When presenting London's bid to host the 2012 Olympic games to the International Olympic Committee, two key themes were stressed: encouraging youth participation in sport and ethnic diversity in a united city. The opening paragraph of the official 'candidate file' stated: "London's role as beacon for world youth would also be a benefit. Staging the games here in 2012 would advance the Olympic Movement, stimulating - on a global scale - the interest of a new generation. London's diversity and creativity would contribute to the Games as well, guaranteeing a warm welcome for all and an exciting sporting and cultural experience" (London 2012 Candidate File:1).

Leading up to London's formal presentation to be nominated as the host city, a series of six advertisements were implemented to rally support and pride behind the city of London, as well as all of Britain. Though depicting different athletes and scenes, the ads all represented the same thing: London's quest to host the 2012 Olympics. The previously stated values of encouraging youth to be active and a unified ethnic city associated with the bid are present throughout each one of the "Back the Bid" advertisements.

Each of the six advertisements depicts a different sport, ethnicity, and cultural symbol of London. Denotatively and individually they represent individual athletes desiring participation in the sporting events. The individual ads can work independently of each other, and can independently carry the connotative meaning. Connotatively, each individual ad represents London's promotion of an ethnically unified yet equally competitive Olympic games set in a powerful cultural city. Though the ads can convey this separately from each other, the message is much more effective when the six ads are viewed together. It is then that the audience can notice the different ethnicities and genders, as well as iconic landmarks being used in the advertisement, promoting London's role as a united diverse city rich in cultural heritage.

Regardless of whether the advertisements are viewed together or independently, they are all connected by the "Back the Bid" text located at the top margin of each of the posters, representing the "promise of the product, the status of glamour it can bestow on its users, or the sensory fulfillment it can bring" (Kress & Van Leeuwen 183). In this case, the ideal is decoded as national support for London's Olympic bid promoting the bringing together of different ethnicities for the world's greatest sporting event. The crucial framing of these advertisements to the public expressed "that support represented an act of 'pride'; the British public was urged to 'Make Britain Proud' and 'Back the Bid'" in supporting London's effort to promote ethnic equality (Falcous & Silk 171).

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