Advertising is extremely harmful to society. How many advertisements have you seen in your life? According to Teen Inc, the average person sees between 280 and 310 advertisements per day. Advertisements are a great way to make people aware of products, issues, and more. However, advertising has become a huge problem for society. The negative sides of advertising include that it creates dissatisfaction within society; advertising creates unrealistic body images and is creating an obese society.
Moreover, advertising creates dissatisfaction within society. Advertising is the main cause to make you think you ‘want’ or ‘need’ to have something, to either fit in or to make you look amazing. For example, people feel that they can’t live up to the expectations in society. Advertising creates a society of need, people need to have their house up to magazine standard, they need to have the newest iPhone to fit in, and they need to have that hair product in order to have amazing, silky hair. Society is always thinking of the next newest thing they want, and when people can’t have all those things they feel dissatisfied.
In addition, advertising creates unrealistic body image. Research suggests that advertising and media negatively impacts a woman’s body image, and presents beauty with unrealistic standards distorting what true beauty is. Make up commercials and body product commercials make us think negatively about our own body image and persuade us to buy their product to help build our self- esteem. Women learn from a very early age what is expected of them today through advertising, and spend enormous amounts of time, energy and money striving to achieve this unrealistic goal and feeling ashamed and guilty when they fail to succeed. Have you ever wanted to change something about your appearance? According to Jean Kilbourne, 80% of teens are dissatisfied with their appearance. This is absolutely devastating! Women in advertisements are portrayed as tall, thin, tanned, busty, blemish free, skinny and perfect. People compare themselves to the images they see and try to live up to the standard expected in society today that these models themselves can’t even live up to and that are extremely unhealthy. Advertising causes a negative body image to those who do not obtain these standards which in some cases leads to major problems, or extreme measures such as, plastic surgery, depression, eating disorders or suicide.
Advertising is creating an obese society. Advertisers use big bold words, bright colours and eye catching effects and phrases, to grasp your attention and to persuade you to look or watch their commercial. Every day, people everywhere buy products they do not need or that are not healthy. Has advertising ever influenced you? Advertising is encouraging you to eat more junk foods, Hungry Jack’s ads using persuasive phrases like ‘the unbeatable whopper burger,’ ‘the burgers are better at Hungry Jack’s.’ According to the American Psychological Association, scientific figures show that fourteen million Australians are overweight or obese, and advertising contributes to this the most. This is outrageous!
In conclusion, advertising has a strongly negative influence and power over society. Advertising causes the people of society to have a debt they struggle to pay off due to the fact society is based on ‘need’ and ‘want’. Furthermore advertising creates low self- esteem and negative body image, which contributes to major problems, or extreme measures such as, plastic surgery, depression, eating disorders or suicide. Commercial advertising creates an obese society that most often leads to depression and health disorders. Therefore, advertising is extremely harmful to society.
Bibliography:
Reno, M 2012, Is Advertising Harmful to Society, Teen Inc, accessed 20 March 2014, .
American Psychological Association, 2014 The impact of Food Advertising on childhood obesity, American Psychological Association, Washington, accessed 18 March 2014, .
Curtis, A 2012, Mass Media Influence on Society, University of North Carolina at Pembroke, accessed 18 March 2014, .
Jackie, D 2012 Media 's Effects on Teen Girls Body image and self-esteem, online video, 25 April, accessed 6 April 2014, .
Bibliography: Reno, M 2012, Is Advertising Harmful to Society, Teen Inc, accessed 20 March 2014, . American Psychological Association, 2014 The impact of Food Advertising on childhood obesity, American Psychological Association, Washington, accessed 18 March 2014, . Curtis, A 2012, Mass Media Influence on Society, University of North Carolina at Pembroke, accessed 18 March 2014, . Jackie, D 2012 Media 's Effects on Teen Girls Body image and self-esteem, online video, 25 April, accessed 6 April 2014, .
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