Advertising Industry : An Powerful Aid For The American Consumer Culture

To start, “Should Musicians Change Their Tune” I allege that they should allow performer in advertisement because it helps them promote their music. Due to, Jacob Carter author of “The Changing Landscape of the Music Business” quotes “Others

Magazines are popular in the United States; they can be found in stores, offices, and houses. They are popular for advertising. Television, news, radio, billboards and online websites are just a few forms of media that companies use to advertise their products or services. Companies use advertisements to influence the consumer to either buy or use their products and services. Advertisements are used to manipulate consumers in many ways.

Since the mid to late 1900’s, the advertising industry has taken off and found new ways to persuade consumers to purchase products. As is the case with most things nowadays, social media has been a monumental part in the above mentioned forward progression the advertising industry has faced. Therefore, given the modern day advances of technology, social media and advertisers have found it increasingly more easy to join forces along the journey of fusing consumers into one massive cache. However, regardless of new advances, analysts have made an abundance of shocking discoveries that besmirch advertisers and their work in recent decades. As Jack Solomon wrote in his article, “Masters of Desire: The Culture of American Advertising”, “if

In our society today a business is not a business without an advertisement. These advertisements advertise what American’s want and desire in their lives. According to Jack Solomon in his essay, “Master’s of Desire: The Culture of American Advertising,” Jack Solomon claims: “Because ours is a highly diverse, pluralistic society, various advertisements may say different things depending on their intended audiences, but in every case they say something about America, about the status of our hopes, fears, desires, and beliefs”(Solomon). Advertisers continue to promote the American dream of what a women’s body should look like. They advertise their products in hopes for consumers to buy them, so they can look like the models pictures in the ads. Behind these ads, advertisers tend to picture flawless unrealistic woman with the help of Photoshop. In our society today to look like a model is an American dream and can be the reasons why we fantasizes and buy these products being advertised. “America’s consumer economy runs on desire, and advertising stokes the engines by transforming common objects;signs of all things that Americans covet most”(Solomon).

The traditional definition of the American Dream is the belief that everyone is given an equal opportunity to prevail and rise within the social hierarchy. Companies use the concept of the American Dream to appeal to their consumers to buy their product. In his essay “Masters of Desire: The Culture of American Advertising,” Jack Solomon writes, “the American Dream has two faces; one communally egalitarian and the other competitively elitist” (167). Although egalitarianism and elitism are at odds with one another, companies advertise the two together. Apple Incorporation is an American technology company that began advertising their products in 1970. Nineteen seventy magazine advertisement “A is for Apple”, 2009 commercial “Elimination”, and

“Introducing the lasted, newly improved widget… anyone whose anyone has one… it is a must have!” These words sound familiar? This is due in part, because advertising today has taken such extreme measures to persuade the American public; materialism has become the most prominent and universal mentality. The need to have the newest and best has become an instilled characteristic of the average citizen. How, you may wonder, has the advertising industry become such a powerful entity? The answer is that propaganda has always played a vital role in society; this is not a new concept. Throughout history propaganda/advertising has been to entice, elude, and manipulate people.

In today’s society there are a plethora of ideas about advertisement. What would it take to meet societies want’s with the increase in advertising of new technology? In regards to four articles: “What’s Changed” by , Jane Hammerslough, “Urban Warfare” by, Kate MacArthur & Hilary Chura, “The Age of Reason” by, Kenneth Hein, “The Buzz on Buzz” by, Renee Dye. These four authors describe the many different angles that can be approached by advertisement. They have also shown some great aspects of the new uprising development of advertising technology in modern American society.

Throughout history, advertising has played a significant role in consumerism, politics, and much more. By the 1920’s it had developed into a major aspect of daily life for Americans, determining everything from their hygiene habits to their meals. Despite this having been almost one-hundred years ago, there are many similarities, but also many differences in the advertising industry today.

Music in advertising is helpful to the artists and the companies in numerous ways, which is why artists should be able to keep their music in advertising. The importance of music in advertising is that it can make a band more famous, more recognizable, and help with their revenue. Musicians deserve to keep their music in advertising, since it can help them profoundly. If you were a band that wanted to become more famous or more recognizable, but needed some help;

Melissa Rubin, a student attending Hofstra University, wrote an analysis called, Advertisements R Us. She evaluates a Coca-Cola ad in 1950, and endeavors into how advertisers persuade their audiences to buy their product. She then discusses the background of the company and further explains the relevance of the culture of the fifties and how it varies from modern society. Rubin ultimately concludes with the overall message Coca-Cola is conveying about their company to their consumers In the first paragraph of Rubin’s analysis, she discloses the secrets of advertising.

Singing Commercials are a recent invention.” (26). He also talks about how commercials try to seduce children: “In Europe, conscripts used to be playfully referred to as "cannon fodder." Their little brothers and sisters have now become radio fodder and television fodder. In my childhood we were taught to sing nursery rhymes and, in pious households, hymns. Today the little ones warble the Singing Commercials.” (27).

One of the most significant musical developments in advertising in the 1980s has been the advent of music videos. The origin and purpose of music videos is promotional; they are themselves advertisements. If follows that a good music video, according to the conception of the industry, will share all of the features which distinguish a good advertisement. (David Huron, 1989)

For an extended period of time, artists have been signing with companies and getting their music put into commercials. These commercials are heard on the radio, seen on tv, and even put into slogans for business and marketing campaigns. The act of signing with a company can offer the musicians a chance to be recognized if they have yet to be noticed. Also, if the band or single artist is already widely known, the act of putting their music into advertisements can be a chance to further connect with fans. Therefore, it is beneficial for artists to have their music in advertising.

Advertising has always been an important part of our society. The history of advertising can be traced to pre-modern history when it served an important purpose by allowing sellers to effectively compete with other merchants for the attention of clients in Ancient Egypt. From 1704 when the first newspaper advertisement was announced, it gradually grows into a major force in American society based primarily on newspapers and magazines (Ad Age Advertising Century, 1999). It not only helps to raise the target demographics’ awareness of issues, but also educate consumers with the benefits of the product. However, advertising cannot target a particular person before the emerging of World Wide Web.

“Advertising is far from impotent or harmless; it is not a mere mirror image. Its power is real, and on the brink of a great increase. Not the power to brainwash overnight, but the power to create subtle and