Advertising: Manipulation and Responsibility

Transcription

1 Advertising: Manipulation and Responsibility 1 Advertising: Manipulation and Responsibility Carol Hasenbalg Professor Goldstein Media Literacy Research Paper

2 Advertising: Manipulation and Responsibility 2 Abstract As a crucial part of our economy, advertising plays a huge part in our every day life. The images we see, however, are not wholly beneficial. Fundamentally manipulative, the act of advertising creates various negative effects that often go unnoticed, unrecognized, and unpunished. By revealing these problems and how both producers and consumers are at fault, the way in which advertisements are created and how they affect us can drastically be changed.

3 Advertising: Manipulation and Responsibility 3 In a world that is fully saturated with media, consumers are never truly safe from advertising and marketing. Whether in home or out in a public place, every person is subject to billboards, commercials, flyers anything and everything to grab their attention and attract desire for a new and different product. This is the job of every Public Relations executive in the big leagues. But how do they get this done? And more importantly, how do certain products and advertisements become so much more successful than others? The answer is simple, something that every person is capable of manipulation. Advertisements and the success of Public Relations as a career rely on the manipulation of the masses. But often, this manipulation can be taken too far, and some would say it even becomes unethical. The problem is not only the consumers ignorance to the damaging ability of advertisements manipulation, but also the companies ruthless tactics without mind for the consequences, all in the name of making a buck. To begin in analyzing this process, first it must be established what actually constitutes an advertisement. As a general rule, an advertisement is a paid message from a vender to a consumer that is intended to influence audience choice. Additionally, these audiences are typically known and directly targeted based on demographic studies. Within society, it is undeniable that advertising functions as a major role in our economy that has become so reliant upon consumerism. It is inevitable that to promote this continued consumerism, companies must create ads to generate interest. However, it is arguable that very few ads are created with the sole intention of stimulating the economy. Instead, advertising agencies use their power as a means to control and manipulate the masses in a way that many would say becomes unethical. This is the first part of the equation the role of corporations. Simply put, agencies use specific persuasion tactics to make their product

4 Advertising: Manipulation and Responsibility 4 appear bigger, better, and more desirable than the competition and older models. These companies get our attention by appropriate product placement in regards to the target audience, appealing to our subconscious needs, and propaganda techniques that have been used for decades. In the early 1900 s, Edward Bernays, the father of public relations and advertising, used the teachings of his uncle Sigmund Freud regarding the desires subconscious thought in order to manipulate the masses into wanting things they did not need. (Curtis, A., & British Broadcasting Corporation, 2006)Plainly put, the scheme behind the process of manipulative advertising is to look at irrational forces that drive people, link a product with these irrational behaviors, and ultimately make the product a symbol of how the consumer wants to be seen. (Curtis, A., & British Broadcasting Corporation, 2006) Even today, the methods used by Bernays are relied upon by all of the major companies. Unfortunately, many of today s corporations go above and beyond the tactics that Bernays create. It is not uncommon for these persuasion tactics to be taken too far and nearly considered unethical. As economist Robert L. Heilbroner says, Advertising is subversive toward the public interest because of its relentless effort to persuade people to change their life- ways, not out of any knowledge of, or deeply held convictions about, the 'good life,' but merely to sell whatever article or service is being pandered. (O'Barr) With these words, we can conclude that advertisers often say or show anything that will link their product with a better life, even if there is no truth value in that idea. Advertisements are becoming less and less about truth and accuracy and more about exaggeration and manipulation. Because of this new push, the issue of ethics in advertising has become a hotly debated topic. Not only are consumers concerned about the impact of ethical values, but

5 Advertising: Manipulation and Responsibility 5 the corporations are as well. The reason is double- edged sword. In one aspect, it is argued that "the ethicality of a firm's behavior is an important consideration during the purchase decision and that consumers will reward ethical behavior by a willingness to pay higher prices for that firm's product. (Yordanof, 2008) This way of thinking would be a motivation for corporations to use their best efforts to remain as ethical as possible in a world based upon persuasion and manipulation. On the other side, corporations say, although consumers may express a desire to support ethical companies, and punish unethical companies, their actual purchase behavior often remains unaffected by ethical concerns" and that "price, quality and value outweigh ethical criteria in consumer purchase behavior." (Yordanof, 2008) This is why the world of advertising continues to push boundaries in an effort to remain relevant. Not only are companies responsible for being successful sellers, but they are responsible for still looking innocent and respectable in the public eye. It seems that succeeding in both areas could be nearly impossible. For this reason, we cannot merely blame advertisers for pursuing their sales goals. However, in the last twenty years or so advertisers have increasingly applied semiotics in their messages and as a consequence ads have begun to function more and more as symbols. (Yordanof, 2008) While yes, the idea of a product turning into a symbol is the same idea that Bernays employed so many years ago, the symbols that companies push today have become so unethical that they create unreachable goals and desires within the context of an ideal world that does not actually exist. Well put in an article by Boyan Yordonoff, Marketers should understand their responsibility for the emerging portrait of future society." (Yordanof, 2008)

6 Advertising: Manipulation and Responsibility 6 Luckily for marketers, all of this responsibility does not lie upon them. The second part of the advertising equation is the consumer. Whether informed or not, we all participate in the act of consumerism. Problems arise, however, when the majority of the masses are ignorantly participating in this process as a direct result of the unethical and highly persuasive advertisements that flood our daily lives. Consumers are uneducated not only in the damaging effects of advertisements, but in the damaging effects of consumer rates. Americans are going out and spending their hard earned money because of the manipulative ads they see and making the corporations rich, but as a result, 40% of households spend more than they even earn. While this is great evidence that the advertising process is working, what is it doing to our livelihood as a community? Even in our homes, we as consumers are not safe. With our willingness to give our personal information to social networking sites, we are unknowingly actively participating in the advertising process. The ads and the manipulation are brought directly to us in a way that makes it almost seem as if it is exactly what we wanted to see anyway. Being a consumer is not just about buy, buy, buy, but should be more about marketing literacy and analyzing the information that we are exposed to. For this reason, many organizations exist to combat this growing problem and bring awareness about the role consumers play in all of this., as well as unveil the lies and deception that many major corporations are hiding behind while raking in their millions in profit. A website under the name of Adbusters takes a fun approach in twisting these advertisements to reveal the truth that the company is avoiding, in an act that is coined culture jamming. Of course this outrages companies, but the purpose of organizations and sites like these is not to shut companies down, but to create a more effective push towards

7 Advertising: Manipulation and Responsibility 7 honest and less manipulative marketing. Even John Heath of Mccann Erickson New York says this I'm a consumer as well. There are definitely times when [advertising] is so intrusive that it's offensive to me as well. (O'Barr) The negative aspects of advertising are not an issue that is going unnoticed by consumers or the advertisers themselves. It is, however, an issue that has not seen truly substantial change as of yet. Whether you agree or disagree that all advertisements are manipulative for unethical reasons, it is undeniable how strong of an impact they have on today s society. As Bruce Barton put it in 1955, "Advertising is of the very essence of democracy. An election goes on every minute of the business day across the counters of hundreds of thousands of stores and shops where the customers state their preferences and determine which manufacturer and which product shall be the leader today, and which shall lead tomorrow." (O'Barr) So in conclusion, advertising as a principal has a place in our consumer world, but its questionable practices should be changed in order to create better outcomes for both consumer and corporation.

8 Advertising: Manipulation and Responsibility 8 Works Cited Curtis, A., & British Broadcasting Corporation. (2006). The Century of the Self. Rockford, Ill. BN Pub. O'Barr, William M. "The Advertising Profession in the Public's Eye Advertising & Society Review 7:1." Project MUSE. Advertising Educational Foundation. Web. 11 Apr < ml>. Yordanof, Boyan. "Advertising - Precious Information Or Vicious Manipulation?" Articlesbase.com. Articlesbase.com, 15 Oct Web. 11 Apr < articles/advertising- precious- information- or- vicious- manipulation html>.