How does advertising affect us in our daily lives? There are many diverse aspects of the advertising industry and its role in popular culture. It has an impact on the choices we make and the choices that are available for us to make. It is powerful on attracting consumers psychologically, visually and also culturally.
One industry that tries to persuade people's thoughts is the tobacco industry. The tobacco companies use terms such as "light" to mislead smokers into believing that those brands are safer, and therefore they will continue to support tobacco companies by buying cigarettes (Zuckerbrod 1). Another way that advertising influences people is by creating good impressions that can persuade them. It's a scam because they get people to believe that they reduce health risks, when that is a false statement," said Stephen Sheller, a Philadelphia attorney.
A second way that advertising affects consumers is by encroaching on all areas. One example is with public schools getting corporate sponsorships for money to fund the resources that they can't afford to pay for. Tax payers don't want their taxes to increase, so this is a good alternative for public schools that desperately need money. The number of corporate sponsorships is increasing among high school and college athletic teams (Graham 1). The sponsorships help the schools pay for things they need, such as, gym facilities, a library or a technology center. "We want to give our kids the same resources, and we can't raise taxes," said John Kellmayer. Advertisement is also very important in the clothing industry. The more a clothing company is advertised, the more people will want to buy their clothes. Because of this, companies raise their prices on their clothing. They know that consumers will still buy their clothes because they want to have a certain image. Popular stores such as Abercrombie and Fitch sell their clothing at much higher prices than other less popular stores such as Wal-Mart.
