When taking a look at media literacy earlier this week, it was shocking how similar the themes were to a high school class I took decades ago on Values in the Media! The strategies used by big advertising agencies to manipulate our emotions and opinions have remained very consistent, although the methods of implementing those strategies may have technologically evolved.
For example, a current ad campaign associates a sexy picture of Sheryl Crow with milk although the rock star really doesn't have anything to do with the product. Likewise, I vividly remember this example from my high school teacher:
 |
| Image Source |
While my high school class got me thinking critically about every image I saw on TV commercials or in print (newspapers/magazines), today's kids need to think critically about messages they are receiving from those sources plus many more. It's not just advertising that tries to influence us. Kids are receiving messages from music, video games, social media, movies, and the list goes on...
It's important to make kids aware of the many kinds of media that affect their lives, give the kids tools for choosing which media to consume, help them to think critically about the messages they receive, and develop a way to evaluate the information.
One great example was just produced recently. I really like this video of Harry Caray calling the Cubs' World Series, I do. BUT, check out the poster behind the guy's head at 1:06. It's not a coincidence that the message "Cub Fan, Bud Man" is embedded in this very positively emotional video! And I'm guessing that Bud planted a few other subliminal gems in the video that I haven't caught yet. Budweiser didn't just make this video to make Cubs fans happy, they made it to sell more beer!
