Richard W. Pollay

The distorted mirror: Reflections on the unintended consequences of advertising.

This article reviews the work of significant humanities and social science scholars for their thoughts and theories about advertisings social and cultural consequences. In brief, they view adverti...

Measuring the Cultural Values Manifest in Advertising

Abstract Much of the critical discussion of advertising revolves around its cultural consequences. Even though advertising is a particularly persuasive proponent of a specific value system, a methodology for measuring the values manifest in advertising has not existed. A content analytic methodology synthesizing the work of previous authors and applicable to all media is presented, with detailed definitions. Procedures for an application to magazine advertising and reliability statistics from this application are discussed. The results suggest a methodology capable of describing the cultural character of commercialism. Potential applications to problems in advertising management and scholarly research in a number of inquiry areas are discussed. The first application, on a historical sample, is described, illustrating the potential benefits of the measurement scheme.

The dark side of marketing seemingly “Light” cigarettes: successful images and failed fact

Objective: To understand the development, intent, and consequences of US tobacco industry advertising for low machine yield cigarettes. Methods: Analysis of trade sources and internal US tobacco company documents now available on various web sites created by corporations, litigation, or public health bodies. Results: When introducing low yield products, cigarette manufacturers were concerned about maintaining products with acceptable taste/flavour and feared consumers might become weaned from smoking. Several tactics were employed by cigarette manufacturers, leading consumers to perceive filtered and low machine yield brands as safer relative to other brands. Tactics include using cosmetic (that is, ineffective) filters, loosening filters over time, using medicinal menthol, using high tech imagery, using virtuous brand names and descriptors, adding a virtuous variant to a brands product line, and generating misleading data on tar and nicotine yields. Conclusions: Advertisements of filtered and low tar cigarettes were intended to reassure smokers concerned about the health risks of smoking, and to present the respective products as an alternative to quitting. Promotional efforts were successful in getting smokers to adopt filtered and low yield cigarette brands. Corporate documents demonstrate that cigarette manufacturers recognised the inherent deceptiveness of cigarette brands described as “Light”or “Ultra-Light” because of low machine measured yields.

Advertising and Cultural Values: Reflections in the Distorted Mirror

This paper reviews the regrets and fears expressed by North American scholars about the commercialization of culture and presents a method for measuring the cultural character of advertising. This content analysis of manifest values yields a value profile of advertising and shows high consistency over time and across media. There is, however, a low correlation between this value profile and that of either the population at large or of heavy media users. This seriously challenges the conventional notion that advertising merely mirrors social values.

Targeting youth and concerned smokers: evidence from Canadian tobacco industry documents

OBJECTIVE To provide an understanding of the targeting strategies of cigarette marketing, and the functions and importance of the advertising images chosen. METHODS Analysis of historical corporate documents produced by affiliates of British American Tobacco (BAT) and RJ Reynolds (RJR) in Canadian litigation challenging tobacco advertising regulation, the Tobacco Products Control Act (1987): Imperial Tobacco Limitee & RJR-Macdonald Inc c. Le Procurer General du Canada. RESULTS Careful and extensive research has been employed in all stages of the process of conceiving, developing, refining, and deploying cigarette advertising. Two segments commanding much management attention are “starters” and “concerned smokers”. To recruit starters, brand images communicate independence, freedom and (sometimes) peer acceptance. These advertising images portray smokers as attractive and autonomous, accepted and admired, athletic and at home in nature. For “lighter” brands reassuring health concerned smokers, lest they quit, advertisements provide imagery conveying a sense of well being, harmony with nature, and a consumers self image as intelligent. CONCLUSIONS The industrys steadfast assertions that its advertising influences only brand loyalty and switching in both its intent and effect is directly contradicted by their internal documents and proven false. So too is the justification of cigarette advertising as a medium creating better informed consumers, since visual imagery, not information, is the means of advertising influence.

Advertising, propaganda, and value change in economic development: The new cultural revolution in China and attitudes toward advertising

Abstract Chinas adoption of advertising in its pursuit of modernization is traced. How Chinese consumers currently react to advertising, yesterdays villain, is documented. Chinese consumers were very positive about advertising and its consequences but disliked some aspects of current ads from Chinese firms and perceive them to be inferior to those of foreign firms. In particular, they rated Chinese ads low in aesthetics and honesty. On the other hand, the consumers were very positive and optimistic about advertisings economic and social consequences. These results suggest that China is in the midst of another cultural revolution, an eager adoption of consumption materialism.

Targeting of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders by the tobacco industry: results from the Minnesota Tobacco Document Depository

Objective: The study objective was to review internal tobacco industry documents written between 1985 and 1995 regarding the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) population in the USA. These documents detail opportunities and barriers to promotion of tobacco products, as viewed by the tobacco industry and its market research firms. Data sources/methods: Researchers reviewed tobacco industry documents from the document depository in Minneapolis, Minnesota and the tobacco industrys website, The Tobacco Archive, in a systematic fashion. A combined technique was employed using title keywords, dates, and names to search the 4(b) index. Findings: A review of internal tobacco company documents reveal that during the late 1980s, the industry and its market research firms recognised the importance of the AAPI community as a potential business market. Documents describe the population growth in this community, the high prevalence of smoking in countries of origin, high purchasing power of AAPI immigrants, cultural predisposition to smoking, opportunities afforded by the high proportion of retail businesses under AAPI ownership, barriers to developing the AAPI market, comprehensive campaigns, and political and lobbying efforts. Comprehensive campaigns were designed to integrate promotion efforts in AAPI consumer, retail, and business communities. Conclusions: The documents show that the tobacco industry developed specific promotion strategies to target the AAPI population. Tobacco control initiatives in the AAPI group have been slower to develop than in other targeted ethnic groups, and may benefit by increased awareness of industry methods to promote tobacco use.

More than meets the eye: on the importance of retail cigarette merchandising

Point-of-sale activity is important enough to get the attention of the senior management of transnational firms and to be the subject of sophisticated research aimed to realise “intrusive visibility” better through creative design, command attention and convey brand imagery. The result of this is the promotional “positioning” of products, and the creation of both friendly familiarity and perceived popularity. The intended results include increased sales of cigarettes as a product or “category growth”.

Separate, but Not Equal: Racial Segmentation in Cigarette Advertising

Abstract The ethnic segmentation of the cigarette market is currently controversial, but not a new phenomenon. A census of 540 cigarette ads from 1950–1965 Ebony magazines, compared to a matched sample from Life, reveals segmented and segregated advertising toward black consumers. The ads in Ebony eventually featured black models almost exclusively, primarily professional athletes. Despite endorsements from black athletes and musicians also famous to white audiences, none of these appeared in the Life ads. On average, the segregated advertising was two to three years tardy in offering filtered products to black consumers, suggesting that appeals to black pride were not without prejudice. Potential reasons for these historical results are discussed, as are current practices.

Advertising Sexism is Forgiven, But Not Forgotten: Historical, Cross-Cultural and Individual Differences in Criticism and Purchase Boycott Intentions

In the last decade, both men and women in the United States, Denmark, Greece and New Zealand have become more critical of sexism in advertising, but less inclined towards product boycotts. Women are more critical than men, and the more critical are more boycott-inclined, but few are motivated to put their money where their mouth is, even after consciousness-raising.