Subliminal advertising

Résumé du document

1957, East cost of the United States of America in New Jersey, a vanguardist advertiser reported that he managed to increase the sales of Coca-cola and pop-corns in the Fort Lee's cinema. He said to have display, during six weeks the short sentences “Drink Coca-cola” and “Hungry? Eat pop corn” every five seconds on the movie Picnic from Joshua Logan. But the broadcasting length is so short (around 3 milliseconds) that people cannot see it. This case, widely repeated in the American press, gave rise to a lot of fantasies.

“Subliminal advertising”– as it has been called by James Vicary– it will lead to the control of people's thinking and wishes? What about our free reason? Are going to become victim of manipulation? The press and the public didn't stop asking questions to scientist on this issue. That's how the Fort Lee's story (which was revealed being a hoax few years later) encouraged scientists to study the phenomenon of subliminal perception further. Will they confirm its effects? Will they, on the contrary, refute this hypothesis? Are they going to be unanimous? What says the law regarding this issue?

These are some of the questions to which we will try to answer by considering some of the latest scientific achievements and research on this phenomenon. Subliminal perception can also be called “perception without awareness” or “subliminal images” (more used by media and public).

Extraits

[...] The National Association of Broadcasters "TV Code", in chapter IV section 14, prohibits the use of subliminal advertising by its members, like the Australia and Great Britain. A Nevada Judge declared that subliminal communications are not protected as free speech. (see example of Bush presidential campaign). Many countries suffer with the same problems against the eradication of this technique of communication, despite the existence of a prohibitory legislation, but not sanctioning SUBLIMINAL ADVERTISING: MYTH OR TRUTH? 5.1 A RELEVANT QUESTION If we cross developed approaches above; we can note that the theme has contradictory aspects. [...]

[...] But one Parisian newspaper alleges him to have benefited of subliminal images. A photo of the candidate would have been hiden in the introduction of the newsshow of Antenne2. The trial for electoral manipulation has been lost, because the image lasted more than a twenty-fifth of a second, which excludes the qualification of subliminal. At the time of the 2000 US election, the Republican candidate George W. Bush broadcast a television spot in which the subliminal word "rats" is inserted just after a photo of his political opponent Al Gore. [...]

[...] Psychologists empirically discovered the subliminal perception at the end of the 19th century. The first experimental research is conducted by Pierce and Jastrow (1884). It deals with the estimation of differences in weight between two objects. The two scientists are trying to find out what would happen if the stimulus was presented below the physiological perception threshold (corresponds to the moment when the subject says no longer perceive a stimulus that he could just before). The percentage of correct answers ( 69.7 is substantially more than usually attributed to chance . [...]

[...] The process is even more pernicious that advertising is often attractive, playful, light, and that it flatters our desire for happiness and success MYTH AND TRUTH The public somehow decided, by keeping intact his fascination to this controversial subject. His trust in the media has been cracked over the scandals. Advertising media are increasing, the strength of the messages increases. Received consciously or not, their impact has a significant value on individuals predisposed to receive: subliminal message may encourage a smoker to light a cigaret, but will never make a non-smoker to smoke". (Jérôme Jadot - Myths and Secrets). [...]

[...] Courbet D. (2003) L'influence publicitaire en l'absence de souvenir des messages : les effets implicites de la simple exposition Les Cahiers Internationaux de Psychologie Sociale (mars 2003), pp. 39-51. Courbet D. (2003b) L'influence non consciente de la publicité pp. 26- 34, in : Courbet D., Fourquet M. P., eds, La Télévision et ses influences, De Boeck Université/INA, coll. Médias Recherches. Dixon N.F. (1971) «Subliminal perception : the Nature of a Controversy». [...]