This is a series of events dedicated to sports games, such as NBA 2K D Madden, live on Twitch. It is organized by Historically Black Schools and Universities (HBCU).
On the other hand, the Pentagon also set his sights on an alliance with Activision Blizzard to sponsor call of duty leagueyour professional esports league and call of duty mobilethis is shooter first-person for iOS and Android. However, the US Army backed down when allegations of sexual harassment at a Santa Monica, California firm came to light.
In the case of a mobile game, the military will provide $200,000; while for call of duty league the amount will reach $750,000. In any case, the latter will be shared with the sponsor HaloParamount+ series based on the popular video game franchise.
The US Army is trying to contact an elusive group: Generation Z
The US Army’s push to position itself as an attractive option for Generation Z also included cooperation with streamers very popular. documents seen Vice specifically mention a $150,000 deal with Stone Mountain64which today amassed 2.32 million subscribers on YouTube thanks to its videos about Call of Duty: Warzone. Other content creators also appear, such as Alex Zedra D swagalthough specific figures are not mentioned where appropriate.
However, not everything is about eSports and streamers. The U.S. Army also provided $675,000 for mass wrestling sponsorship campaigns in the United States. WWE. While he mentioned alliances with video game media, such as cases IGN ($600,000) and TV channel G4 ($500,000).
Of course, the US military authorities made no secret of their intention to actively promote themselves among young people. In a statement sent Vice, implies that hiring marketing must be adapted to the times in which we live. “In army marketing, we need to get to where the youth is, and that’s on the internet,” they said.
Capturing the interest of the youth, the great dilemma
Generation Z has been especially elusive about being drafted into the U.S. Army. According to a survey conducted this year, the majority of young people aged 18 to 25 consulted They did not know how life in the army works.. Many of them felt that the only jobs available were in the field and in combat. While others were not aware of the existence of university scholarships and retirement benefits. In any case, the problem today extends to other US military forces.
It is also a reality that the use of the entertainment industry as a recruitment method nothing newAnd it’s not just for the United States Army. The country’s navy is considered one of the biggest beneficiaries of this practice. Especially in the eighties and nineties, with his support of several films such as Last countdown, Flight of the intruder and mainly the best weapon. Something that even got ridiculed Simpsonin a 2001 episode in which the Navy creates boy group recruit children using subliminal messages in their songs.
Source: Hiper Textual
