My opinions on Ads and commercials

Today I am doing an article on ads yes that’s right I’m reviewing an ad.

In these times ads are being used not simply to get you to buy a certain product but to make you think you need a product.  They also pressure you; if don’t buy it now the deal will disappear, like on TV commercials: “call in the next 24 hours to take advantage of this limited time offer!” But when you think about it, the next week the same commercial is still on the TV/Radio/Computer. What’s up with that?! Well that’s propaganda, companies selling the product or generating the idea that appeals to desire or emotion such as: saving money, your sense of adventure, pleasure, and nationalism. These ads target people of all ages for an older person it may be means of transportation for a kid it may be a toy or video game. Did you know that we are the only country that rents garages to store our “extra” stuff? WHY?  Because Americans (a nation of consumers), buy things just because they are on sale or if they want something in the heat of the moment regardless of whether they need it or not.

                Now I am going to focus on a specific ad, the Uncle Sam wants YOU poster

This specific poster was generally aimed towards younger people that still hadn’t chosen what they wanted to do with their lives or didn’t have a job yet. All throughout the country during the world wars the message “Uncle Sam wants YOU” was out drawing young men out to “join up” and fight for their country and to rid the world of the “communist threat” and YOU were needed to be a part of that, so they all joined with the idea that they were doing their part to save the world. The poster depicts an older stern looking man who is wearing a stars and stripes suit. To me that say it’s the American thing to do. The poster is designed to make it seem like you are special and that you are specifically wanted, therefore they are appealing to your emotions not your rationalism.

                My opinion is that people need to be intelligent enough to look at all sides of the story not just the ones  that sound good like how much you save or just the idea of something being cool, people might make a choice without having all the information.

J. M. Flagg's 1917 poster, based on the original British

Lord Kitchener poster of three years earlier, was used to recruit soldiers for both World War I and World War II. Flagg used a modified version of his own face for Uncle Sam,

 and veteran Walter Botts provided the pose.