Max, I like this study and your poster of what you found. These commercials are so prevalent, it was great to see you conduct this study to help us understand them better. Your conclusions are interesting and thoughtful--I'd like to hear even more about each of these themes. How does the incongruity of the message make it more persuasive? I am assuming that the "happy-looking" actors doing nondescript activities in the ad can help offset some of the scary-sounding side effects? Also, considering the music in these ads can also help supplement your semiotic analysis. Does the tone of the music (i.e., hopeful, uplifting) also present an incongruity with the side effects? Overall, this is great, thanks for posting it!
Max -- Good job! I think this is an interesting study. It's my understanding that pharmaceutical ads are primarily seen in the U.S. In other countries, I've seen ads for vitamins or supplements, but not prescription medication. Did working on this poster make you think about the policy implications of prescription drug advertisements?
Hi Max! It's interesting to see you use both content analysis and semiotics in your approach because usually these are different kinds of methods for analyzing communication. I'm curious, since you looked at length, activities depicted in the ads, emotional appeals, analyzed content and considered the relationships among the different signs in each ad--did any one of these approaches lead to interesting observations more than another? And what meaning emerges from an ad that relies on incongruity to draw attention to a medication? Can incongruity be persuasive or compelling to viewers?-Kristen Hoerl
Max, I like this study and your poster of what you found. These commercials are so prevalent, it was great to see you conduct this study to help us understand them better. Your conclusions are interesting and thoughtful--I'd like to hear even more about each of these themes. How does the incongruity of the message make it more persuasive? I am assuming that the "happy-looking" actors doing nondescript activities in the ad can help offset some of the scary-sounding side effects? Also, considering the music in these ads can also help supplement your semiotic analysis. Does the tone of the music (i.e., hopeful, uplifting) also present an incongruity with the side effects? Overall, this is great, thanks for posting it!
ReplyDeleteMax -- Good job! I think this is an interesting study. It's my understanding that pharmaceutical ads are primarily seen in the U.S. In other countries, I've seen ads for vitamins or supplements, but not prescription medication. Did working on this poster make you think about the policy implications of prescription drug advertisements?
ReplyDeleteHi Max! It's interesting to see you use both content analysis and semiotics in your approach because usually these are different kinds of methods for analyzing communication. I'm curious, since you looked at length, activities depicted in the ads, emotional appeals, analyzed content and considered the relationships among the different signs in each ad--did any one of these approaches lead to interesting observations more than another? And what meaning emerges from an ad that relies on incongruity to draw attention to a medication? Can incongruity be persuasive or compelling to viewers?-Kristen Hoerl
ReplyDelete