Benetton and the Art of Persuasion

Beginning in 1989, retail outlet Benetton began using what may best be called activist advertising. While the images seem to have little to do with clothing, they follow the familiar path of promoting a company’s values rather than their product. By using images that seem to say: “this is what we stand for,” Benetton hopes to bring attention to issues they feel are important and sell clothes to those who agree. Is this unethical? Is it even uncommon?

In the middle of the Tyson’s Corner mall, there is an information booth about a rural Virginia military school. Signs are dominated by image, not text. What is shown are photos of uniformed boys, crosses, and the words “Christian values.” Like the Benetton ad, the images tell you little of what you are buying, but they show you the values that your purchase will support. Appealing to a specific set of values can be a highly effective tool of persuasion.

Benetton made the bold decision to come down firmly on the side of progressive values and social justice. The original ads were a simply call to racial harmony. Multiethnic subjects were photographed in friendly and intimate situations. While a photo of a white man kissing a black woman may not seem all that strange, it was still considered mildly subversive two decades ago. The images seem to suggest a company trying to say: “we are for everybody.”

Do the advertisements count as propaganda? The answer to that question often depends on how one feels about the message. I think a picture of a priest kissing a nun is a brilliant satirical commentary on the manner in which fundamentalist sexual control endangers the world, represses women, and speeds the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. A devout Catholic would probably find the depiction demeaning or offensive. I’ve known Catholics that would have had no problem labeling this “liberal propaganda.”

Persuasion is the fundamental goal of all advertising. Advertisers may choose any number of methods to persuade us to shop at their store or use their service. If a company chooses a manner that highlights serious issues instead of the latest fad, so be it. Advertising of this nature may end up being the type that is remembered longest; after all, we are still talking about the campaign twenty years later.