Visual Persuasion: The Role of Images in Advertising

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0803972458 ISBN 13: 9780803972452

Publisher: SAGE Publications, Inc, 1997

The pictures in television commercials, magazine advertisements and other forms of advertising often convey meanings that cannot be expressed as well, or at all, through words or music. Visual Persuasion is an exploration of the uniquely visual aspects of advertising. Because of the implicit nature of visual argumentation and the relative lack of social accountability which images enjoy in comparison with words, pictures can be used to make advertising claims that would be unacceptable if spelled out verbally. From this starting point, Paul Messaris analyzes a variety of commercial, political and social issue advertisements. He also discusses the role of images in cross-cultural advertising.

About the Author:

Paul Messaris is Lev Kuleshov Professor of Communication at the Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania. He teaches and does research in the area of visual communication and digital media. Recent publications include: The Visual Rhetoric of Social-Cause Photography (Visual Communication Quarterly, 2012), Visual Literacy in the Digital Age (Review of Communication, 2012), and How to Make Money from Subliminal Advertising and Motivation Research (International Journal of Communication, 2013). He was the recipient of the National Communication Association′s 1996 Diamond Anniversary Book Award for "Visual Literacy: Image, Mind, and Reality" (Westview Press). His film "The Harmful Effects of Violent Movies," a satirical portrait of academic research, was nominated as Best Feature Film at the International Film Festival of England in 2008.

Review:

The role of images in advertising is explored in a fine survey of the visual aspects of marketing programs. Pictures can evoke emotion and desire and easily become associated with products: Messaris delves into how this happens, exploring underlying viewer assumptions, image relationships, and connections between photography and reality. -- Midwest Book Review