Of the readings this week I found the chapter on advertising the most interesting, and particularly some of the controversies surrounding the advertising industry. The use of subliminal advertising, catch phrases and jingles, and advertising to children in particular seem to be the shadiest practices of the industry and the latter two are still incorporated in many of today’s advertisements.
Jingles and catch phrases can now be associated with nearly every brand that’s found in grocery stores nationwide. While shopping consumers see brands they recognize, triggering the catch phrase or jingle from the commercial they heard the night before. This repetition of a brand name in their head will, in all probability, eventually lead to the consumer at least trying the product. And unfortunately some of these slogans can be severely misleading. As Rodman alludes to the case of Advil in which are “…claiming that the product is just as good as its competitors- no better, no worse. ‘Nothing is proven to work better or last longer than Advil. NOTHING’”(Rodman, 453). These slogans litter the visual and auditory landscape and although they may be true, they seem to offer a superiority when in reality the products are simply on par with the market.
Unfortunately this practice of deceptive advertising is also aimed at children with immensely impressionable minds. Kids today are exposed to thousands of advertisements per week, and with all the flashy advertisements and slogans, their parents are certainly going to be pestered for a sugary drink, candy, toys, etc. There’s an ongoing lawsuit involving Nickelodean and the Kellogg Company in which The Center for Science in the Public Interest is taking legal action in order to minimize, or completely eliminate, these types of advertisements. Although this lawsuit will be a difficult one to win, I believe its cause is valid. The youth of
2 comments:
This an interesting topic and I'm glad you brought it up. Deceptive advertising is going to be impossible to regulate (The government does try, and sometimes it looks pretty silly in doing so. It defines the circumstances in which we can use words like semi-sweet or vine-ripened in the titles of products.) Images and catchy jingles are just a part of the world we live in here in the US. Hopefully, impressionable young minds will learn from being dissatisfied by the products they purchase and so they will become more educated consumers earlier in their lives and make better decisions.
In my humble opinion ads should always be looked upon with a downward glance. Adsvertismen should be watched with disdain we must remember that ads are meant to reel in us consumers at our disadvantage. I find the use of jingles almost comical, sure i can whistle the MCdonalds theme song but i havent been their in years and have no plans to go anytime soon. Jingles have almost morphed into sole usage by cheesy small town, low budget ads.
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