Sunday, December 2, 2012

Difference between advertisement and propaganda

Advertisement and propaganda can both be portrayed in the same way, making it hard sometimes to distinguish between them and how we are supposed to view the message. Both are mean to appeal to emotions and trigger a response but they are meant for different purposes. Propaganda is also often done through advertising, so it can be tricky. The picture below is an example of propaganda -


The next picture is an example of advertisement - 


Advertisements are meant to make people feel like they need the product in order to make their lives better. The woman with the long thick luscious hair is promising that if you buy the product, you too can be like her, beautiful and happy. The first picture is progaganda because it is using peoples feelings to get them to do something. Propaganda only presents one side of something, giving the public no other choice. Unlike an advertisement where the message is "Hey, you should buy this because it will --------(something helpful or positive)", the message is more of a guilt tactic to get people into thinking a certain way in order to support something (for example, a political stance), do something (ex. join the army) or get other people to do something (ex. vote). 



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