Advertising and Commercial Culture

Our increasingly sponsored lives David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest College football bowl games:

Our increasingly sponsored lives David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest College football bowl games: –Nokia Sugar Bowl –Tostitos Fiesta Bowl –Fed Ex Orange Bowl –Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl

Our increasingly sponsored lives Sports facilities:

Our increasingly sponsored lives Sports facilities: –Coors Field (Denver) –United Center (Chicago) –Fleet Center (Boston) –Bank One Ballpark (Arizona) –McLeod Arena

Our increasingly sponsored lives Where have you seen ads lately?

TV: 1 hour prime time TV –1988: 10:17 ads –1998: 15:40 ads –2004: 16:27 –2005: 17:00 –2007:

Advertising History 3000 B.C. - ancient Babylon, shop owners hung signs U.S: early 1800s -- first ad agencies were space brokers. Bought newspaper space and resold it. 1875: N.W. Ayer, first modern ad agency, Philadelphia.

Advertising History Late 1800s -- department stores and patent medicines as major advertisers. Advertising invented “problems” that needed to be solved by products –E.g., Odor Oh No –AXE soapAXE

Radio: first ad, 1922 –Advertise to people in their living rooms –Targeted kids –Sell soap on soap operas

Slogans –No More Tears (Johnson & Johnson) –Nobody Doesn’t Like Sara Lee (Sara Lee) –Nothin' says lovin' like somethin' from the oven (Pillsbury) –Once you pop, you can't stop! (Pringles) –M'm, M'm, Good! (Campbell's) –Quality is Job 1. (Ford) –Snap! Crackle! Pop! (Kellogg's Rice Krispies) –See the USA in your Chevrolet. (Chevrolet)

Advertising Today Influence of visual design: –1960s-70s -- European design –1980s --

Advertising Today Influence of visual design: –1960s-70s -- European design –1980s -- MTV -- changes visual style for TV ads, makes hit music part of advertising –1990s --

Advertising Today Influence of visual design: –1960s-70s -- European design –1980s -- MTV -- changes visual style for TV ads, makes hit music part of advertising –1990s -- the Internet Google Yahoo! MSN

Advertising Today Agencies –Mega Agencies -- Omnicom: $6.7 billion (21.5 %) WPP Group: $4.54 billion (14.6%) Interpublic: $3.65 billion (11.7 %) Publicis: $2.76 billion (8.9%) GOOGle: $16.6 billion

Advertising Today Agencies –Boutique Agencies -- like Wieden & Kennedy, Digital Kitchen, Peterson Milla HooksPeterson Milla Hooks

Advertising Today The Structure of Agencies –Market Research - VALS (SRI Business Consulting)VALS (SRI Business Consulting) –Creative Development –Media Selection –Account and Client Management

Persuasive Techniques Famous person testimonial Plain folks Snob appeal Bandwagon effect Hidden fear Irritation Unique selling proposition

Persuasive Techniques Association Principle -- associate product with a positive cultural image or valueAssociation Principle Disassociation Corrolary Liberation Marketing - product takes the language of rebellion, nonconformityLiberation Marketing

Persuasive Techniques Myth Analysis (Claude Levi-Strauss) –Narrative -- tells us a story –Binary Opposition - conflict –ResolutionResolution

Critical Issues in Advertising 1) Children and advertising –Influence $500 billion in spending each year –Advertising in Schools Channel One

Critical Issues in Advertising 2) Health and Advertising –Eating DisordersEating Disorders –TobaccoTobacco –AlcoholAlcohol –Prescription Drugs Not advertised until 1997 $4.7 billion in 2005 FDA enforcement of misleading claims on the decline

Critical Issues in Advertising Advertising and Democracy Broadcasters earned from political ads: $400 million $665 million $1.6 billion 2008: $2.5 billion Campaign ads are about 10% of total revenue in those years. How does this affect broadcasters’ support for campaign finance reform?