Advertising in
Globalization
They're selling you politicians, anyway they can.
The United States of America has a rich history in political advertising. Although it might not have been the first to advertise during World War II, its advertisements were surely memorable.
During the war, advertising budgets were cut. There was a strong sense of patriotism, and the ads made during wartime needed to take advantage of that state of mind of the population in order to sell their products. This resulted in the majority of printed ads having military related content in them. For example, one of Coca-Cola's taglines during the war was "Coke follows thirst anywhere", with an image of a service man uncapping a bottle from the dispenser.
More importantly, it was the war bonds themselves that funded the second World War. The basic of this system is for the citizens of a country to feel like they're participating and doing their duty as an American. War bonds did not only mean you supported they troops, but also showed that you were a patriot. At least, this is how ads made it look. In reality, war bonds did help fund the war to some extent. But it also took money out of circulation to decrease inflation. Then, this money would be redistributed into the economy as a stimulus to encourage spending during peacetime.
War jobs were advertised so essential items for the war were made and businesses wouldn't die. Getting the word out on war bonds was a huge deal, as it made people feel patriotic, accomplished, and proud of their country.
Political Advertising
Daisy - Lyndon Johnson Ad
This is one of the most famous presidential campaign ads. It targets the American population and asks it to vote for Lyndon, but at the same time, it doesn't mention anything about his rival nor does he elaborate on his platform. "We must love each other, or we must die". The ad was a popular scare tactic that used fear as it's main drive. Establishing a sense of fear and insecurity, while providing a solution within the same message was one of the successes of this ad.
Big Bird: a Criminal Mastermind - Barrack Obama Ad
An aggressive ad that is nitpicking Mitt Romney's choice of words during presidential debates. After Romney's plan to cut PBS, the Obama campaign attacked Romney with his "Big Bird" comment. While it is humorous to some aspects, it's also considered political mudslinging. As explained in the last example, the presidential campaign ads end up looking like boxing matches at some point. These ads are exclusive for the American population, and while the presidential ads might not be showed world wide, they do become a brand. Stickers, towels, and all kinds of merchandise is printed with faces of politicians. In the end, a water bottle labeled "Obama 2012" wasn't that different than a water bottle with Justin Bieber's face on it.
Nervous - Mitt Romney Ad
Mitt Romney's campaign becomes an instigator in this ad, constantly repeating his own name so much, that it establishes the tone that he's a threat to Obama. While this advertisement is aggressive, it worked well in making Obama look inferior. Nowadays, political mudslinging is a constant theme in political advertising. Not only found in United States politics, but can be also seen in various democratic election ads across the world. The fight to make your opponent look bad starts right from the day you decide to run for office.