Can advertising sell America?Winning Hearts and Minds in the Muslim World

Colin Parajon

Contemporary ProblemsIn American Advertising

October 2012

By Jami Fullerton and Alice Kendrick

Overv

iew

• Context

• Shared Values Initiative

• Execution

• Effectiveness

• Criticism

• Position

context

September 11, 2001

“I am an American”

“I am an American Muslim”

• Council on American-Islamic Relations

• “To enhance understanding of Islam,

encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.”

context

September 11, 2001

Charlotte beers• Retired Head of Ogilvy and Mather

and J. Walter Thompson

• Hired by FormerSecretary of StateColin Powell

• Sworn in October 2, 2001 asUnder Secretary of Statefor Public Diplomacy andPublic Affairs

Shared valuesDifferences:Shared Values:• Modesty

• Obedience

• Perseverance

• Freedom

• Faith

• Family

• Education

SharedValues

initiative

• Speeches

• “Town Hall” Events

• Internet Sites

• Chat Rooms

• Muslim Life in America

• Newspaper Ads

• Mini-DocumentariesGoal: To cause

“discussion and debate.”

“Baker”• Lebanese Family-Run Bakery in Toledo, Ohio

“doctor”• Algerian Government Official

“School teacher”• Teacher Wearing Hijab

“Journalist”• Indonesian Journalism Student

“Firefighter”• Muslim Firefighter and Chaplain in NYC

“A m

ess

ag

e f

rom

The C

ounci

l of

Am

eri

can M

usl

ims

for

Und

ers

tand

ing

.A

nd

the A

meri

can P

eop

le.”

“Firefighter”

Execution• Schedule begins October 29, 2002 in Indonesia.

• Pakistan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia,Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Lebanon and the United Arab Emirates,Kenya, Tanzania

• Most Arab countries refuse to run spots.

• Al Jazeera initially considered it “an honor” to accept USanti-terror messages, but later refused to air the spots.

• Commercials discontinued in December 2002.

Propaganda?1. Ideology and purpose of the campaign2. Context in which it occurs3. Identification of propagandist4. Structure of propaganda organization5. Target audience6. Media utilization techniques7. Special techniques to maximize effect8. Audience reaction to techniques9. Counterpropaganda, if present10.Effects and evaluation

effectiveness• Did it work? No definitive answer.

• 288 million people in Indonesia:- Scored higher on message recall and retention than commercials for “a typical soft drink campaign run at higher spending levels for more months.”

• Congress, the press, the advertising industry and formerdiplomats refer to SVI campaign as a failure.

criticism

“Contributed toanti-Americanism

in the region.”

“This is no job for commercials.”

“Waste of time.”

“The notion that you can sell Uncle Sam like Uncle

Ben’s is highly problematic.”

Pre-post test

Participants record

attitudes toward US

government, US people

and how Muslims are treated in the US.

Participants again record

attitudes toward US

government, US people

and how Muslims are treated in the US.

SVI spot

s are

viewed.

Results• Attitudes toward the US government were more positive.

• Singapore: Attitudes toward US people were more positive.

Greatest magnitude of difference:

Attitudes about how Muslims are treated

in the US were more positive. • Women and Muslims had most positive attitudes.

2006 survey

•“Tipping Point” – the moment at which a large portion of the publicbegins to demand that the government address its concerns

• At “Tipping Point” – War in Iraq

• Approaching “Tipping Point” – Outsourcing & Illegal Immigration

• Moving Away from “Tipping Point” – US Relations w/ Muslim World

position• The SVI was the first campaign of its kind, so little research existed

for measuring its success.

• Government officials expected something resembling ROI,which could not be proven awareness campaigns.

• The high recall rates and shift in attitudes toward the US government,US people and treatment of Muslims in the US are proof that theSVI was a success.

• Advertising is an effective course of diplomacy.

Works citedAlsultany, E. (2007). Selling American diversity and Muslim American identity through nonprofit advertising

post 9-11. American Quarterly, 59(3), 593-622.

Fullerton, J., & Kendrick, A. (2008). Can advertising sell America? Winning hearts and minds in the Muslimworld. In T. Reichert (Ed.), Issues in American Advertising: Media, Society and a Changing World. (253-263). Chicago: Copy Workshop.

Kosar, K.R. (2012). Advertising by the federal government: An overview. Congressional Research Service.

Plaisance, P. L. (2005). The propaganda war on terrorism: An analysis of the United States’ ”Shared Values”public-diplomacy campaign after September 11, 2001. Journal of Mass Media Ethics, 20(4), 250-268.

USA: US spokesman says media publicity campaign in Muslim world “successful.” (2003). BBC Summary ofWorld Broadcasts.

Yankelovich, D. (2006). The tipping points. Foreign Affairs, 85(3).