ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the advertising function of media as operating essentially within an economic context. This begins with a case study, ‘How John Lewis Ads Stole Christmas’ which shows the power of advertising in our daily lives. This discussion progresses naturally into a consideration of advertising as an art form. The rest of the chapter concerns itself with techniques of persuasion and the crossovers between advertising and propaganda. Three case studies are offered: one is a major charity campaign for WaterAid; the second is a health campaign persuading middle-aged men to ‘drink a little less’; and the third is a thematic study of the potential power of the simple or minimal in advertising.
