Everywhere one looks, they turn to see some form of advertising. People are, on a daily basis, bombarded by images of products, catchy jingles, and attention-getting slogans. Advertising has infiltrated all various forms of communication. Throughout history advertising mediums have evolved in the print media through newspapers and magazines, to broadcast media involving television, radio and most recently the internet, to outdoor advertising which includes billboard advertising, public transit advertising and sport venues. These mediums impact greatly on modern urban areas and can be simultaneously detrimental as well as beneficial to children, adolescents and adults. Advertisers must be ethical and socially responsible in producing specific advertising campaigns that are targeted at different age groups. Each group have different perceptions of advertisements that make them more vulnerable to the manipulations of the advertisers. The constant images of cigarette and alcohol consumption exposed to children and young adults, give them a false recognition of the products at hand. As well, stereotyped images of women and minority groups are too often represented in advertisements of all mediums. Conversely the use of tactics suc

is the good news that offsets the predominately disquieting bulletins of the

real news. It depicts a world of unbounded pleasure and abundance,

This idea of enticing men has serious consequences. Little girls are growing up in a world where very thin bodies are constantly in their face telling them that in order to be accepted and well-liked by boys they should acquire this type of body. “The emphasis on physical attractiveness and weight loss in women’s magazines, especially those targeted toward adolescents or young adult readers, may also lead to negative consequences” (Waters, 101). These negative consequences are eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa. Young girls feel they have to result to desperate measures in order to look like the women in the magazines. Most often, especially with today’s technology, the women pictured in the magazine advertisements are digitally altered to look more appealing. Computer programs touch up on any flaws that the women possess that are not considered beautiful with today’s standards. Such things as reducing fine lines and wrinkles or shaping the natural curvature of the woman’s body to portray an ideal body type which is impossible to achieve without the use of technology. Advertisers must concern themselves more with these negative portrayals of women and realize the harmful effects that are brought about in them.

everywhere. Since the places to be filled are everywhere, the amount of

efforts to use all of the media to get all sorts of information to everybody

As discussed in great in detail, advertising is virtually everywhere incorporated in all mass mediums. These mass mediums are categorized with print media such as newspapers and magazines, with broadcast media, including television, radio and the internet and with outdoor media that involve billboards, public transit vehicles and sport events. The ubiquitous nature of advertising can concurrently have detrimental and beneficial effect to children, adolescents and adults. The constant bombardment of advertising causes people to be aware of them and cannot escape them. This can be damaging to children because they do not have the ability to reason and understand the true nature of advertisements. Thus, they accept the advertisements as true and physically harm themselves in the process. Adolescents are in a transitional stage of understanding advertisements. They understand the nature but are still greatly influenced by them. This results not only physical, but mental destruction of themselves. This is done through the constant display of beer and alcohol depicting false images associated with drinking. Also with the use of cartoon characters that are more commonly associated with children. Body image and other typical stereotypes of women and other minority groups have the same effect. They too are hazardous to the mentality of the people. Ideal body types that are relentlessly depicted in the advertisements result in diseases such as anoxia nervosa. There are benefits of advertising as well. The different tactics used, enhance the promotions of advertising often increasing sales. These tactics include selection, repetition and the physical appearance of the advertisements. It solely depends on the individual if the advertisements are damaging or advantageous. They use their own interpretations of the advertisements to decide how they are affected by them. But it is ultimately the role of the advertisers to produce a advertising campaign where they are socially responsible in promoting their product. This is especially important when dealing with alcohol and cigarette advertisements that young children are exposed to as well as the depiction of the women’s bodies to young girls.