The following link presents an advertisement of the portrayal of alcohol in ads. In this advertisement a party is going on. The people in the ad appear to be in their late teens and they appear to be having fun as they dance around smiling as bright colors of light continue to flash. While the people in the ad appear to be having a good time dancing, the sound of music fades out and is replaced by the sound of car noises, followed by the sound of a car crashing, and ending with the sound of police sirens. At the very end of the ad the words “Alcohol ads show the world one way. Are you listening?” flashes on the screen followed by the logo for the World Health Organization. This wording could be understood as a way to say that the effects of drinking makes situations “look” as though they are okay, when in reality they are not.
What do you think these words mean? Do you think the words flashed at the end of this ad are true? If so, what do you think it will take for teens to wake up and see the dangers of drinking excessive amounts of alcohol, especially if they are not 21?
I am doing prompt 1: Looks Matter:
ReplyDeleteThe video starts out with a woman grabbing a man in what appears to be a club. Another woman is shown and seems to be intoxicated. The advertisement then shows a couple flirting and people dancing. The ad seems to use a lot of bright lights in the dark club. The video then shows the people at the club holding drinks. There is a break in the music then a sound that seems to be car tires screeching on pavement. The people keep dancing and drinking as the ad goes on. Then written across the screen bold white letters is "alcohol ads show the world one way, are you listening?" I think what the ad is trying to argue is that alcohol companies create a biased advertisement that is used to promote drinking. The companies show happy people who are successful at talking to the opposite sex and are having fun. It shows a life of luxury. However, the ad tries to also show that this is not always the case when drinking. Furthermore, the ad uses the noise of brakes to show that excessive drinking can lead to drunk driving and car accidents. This is not exactly the message that alcohol companies want to give and the ad is here to point that out.
Complicating evidence could be the fact that the party does not stop after the car brakes come into the ad. This idea could be to point out more about the wording on the screen "alcohol ads show the world one way, are you listening?" to point out that the alcohol ads focus on the image of the party and not the background sounds of the brakes. The alcohol ads might only be focused on making money and not about the consequences of drinking; partying without stopping or slowing down even when brakes are heard.
DeleteI’m responding with Prompt 2: Agree to Disagree
ReplyDeleteThis anti-drinking-and-driving ad stresses the message that alcohol isn’t always how it seems to be in ads and that there are severe consequences from going out drinking if you drive as well. Based on the comments for this video, however, it doesn’t seem like many viewers took this message seriously. While one person agrees with the message that alcohol should only be consumed in moderation and should never be consumed before driving, the majority of the comments made fun of the ad and disagreed with its message in favor of drinking. Several commenters use sarcasm and jokes in order to dismiss what the ad is really saying. The majority of the comments with this negative attitude towards the commercial and subject suggest that the community commenting on this video do not consider drunk driving to be an important issue. They may feel this way because they enjoy drinking and have never experienced the consequences of drunk driving. One commenter even specifically mentioned having drunk while driving before adding a smiley face to the comment. The only comment that received any “likes” received twenty-nine likes and made fun of the ad, indicating that he/she was about to go drink. Overall, the comments do not seem to take this commercial seriously, therefore, the commercial was ineffective in convincing the viewers to consider the risks associated with drinking.
Based on the sounds of the previous commercial, I believe that the words “Alcohol ads show the world one way. Are you listening?” refer to alcohol ads only showing the fun that alcohol brings rather than some of the risks such as impaired driving. I do believe that it is true that alcohol ads don’t show everything about alcohol’s effects, and I believe they do this because showing that alcohol may kill lives could potentially guilt consumers and prevent them from drinking, therefore, hurting the advertisers sales. Unfortunately, I think that it may take teens the horror of dealing with the consequences of alcohol before they fully understand the implication of what drinking large amounts does.
One piece of complicating evidence to the claim that many people did not take the ad seriously is that on the video itself(not the comments) 16 people liked it while only 4 disapproved of it. If more people liked the video than not, wouldn't that mean that a majority of people approved the ad and therefore took it seriously?
DeletePrompt 7: The works
ReplyDeleteBased on the several comments on the video, it would appear as if the video is relatively inaffective in portraying its message, at least to those who actually chose to post a comment. Apart from one comment, "when [you're drunk], you feel like everything is ok, but actually drinking alcohol is bad if it is too much" then states that drinking in moderation is fine and advises against driving drunk. However the other comments didn't take the ad seriously and seemed to make fun of the message. I think the ad is ineffective because the "don't drink and drive" message isn't new or timely. This particular ad doesn't seem to bring in any new information not previously presented in other ads therefore most people most likely already know the risks of drinking and driving. It is probable that those who haven't taken the issue seriously previously will continue not to because it is their choice whether or not they feel the risks affect them.
To answer Brittany's questions, I think the words are referring to the idea that the excitement, dancing and drinking at parties and clubs may appeal to viewers, but people may not pay attention to the negative implications of being drunk like the inability to drive safely. I think this is definitely true for some people. I feel like people don't like to believe that there would be any profound force that could prevent them from keeping in control of situations, but at the same time enjoy how carefree alcohol can make them. Unfortunately a firsthand experience, either with themselves or with a friend or family member, might be the most effective way to get teens to wise up. I have seen various public service announcements and public presentations by family and friends of teens who have died in alcohol-related car accidents, and I have always felt these to be the most effective in portraying how dangerous drunk driving is because of how personal there are.