The advertisement I will be looking at for this task is a
recent advertisement from computer technology company Intel. This ad is
obviously directed at a specific audience due to the subtle racism that is
present in the ad. From the scene in the ad it can be deduced that the target
audience of this ad is white male business owners. If this advertisement was
aimed at a different audience, such as an African American audience for
example, it would be designed in a much different manner. The man in the image
who is portrayed as the authority figure or the position of power would most
likely not be a Caucasian but instead an African American. The reasoning behind
this being that it would be easier for African American business owners to
relate with the image and the scene being portrayed. People are more likely to
look at an ad if they are able to identify with it.
Something else that would
also be different would be the portrayal of the six workers. In the original
advertisement all of the workers appear to have identical features and be in
identical positions/poses. However if this ad was being directed towards an
African American audience there would most likely not be this generalization of
the workers. They would all be given different features to make them unique
from one another and to identify them as actual people instead of just the role
of workers. Or better yet there would be some diversity among the workers for
example there would also be some Caucasian workers instead of them all being
African American. The original advertisement subtly hints at the idea of
African Americans being inferior and therefore in that context it makes sense
that they would be shown as the workers. However with African Americans as the
target audience this inferior portrayal of their race as the sole working class
would be heavily frowned upon and therefore not a smart marketing decision. It
is clear that the audience of an advertisement plays a huge role in the actual
design of the advertisement. Once the conscious decision of the target audience
has been made then the smaller and more subtle aspects of the advertisements
are shaped to suit that specific audience.
This analysis was a very precise articulation of your idea on racism in the media and its strategies. i like how you picked up on the subtleties of advertising techniques here: " The original advertisement subtly hints at the idea of African Americans being inferior and therefore in that context it makes sense that they would be shown as the workers." its a good reflection. id prefer to see the ad to get a better visual interpretation on this analysis.
ReplyDeleteHi Tyler,
ReplyDeleteAfter reading your written piece I found it very well constructed and very precise. A line that stood out to me was "People are more likely to look at an ad if they are able to identify with it." which I agree with as when we look at advertisements we want to be able connect with them. I also liked how you imagined how this advertisement would be if it were portrayed a different way and how it would appeal to a different audience.
Well constructed analysis that was a clear representation of your understanding on the topic of racism in the media. I agree with your comment, "People are more likely to look at an ad if they are able to identify with it." In advertising, advertisements will most likely appeal to a specific targeted audience. In this case, the relationship between African Americans and "whites". Very detailed analysis of the advertisements, and strong connections made between the audience and purpose. Good job overall!
ReplyDelete