第二篇： The opposite of subliminal advertising is shockvertising. Shockvertising uses exaggerated sexual, violent, or
offensive images or slogans. These advertisements can bring attention to health issues like smoking, public safety
campaigns such as those about drunk driving, and many other causes, including wars.
Shockvertising often brings discomfort among the public. An anti-smoking campaign in Britain showed
people whose lips were pulled on by fish hooks. The advertisements were trying to illustrate how people get
“hooked” on cigarettes. The campaign received hundreds of complaints about the violence of the ads, but it
turned out to be highly effective.
Studies report that shockvertising does significantly increase audience attention and memory of the ad. A
study compared readers’ retention of a shocking ad, a warning ad, and an informational ad promoting safe sex to
stop the spread of AIDS. The shocking ad outperformed the other two, and the researchers suggested that
shockvertising causes more long-term behavioral changes than other marketing strategies do.
Italian clothing manufacturer United Colors of Benetton regularly runs advertising campaigns labeled
shocking by many critics. Their early advertisements aimed to portray peace where conflict was expected: a
Palestinian and a Jew with their arms around each other or a priest and a nun kissing. Into the 1990s, Benetton
drew attention to the AIDS epidemic with an image of a man dying of AIDS while his family sat by mournfully.
People seemed mostly to resent that Benetton was profiting from these sometimes tragic pictures. In response, the
company maintains that it is trying to help solve global problems.
Not surprisingly, shockvertising can go too far for some viewers. Some studies show that when the message
of the campaign is too discouraging, viewers tune out. Rather than paying extra attention, people turn a blind eye.
Also, television channels might show their disapproval. The organization responsible for supervising TV
commercials in Britain once refused an ad against domestic violence. The ad shows a woman returning home to
an angry boyfriend who throws her to the ground and kicks her. The makers of the ad assert that the ad is violent
because the issue is violent, but the censoring agency judged it too intense to be aired. 【題組】49. How is the topic of shockvertising presented by the author?
(A) All the examples are about the positive effects of shockvertising.
(B) Shockvertising is introduced without judgmental comments.
(C) Both pros and cons about shockvertising are shown.
(D) The author’s resentment against shockvertising is clearly expressed.
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