Adam Minter, Columnist

Bob Dylan Didn't Sell Out to Sell Chryslers

Dylan’s decision to work with Chrysler shouldn’t be viewed as a sell-out so much as one of the most overtly political acts he’s committed in years.

February 3, 2014 at 2:02 PM UTC

By Adam Minter

Adam Minter is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering the business of sports. He is the author, most recently, of “Secondhand: Travels in the New Global Garage Sale."

Provide news feedback or report an error

Site feedback:

Take our Survey

This article is for subscribers only.

Has Bob Dylan sold out -- again?

That seems to be the indignant conclusion of some critics after the rock icon played roles in advertisements for Chrysler and Chobani Yogurt that ran during last night's Super Bowl. Needless to say, this is nothing new to Dylan: Fans have been calling him a sellout since at least 1965, when he famously went electric at the Newport Folk Festival. Of course, a Chrysler commercial isn't Dylan going electric (though the absurdist Chobani ad might be equivalent to Dylan going whimsical). Nonetheless, Dylan's decision to work with Chrysler shouldn't be viewed as a sell-out so much as one of the most overtly political acts he's committed in years.