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Hayli Keith
Mrs. DeBock
English 4 Honors
September 23
Essential Question: How do businesses use propaganda through advertising to make their
products more appealing?
Working Thesis: Businesses create more appealing ads through the use of persuasive
propaganda.
Refined Thesis: Businesses create more appealing ads through the use of persuasive propaganda
by targeting specific age groups and using it to try to out-do their competition although, the
over-use of propaganda and product placement can decrease the effectiveness and create media
bias.
Annotated Bibliography
"Advertising." Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection. Detroit: Gale, 2015. Opposing
Viewpoints in Context. Web. 23 Sept. 2015.
Advertising is an important tool in a market economy like that of the United States in
which goods and services compete to attract consumers. Different forms of advertising can
sometimes be used, which is where propaganda comes in. Propaganda is a completely legal way
to persuasively advertise a product, however, practices raise other concerns such as truth or
falsity. Companies use certain types of propaganda to make their products seem more appealing
and desirable, so sometimes the truth may be stretched. Youll see glittering generalities and

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testimonial ads just about anywhere and everywhere you look. Since the 1980s, product
placement-a practice in which manufacturers or advertisers pay to have their products appear in
television shows or movies-has been widespread. Critics, such as the Center for Digital
Democracy as talked about in the article, argue that product placement blurs the line between
entertainment and advertising. Advertising has become such a large part of our competition
driven society, it is all about who can sell the most of a product and how can they reach a wider
audience in the most effective way. This passage relates to my thesis by showing how businesses
use propaganda to out-do their competition.

Aliprandini, Michael, and Simone Isadora Flynn. "Media Bias: An Overview." Points Of View:
Media Bias (2015): 1.Points of View Reference Center. Web. 24 Sept. 2015.
Numerous studies have examined the degree to which media bias exists and the groups
who might benefit from the influence on the shaping of public opinion. According to some
critics, the media is capable of employing an elaborate and sophisticated array of techniques that
allows reporters and media owners to slant news stories in favor of particular groups or interests.
These techniques are referred to as persuasive propaganda which has manipulative ways that
create media bias and they are one of the most influential aspects of media today. Possible
consequences of media bias include: the widespread distrust of media outlets and the
withholding of mobilizing information there as to make things seem a certain way. Critics of the
media have made studies of broad and individual trends across various forms of media, and have
offered several models for how bias advertisements operate in modern society. Critics of the
mass media have also argued that rather than serving the public good, the media can have a

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detrimental effect. This article is important because it explains how propaganda techniques may
actually have a negative effect and how these strategies may create bias.

"Preface to 'What Is the Future of Advertising?'." Advertising. Ed. Laura K. Egendorf. San
Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2006. Opposing Viewpoints. Opposing Viewpoints in Context.
Web. 24 Sept. 2015.
One of the primary goals of advertising is to instill brand loyalty so that consumers will
purchase specific products throughout their lives. Advertisers traditionally target children,
teenagers, and adults in their twenties and thirties, in order to create customers who will be loyal
for many decades. Many commentators note that with the exception of a handful of campaigns,
ads either ignore older Americans or portray them as feeble or absent-minded. However, with
the U.S. population aging, many people argue that the advertising industry will need to change
its focus and treat people in their fifties and beyond as a vital segment of the buying public.
While appealing more towards a certain age group for things such as kids toys might make sense,
when it comes to general products there should be an aim towards a more general audience. For
advertisers to succeed and achieve the most effective advertisements they have to appeal to what
each age group would prefer the most. This article is important because it explains that not only
do companies have to use persuasive techniques but they have to use those techniques in a way
that appeals to certain age groups.

Rebensdorf, Alicia. "Product Placement Is Becoming Too Ubiquitous." Advertising. Ed. Roman
Espejo. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2010. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "Has Product

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Placement Made Our Television Viewing Experience Worse?" AlterNet. 2007. Opposing
Viewpoints in Context. Web. 23 Sept. 2015.
In the following viewpoint, Alicia Rebensdorf announces that product placement is
making a pervasive return. "Sponsored programming is in some sense a return of an old formula;
however it is not unworthy of scrutiny." Advertising has been around for decades but as
technology progresses and we grow economically and corporately, techniques only continue to
expand and become more extreme. Product integration-a marketing euphemism that oddly
equates to an advertising technique-is one of the most common forms of advertisements.
Companies team up at times to band together and sell as much product as they possibly can.
Some corporations believe the more advertisements they have the better but, is that really the
case? The use of product placement and persuasive propaganda is a key aspect of advertising, but
this is a key passage because it explains the negative side and how the over-use of certain
techniques could be decrease the effectiveness.

Rogers, Kristen. "Propaganda." Film and Media Literacy. Murrells Inlet. 1 Jan. 2014.
Lecture.
Propaganda is a type of persuasive or one-sided message intended to persuade others to
agree with an idea, buy a product, or to take a particular action. Propaganda is the use of ideas,
facts, or rumors spread purposefully to advance ones cause or to damage an opposing cause, it
purposefully influences the thoughts and actions of others. Theres also the issue of positive
versus negative propaganda, positive propaganda is where it makes one product seem superior
and more appealing such as the technique of Card Stacking. Negative propaganda is where one

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company talks down about a rival company or product to make it seem boring and dull compared
to theirs. This class lecture although simple is effective in the sense that it explains what
propaganda actually is and why companies use it.

Rogers, Kristen. "10 Propaganda or Persuasive Techniques." Film and Media Literacy. Murrells
Inlet. 1 Jan. 2014. Lecture.
Businesses use all different types of propaganda to create persuasive ads. Certain
techniques work better and are more effective depending on the product. This source explains
some of the main types of propaganda that are used, what they are exactly, and some examples of
them being used. Understanding the different types of propaganda is the first step for
corporations to creating the most effective ads. For example, a testimonial advertisement is one
in which they use a famous person to advertise their product. People may love that certain
athlete/musician/actor or whoever it is so therefore they are more willing to buy that product.
Another example is when companies use glittering generalities to make their products seem more
precious and appealing than they actually are, which while in turn convince consumers to choose
their product over another companies.