ABSTRACT
A Japanese-produced leaflet used during World War II in an attempt to disengage African American troops from the U.S. war efforts serendipitously planted the seed for the third-person effect (Davison, 1983). The message appeared to have had a greater influence on White officers than on the intended audience, but the officers apparently expected it would affect the troops. Davison was more interested in the psychological phenomenon of self-other comparisons-for good reason-than that leaflet itself, and he mentioned message content only in passing in his seminal article. His explanation was based on a “persuasive communication (whether or not this communication is intended to be persuasive)” (p. 3), individuals exposed to such a message predict greater influence on others than on themselves. Thus, Davison acknowledged the polysemic nature of mediated communication; perhaps that is why he was not concerned with the message.
