So God Made a Farmer

The speech borrowed a few phrases from a 1975 article written by Harvey in the Gadsden Times, which was itself inspired by parts of a 1940 definition of a dirt farmer published in The Farmer-Stockman.

[1] His speech began as a continuation of the Genesis creation narrative referring to the actions God took on the eighth day.

The speech continues with God expressing the characteristics needed by the person he is creating: "I need somebody with arms strong enough to wrestle a calf and yet gentle enough to deliver his own grandchild; somebody to call hogs, tame cantankerous machinery, come home hungry, have to await lunch until his wife's done feeding visiting ladies, then tell the ladies to be sure and come back real soon, and mean it.

"[Note 1]Multiple passages setting out characteristics of the sort end with the same refrain, by which the speech is now known: "So God made a farmer."

"Paul Harvey ran a similar article in the column "A Point of View" for the Gadsden Times on August 26, 1975.

The 1975 column was largely similar to a definition of a dirt farmer given by Boston B. Blackwood from Hartshorne, Oklahoma in a 1940 copy of The Farmer-Stockman.

[11] Both the 1940 and 1975 columns share elements not included in the speech such as the statement that a farmer's wife won't let him starve.

[12] The ad was made in collaboration with the National FFA Organization and with permission from Harvey's company, Paulynne, Inc. Ram agreed to donate up to $1,000,000 to the foundation based on the views received by the YouTube video.

Slate called it the "most striking Super Bowl ad" but also criticized it for being similar in concept to a 2011 YouTube video by Farms.com.

[19] Dale Buss, of Forbes, wrote "Chrysler managed to insert just enough of its vehicles and brands in each spot so as to make their inclusion seem part of the fabric of the paean, not at all intrusive, thereby lending the kind of authenticity to Ram and Jeep that fuels long-term brand success".