SCS 100_Wk 7 Project

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Southern New Hampshire University *

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Sociology

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Feb 20, 2024

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1 Project 7-1 SCS-100-R3077 Perspectives in the Social Sciences Professor Doe 19 February 2023

2 Part One: Advertisement Analysis: 1. Determine how individuals and groups are represented in the advertisements. a. What audiences are the advertisements trying to reach? b. What unspoken or underlying messages do you think the ads might be sending? Panasonic: Your Inner Man- This advertisement depicts several fit men with different shapes cutouts of their chest hairs. The men are shown on different colorful backgrounds. The men are also of diverse skin complexions. This advertisement is aimed at reaching all men. In the advertisement, the men are fit and toned. However, “their inner man” is aligned with loving certain things that may not be considered manly by others standards. The hidden message here is to not be afraid to be yourself. Don’t be afraid to push the boundaries that have been set by others who do not see and feel things as you do. Toyota: 2020 Toyota Big Game Commercial- This advertisement the individuals are presented as people from different genders, races, backgrounds and walks of life. Scene one shows individuals in chemical protective clothing out on a chemical storage area where green smoke is in the air. Scene two shows a family in the old west being approached by men on horseback with guns. Scene three shows people in a cold environment driving away due to a creature causing havoc in the area. The fourth and last scene shows a typical teenager standing in the rain as his friends drive away in a taxi. All of these scenes have this in common; the fact that there is always one person who stays behind because there is no room for them to join the others and the Toyota highlander always comes to the rescue. This advertisement is attempting to reach people and families who “don’t have any room” in their current vehicles. There are many people in the world that are in situations where they travel in more than one vehicle due to the limited space in certain cars. This advertisement is silently telling you that you can go ahead and switch

3 to the Highlander because it has the room that you need and due to its reliability, it will always be there to save the day when you need it. A Climate Change Promise from Apple- This advertisement shows an infant laying on top of a bed alone in a white room with two windows. The linen is white. The end tables are white. The headboard is brown with white lamps at each end. The advertisement is a narration of a conversation that is being had between the infant and Apple as a company. The company is talking to the infant and making a promise to be better at reducing their impact to the climate within the next 10 years. This advertisement focuses on the infant as “children are our future” but it is geared toward everyone as climate change affects every single living thing. The unspoken message in this advertisement is that it is recognized that the company has not done everything possible to protect the planet while providing services and goods to the consumer. However, we (Apple), are changing how we do business to be better at conserving our planet, and you can still buy our products. Burger King; Reduced Methane Whoppers- This advertisement shows several children that are multicultural and multigendered. There are also several adults shown that represent different professional backgrounds. The advertisement is attempting to reach anyone who enjoys eating their whoppers and those who oppose the company because of the contributions that it has made to climate change. The underlying message here is that the company realizes that it has not been great at taking care of the environment but it is taking the necessary steps to fix some of those issues. The consumer can feel better when enjoying a “reduced methane” burger. 2. Identify a stereotyped group behavior in the advertisements.

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4 a. What are the advertisements saying about the behavior of the groups represented in them? b. What underlying message do the advertisements send about the group behaviors in them and the audiences assume will be consuming the products? Panasonic: Your Inner Man- This advertisement shows several fit and shirtless men. This is to represent how manly they are. In contrast, several have their chest hairs form shapes that are not considered manly to others; such as a ballerina or bra. This is to show how they feel inside or what they like. The underlying message in here is that it is ok to like the things you do. It is ok to be a man and like ballet or whatever else is not necessarily masculine. A man is not defined by how masculine or muscular he is. Toyota: 2020 Toyota Big Game Commercial- This advertisement depicts people who are left behind while in unfavorable situations. These people are from different ages, genders, and races. No matter who you are and how old you are as long as you are of driving age, this vehicle could be useful to you. I think that the underlying message in this advertisement in regards to group behavior is that you can always depend on Toyota to be there when you need it. A Climate Change Promise from Apple- This advertisement is about a leading tech company that makes a commitment to change how their products are made in order to limit the harm it does to the planet. Apple is a big producer of phones and computers. It will be around for a long time unless a major disaster of some kind happens. The groups in this advertisement are represented by the infant, who also represents our future. The world runs on tech. Everywhere you go, you can always see someone on a device checking social media, making videos, sending messages, and even reading books. This being said, our children are growing up in this era where they cannot function without these gadgets. They are the ones who will continue to buy these

5 products and propel this company forward. Apple knows that our children and their children are the ones that are going to secure the future of this planet and of the company itself. Burger King; Reduced Methane Whoppers- This advertisement is about a major fast food chain and its contributions to greenhouse gases and climate change. I think that the advertisement is sending the message that we all consume their product even though they have not done everything possible to be environmentally friendly. The advertisement contains children of different cultures, ages, and backgrounds. There are adults of different ages, genders, and backgrounds also. The underlying message is that we have been consuming their products even though they have not been good to the environment and it is affecting the future of out planet. However, we are making some changes to correct that so that you can still continue to eat our product. 3. Determine how different cultures are represented in the advertisements. a. How do the ads represent culture? Are any stereotypes being used? b. What unspoken or underlying messages do you think the ads might be sending about culture? I think that my four ads represent a multitude of cultures and backgrounds. The information being provided to viewer across the four ads included young children and adults. It included members of society from different career paths also. As I observed the advertisements I did not see any cultural stereotypes being shown. An underlying cultural message from some of my advertisements could be that we, as a society, consume a whole bunch of products from companies like Burger King and Apple. They depend on us and we depend on them. They are going to change and be greener so that we can continue that supply and demand relationship; while helping to reduce the harmful effects to the environment.

6 4. Discuss how ethical issues in the social sciences impact advertising. Look beyond the economic effects of advertisements and consider the following questions to help address the prompt: a. Do the ads confirm biases? Do they rely on stereotypes? Do they support social change? Do they stay neutral on social or political movements? Should they get involved in social or political movements? One could say that the Burger King Methane burger advertisement contains bias as it only talks about cows, the whopper, and greenhouse gases. The fast food company offers many more products than just the whopper. Could they be slacking in other areas of their company that affects us as consumers and our environment? I do not believe that any of my four advertisements rely on stereotypes as there were no stereotypes that I could see in them. I do think that my advertisements rely on social change. Apple and Burger King are making changes to the way they create their products and this is because of the rise of awareness in society in regards to climate change. They know that people are starting to do more business with people who are more environmentally friendly. If they want to stay on top of their markets, they have to go along with the change. I think that my ads stay neutral on social and political movements. The fact that Apple and Burger King are both changing their procedures to be better for the environment does not mean that they are in support of any movement. They are making these changes in order to be less impactful to the environment while still getting consumers to buy their product. There are movements that support keeping the planet clean but I found nothing that shows that these companies directly support these movements such as the Climate Movement and the Green Movement. The Toyota advertisement did not show any connections to any movement. As for the Inner Man advertisement, we live in a world where we focus too much on

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7 how others see us and what they think about us. Being a man is difficult where any sign of your masculinity is seen as toxic. The same can be said when others see feminine traits in a man or a man liking things that would be seen as not too masculine. Then you are a sissy. I have not found a specific movement that could be related to this issue but I think that the Men’s Movement would be the closest to relate to this advertisement. It ok to be strong and assertive as it is ok to be in tune with your emotions and be kind and helpful. A man is not defined by his muscles. 5. Propose a finalized social science research question based on your analysis of the advertisements you chose. a. Think beyond the minor details from your analysis and consider what the ads say about individuals, groups, institutions, or society. b. What is the meaning or significance of the ads? For example, you might be interested in ethical issues related to advertising. You might want to explore how current events influence the content of ads. Or maybe you would like to ask how common themes in ads could impact an audience’s self-concept. Research Question: How do advertisements on mainstream media and social platforms impact the way consumers make their decisions? I think that the ads say that society has some issues that they need to work on. For example, the “Inner Man” advertisement shows how society has a certain view of a man. The advertisement shows three muscular guys with some shapes carved out of their chest hairs. These carvings would be weird to anyone that see’s them. You have to look at and understand the meaning of the advertisement to know that the goal is to inform you that it is ok to be yourself and to like the things that others would not. Be and love yourself. This is a major issue for our

8 society. We spend too much time focusing on what others think when they don’t really matter. What matters is what you, yourself, thinks. 6. Discuss how you used a social science perspective to develop your research question. a. Explain how you used social science concepts, perspectives, or approaches to write your research question. I started with a sociological perspective approach to consumer behavior. We all know that when we are connected to either a computer, a television, or other device; we are constantly being bombarded by ads. These ads are designed at exploiting our deepest desires in a manner that would be beneficial to providers of consumer products. Taking a sociologist approach, I developed my question thinking about how advertisements are directly related to the patterns of consumer spending. 7. Explain one major development in the social sciences that may have influenced your research question. a. The major development could include an important event, a discovery, the rejection of an old theory, acceptance of a new theory, or a change in culture that affected the field. b. How might these changes in thinking and research have affected the conclusions drawn about your advertisements and the questions asked about them? 8. Describe how your assumptions, beliefs, and/or values influenced the way you analyzed your advertisements.

9 a. Consider how your perceptions of the social world may have influenced the way you viewed your advertisements. Did it/they cause you to make assumptions about the people in the ads? Did you focus on certain advertisements, or parts of advertisements as a result? How might someone with a different set of beliefs view your advertisements? In my initial observation of the advertisements, I was not coerced into thinking anything negative on my advertisements. I did however, think that the Panasonic: Your Inner Man was sort of weird. To see an advertisement that talks about your inner man and depicts men that are fit and have a bra or a ballerina shaved on their chest was different. I saw it from the perspective that, I, as a man would not do such a thing because I personally don’t see that as a manly thing. However, after looking at the advertisement several more times and doing a little research. I found out that the advertisement dealt with a person sending a tweet stating something they like. We live in an ever-changing society. My views and beliefs may not be the same as many others. That is what makes us unique and diverse. Leaving my beliefs, values, and assumptions to the side helped me see the advertisement from a different angle. I was more understanding on the reasons for the shapes on the chest. 9. Discuss how social science perspectives or approaches could be used to process information.

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10 References Green Movement | Encyclopedia.com . (2019). Encyclopedia.com. https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/modern-europe/russian-soviet-and-cis-history/ green-movement https://www.facebook.com/thoughtcodotcom. (2019). How Sociologists Study Consumption . ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/sociology-of-consumption-3026292 Wiki Targeted (Entertainment. (2023). Men’s movement . Psychology Wiki. https://psychology.fandom.com/wiki/Men%27s_movement

SCS 100_Wk 7 Project

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