Words For His Advertising Campaigns Toscani example essay topic

Introduction Advertising texts and images seem to be the most visible and ubiquitous icons of consumer society. The Advertising industry indeed has simultaneously become one of the most powerful and apparently most uncritical institutions of today as well as this, people seemingly have accepted billboard advertising as an usual part of their environment. Nevertheless there sometimes develop certain advertising campaigns undergoing general ideas about what ads are supposed to show and they hence provoke controversial public debates. So called controversial advertising has often been claimed to somehow subvert conventional advertising's practice by the audiences, justice, advertisers, companies, advertising industry's self regulating institutions and so forth. This now rises the question how far industrial advertising as an institution that has to promote consuming goods, can be subversive. This essay will work out, that advertising hardly can be subversive, because it is to much characterised by its function.

It nevertheless firstly is necessary to formulate a working-definition of subversion, a notion that has been used in very different senses, before two example-cases of controversial advertising can be investigated. The integration of ad-alien contents within the Benetton-campaign then will be analysed as a form of aesthetic subversion to subsequently question exactly the image's ad-alien and supposed subversive form and content. Thus, it will be shown that Benetton's subversive potentials are overshadowed by their functions as advertisements. This works second part will look at two campaigns developed for French Connection. By investigating two campaigns it will be shown that the only form of subversion that might be claimed for advertising could possibly be described as a temporary phenomenon of charming subversion. Controversial advertising: subversive avant-garde or variations of conformity?

The notion "subversive" has been associated with political issues and revolutionary activities intending to change the entire political, economic and hence societal order by slowly destroying the present system from its core. Simultaneously the notion has been used in a less ubiquitous sense, that might be more appropriate for this work's purpose. Vogel for example in Film as a Subversive Art established the notions of Subversion of Form and Subversion of Content and means that there had been particular films, that managed to challenge the entire film-making-philosophy by deliberately breaking the system's conventions. (Compare Vogel 1997) Subversion in that case characterises an aesthetic act of infiltration, that indeed redefines certain subsystem-conventions, but that nor threatens the subsystem's existence neither really concerns the entire order of society. In order to answer the question, how far advertising can be subversive, I therefore suggest to differentiate two notions of subversion.

Referring to Vogel, I assume subversion as a mainly aesthetic presumption on its low-level. Considering the notion's political connotation, even on this stage the aesthetic redevelopment at least has in any way to be able to reflect the own subsystem. Otherwise it only can be regarded as system's extension. As high-grade subversion I suggest to assume the recruitment of a subsystem in order to entirely destroy it. In its most extensive perspective that second meaning includes revolutionary subversion as the intentional destruction of the entire society. Since nobody would seriously claim the advertising-industry's contemporary intention was to destroy capitalist society, the second definition of subversion can be neglected, in order to investigate, how far controversial advertising campaigns contain subversive potentials.

It is hence necessary to analyse if and how controversial advertising manage to reflect the subsystem of advertising by challenging its rules and aesthetic conceptions. Com modifying or communicating social issues: the Benetton-campaign In 1984 Luciano Benetton, conservative Senator of Italian parliament and head of the franchising-company Benetton, hired photographer Oliviero Toscani in order to develop a sustainable promotion strategy. One year later the brand-name United Colors of Benetton was used in connection with Coca-Cola-like ads preaching racial harmony by showing multi-national children dressed up in Benetton clothes. (Falk 1997, 77) Between 1989 and 1996 the company changed its strategy: Instead of praising mediate or immediate product- (meta-) qualities, Benetton as the first company completely eliminated the actual product from the billboard advertisements and focused instead on general social matters (ibid. ). They hence replaced traditional advertising pictures with photographs that refer rather to an art-like documentary genre then to what was associated with advertising images (Tinic 1997, p. 3) Benetton's integration of ad-alien contents and forms: reference-less signs and social issues as subversive elements Especially between 1991 and 1994 many Benetton-advertisements simultaneously were admired and condemned within different countries, interest groups and publicizing individuals.

The patterns of argumentation were quite similar in every case. Benetton / Toscani-sceptics either accused the ambiguity of the pictures or they found the shown picture with its content inappropriate for the form of advertising, while Benetton constantly declared intending to evoke awareness for social problems. In 1991 the company ran its most controversial advertising showing a photography of a dying AIDS-patient named David Kirby, who was surrounded by his suffering relatives or friends (compare: Benetton-homepage). It first was printed in Life-magazine, before Benetton with the permission of Kirby's family added their United Colors of Benetton-label and thus utilised it for their campaign. The French advertising watchdog organisation, arguing that "publicity should not show human distress, disarray or death" (Tinic 1997), accused it to be inappropriate. At the same time AIDS-organisations all over the world supported Benetton's AIDS-campaign including the Kirby-picture, because they assumed that exactly the claimed exhibition helps to enlighten audiences and hence to increase societal tolerance for the victims and their members.

Benetton and Toscani of course argued, that this had also been their intention. (Compare Toscani 1995, p. 77 ff) Considering that almost every Benetton-campaign has provoked a public discourse of advertising's appropriate rules of representation by integrating system-alien aesthetics of form and content, the photographs indeed remind on Vogel's conception of Subversion of Form and Subversion of Content. From the aesthetic point of view they of course challenged present rules and they questioned assumptions about what advertising is allowed to show as well as the societal function of advertising. It hence need to be asked, how far those aesthetic renewals and public debates were able to critically reflect advertising-practice. The medium is the message: The Benetton-campaign's subversive contents and noble aims in the context of its form as advertising In that context, Toscani for his " 'socially aware' advertising" (McLuhan 1996) claims to criticise conventional advertising for creating a "false reality" and for being "far too comfortable".

(Toscani cited in Braun, 2001) He rather declares, that Advertising as "the richest and most powerful form of communication in the world [... ] need to have images that will make people think and discuss [... and that] show reality". (ibid.) In Die Werbung ist ein l" Aas (Advertising is a Smiling Beast) Toscani indeed presents himself as an altruistic artist whose only reason for doing advertising was to subvert the system with its enormous range by abusing it as a medium for 'real' world's improvement. (Compare Toscani 1995, p. 17 ff) In other words for his advertising campaigns Toscani firstly claims subversive effects in relation to the subsystem of advertising conventions, and intends secondly by redefining its product, the ad, as a medium of mass-education, to change societal climate. That claimed connection between selling cloths and exhibiting ethic values and social issues were yet the crux, where most critics arose. It hence needed to be investigated, how far the pictures' function, as adverts, might come into danger of overshadowing its potential subversive form and content and hence turns the campaign's subversive potentials into usual conformity. Falk in that context has shown that the campaign has not really given up the reference to its product.

He argues that, although the product itself has been replaced by political matters and statements, the added Benetton-logo still refers to the product, the company and the person. The circulating (aesthetic) representation of political issues itself hence becomes the promotion of the product and thus "the 'politics of representation' and the 'representation of politics' - or the politics of and the of politics - tends to be dissolved" (Falk 1997, p. 72) Tinic similarly claims, that Benetton using ethical contents in order to merchandise sweaters or at least to promote the company's name, commodify ed social issues. (Tinic 1997) Giroux even accuses the campaign to depoliticize difference for commercial purpose, because it aesthetically separates difference from its historical and social conditions and re-contextualizes them as fixed entities. The subversive content in that sense, in fact, is changed by its form. That yet means that even if Toscani has intended to communicate socially relevant themes and to make people more aware about them, focusing the usual function of advertising of course somehow contents a subversive act, is turned by his choice of the medium.

Because Toscani's texts circulate as belongings of the system of advertising and because they are marked by the United Colors of Benetton-label, the photographs always refer to its actual function, the promotion of products or brands. It hence is not necessary to show the direct representation of the product to represent and merchandise it. Benetton-advertising in that case can be regarded as a variation of Lifestyle-advertising in so far as, the label and the represented social issues are associated with the product's consumption and hence rather exploit human miseries and ethical values to communicate their advertising-message, that purchasing a Benetton-sweater means to be a socially conscious and tolerant person, than the other way round. The pictures hence loose any possibility to critically asses the own subsystem. Advertising in that perspective can hardly be subversive by communicating something, but advertising, be cause, opposing to the arts, it can never stand for something apart from itself and hence whatever it additionally intends to communicate, it always refers to itself.

In Marshal McLuhan's words, that means the pre-definition of advertising's function evokes, that the choice of the medium of advertising to communicate a certain message already and always is the message (McLuhan 1968, p. 21 ff) Benetton's controversial campaign as a sophisticated version to attract audiences' attention Advertising has to attract attention, somehow, in order to penetrate the divided interests of the audience. There are far to many commercial stimuli fighting for our attention, and most are ignored. So ads have to find ways for braking through the noise. (White 2000, p. 91) In order to produce attention, every part of the advertising-subsystem therefore incessantly need to find new modes of presentation that differ the own representation from others and hence expose it within a media scape overloaded with advertising. J"akel as the paradox of modern advertising has pointed out, that the more successful advertising-system evokes attention, the more shortage of attention it simultaneously produces. (J"akel 2002) In other words the immense ubiquity of advertising causes its danger of becoming invisible.

The innumerable public debates and judicial hearings surrounding all Benetton's controversial campaigns with its partly shocking and ad-untypical images ensured the permanent circulation of the brand's name. In reference to the production of attention for the company and hence their products, Benetton thus managed to create a win-win-situation, where even every contribution against them automatically benefited the company. Already in 1992, during a period of general economic recession, Benetton indeed reported increasing profits of twelve percent. (Wilson 1995 p. 32) In that perspective their advertising-strategy might rather be described as advertising system's extension than as its subversion. Self-reflexivity and explicit sub-system-critique: the fcu k-campaign In opposite to the Benetton-campaign, where the integration of contents from political sphere into the own subsystem has been questioned as the subversive element, in the case of Fcuk it has to be investigated in how far the controversial campaign can be regarded subversive as self-reflective resistance against the subsystem.

Fcuk-campaign's ambiguous pun: double reference as charming subversion In 1997 the fashion retailer French Connection Group Plc. in co-operation with socialist and "advertising guru" (Cozens 1.3. 2001) Trevor Beattie discovered the short-form 'fcu k' for French Connection United Kingdom and ran a controversial print-campaign consisting from placates only showing the tagline 'Fcuk Advertising'. When ASA received 27 complains, the company was advised to insert dots between the four letters, to indicate that fcu k is the brand's name and to use any image separating 'fcu k' from 'advertising', because ASA was worried the campaign might discredit the advertising-industry. (Griffith 2003, p. 2) One indeed can receive it as an expression of resistance against the omnipresence of printed ads within the public space.

The slogan by reading against the grain thus becomes ambiguous, because 'Fuck Advertising' as additional meaning is added, while nevertheless still referring to the product. It by no means questions its function as industrial advertising, but also contains a statement about the system it belongs to. In that perspective the Fcuk Advertising-campaign might be assumed as kind of 'charming subversion'. Subversion of the subsystem's politics: . comIn 2001 French connection's advertising again has caused trouble.

Their TV-commercial entitled Kinky Bugger had been rejected, because it was claimed to contain an "unacceptable level of innuendo" (cited in Finch, 1.3. 2001). The spot showed a couple whispering phrases, which words started with the letters F, C, U and K, while they undressed themselves. (Cozens, 1.3. 2001) As reaction of their banishment, French Connection published an announcement in the Evening Standard, containing the following declaration: Sorry, the powers that be have decided our new TV commercial 'kinky bugger' contains an unacceptable level of sexual innuendo and is therefore unfit to be screened on national television.

See you in cyberspace... com. (cited in Cozens 1.3. 2001) In contrast to Toscani, Beattie refused, the reproach to intentionally having produced a commercial infringing the rules governed by advertising industry's self-regulation bodies in order to attract public controversy and hence attention by being banned. In opposition he claimed to move within the boundaries of system's conventions. While the fcu k-ads were just a pun playing with audiences' perception as it has been a common practice anyway, Beattie assumed Kinky Bugger being less sexual offensive then regular television contents. (Cones, 1.3.

2001) His claimed system-conformity nevertheless appears a little incredible when French Connection ran the. com-announcement, that hardly cannot be read as resistance against the watchdog's politics and hence as subversive. With that publication the company in fact deliberately has broken their subsystem's rules. Fcuk of course by no means attempts to turn advertising into a medium for noble societal aims or even asserts to question the system itself as Benetton claims, nor did they integrate contents actually belonging to other, ad-alien-spheres and hence blurred advertising's aesthetic conventions. But the. com-advert argues with the advertising watchdog's policy, accuses their censorship-practice and deliberately subvert them by referring to the web-site with the banned commercial. This is rather subversive as well as rather political then Benetton's placates drawing a questionable image of social awareness and ethical concern. It, nevertheless, is important to emphasis, that the FCUK's charming subversion had only been a limited time-phenomenon, which never really intended to seriously harm the subsystem.

In 2002, when their brand-name 'fcu k Spirit' labelling an alcoholic party-drink again has caused trouble, they were conform enough as the first company ever to voluntary agree all there ads being pre-vetted by the ASA's copy advice team. (Cozens 4.3. 2002) Conclusion Analysing the Benetton-campaign it has been shown, that trying to redefine advertising as a communicational medium to spread out ethical questions cannot be regarded as subversive, also advertising's hitherto formal and content-related conventions has been extended. Since Benetton kept their logo, their photographs still were recognisable as belongings of the subsystem called advertising industry, whose very character it is to promote products. The images as ads hence connect the represented social issues with a commodity, although the product was not directly shown. Thus the represented ethical reference itself became the product's representation and therefore it has been abused for commercial propose.

The case of Benetton hence evokes the assumption that, whenever industrial advertising attempts to communicate ad-alien messages, the message's possibly societal relevant and noble meant content becomes ambiguous. It has been shown that although Toscani understands his work as a subversion of advertising's function, the entire campaign rather appears as a very clever, but quite subsystem-conform method to attract attention in order to ensure the brand mark's circulation then as any form of subversion. The case of Fcuk yet has been completely different. It has been argued that although they never claimed it, the campaign might in so far regarded as subversive as the company winking played with the rules and powers of advertising subsystem. Because French Connection never really questioned the entire subsystem, but only reflected certain aspects and because their subversive ad's simultaneously has still always been kind of comradely and because they at last gave way to ASA's requirements, the notion of charming subversion has been introduced.

Charming subversion therefore might possibly be assumed as the only and most extreme subversive form adverting generally is able to produce, because it seems never to be able not to refer to its very function. To consistently be connected with merchandising commodities as its final aim for ever, appears as the very character of industrial adverting, which might mean, that at the moment, advertising actually managed to really stiffen its permanent self-reference it would automatically be forced to stop being advertising.

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