On National Missing Children's Day, in May of 2006, the Wireless Amber Alerts program launched an advertisement campaign. The campaign's goal was to raise awareness for their new wireless notification system, as well as to convince people to subscribe. The program sends SMS notifications to subscribers' cell phones when a child is reported to be missing. One of the images used in the campaign depicts a single red swing. Instead of holding a child, the swing’s seat bears the words, "An abducted child is everyone's child." The colored image appeared on billboards (including one in Austin, at Kerbey Lane Café), and a black-and-white version was printed in newspapers.
The advertisement is primarily directed at parents and other adults with an important child in their lives (e.g., grandparents, teachers, relatives, babysitters). As many older adults now have cell phones, this advertisement is not necessarily limited to younger, tech-savvy generations. However, not much more can be said about the target audience. The advertiser made two important choices that maximized the scope of individuals this advertisement has the potential affect: (a) the use of a swing to represent childhood, and (b) refraining from including a child in the image.
By selecting a swing, the advertisers ensured they would not be appealing only to individuals of a certain socioeconomic status, gender, age, or culture. In the United States, children of virtually all backgrounds take pleasure in swinging. A swing is also a symbol that evokes nostalgic memories of one’s own youth—especially the particular swing depicted here. The artist selected a swing that is subtly older in style, instead of a more modern, pliable, black swing.
By refraining from including a child in the picture, the advertiser further broadened the audience. Considerations such as age, race, and gender could have resulted in a particular child appealing more strongly to some than others. The viewer is now in a position generate her own image of a child who should be enjoying that swing. The image the viewer creates could be of her own child, of a child that is familiar to her, of herself as a child, or it could simply be of a quintessential child she’s conceptualized herself. Regardless, the child that the viewer mentally places on the swing will be one that makes a strong emotional appeal.
The advertisement argues for an impending risk of child abduction, even in seemingly safe environments. The setting conveys a sense of urgency and vulnerability. The viewer does not imagine a slow, premeditated abduction. The swing implies the child was in action—and snatched before anyone even noticed. The fact that the abduction occurred in a playground unnerves the viewer. It’s more convenient to think that abductions occur when children stray away from areas designated for their safety and enjoyment, than while they are ‘safely’ in them. The text instills a sense of responsibility in the viewer, attempting to move her to action. If an abducted child is everyone’s child, then and abducted child is the viewer’s child. The ad argues that it would be in the best interest of the child (your child) for a network to be in place to alert you and others of his absence.
The advertisement is primarily directed at parents and other adults with an important child in their lives (e.g., grandparents, teachers, relatives, babysitters). As many older adults now have cell phones, this advertisement is not necessarily limited to younger, tech-savvy generations. However, not much more can be said about the target audience. The advertiser made two important choices that maximized the scope of individuals this advertisement has the potential affect: (a) the use of a swing to represent childhood, and (b) refraining from including a child in the image.
By selecting a swing, the advertisers ensured they would not be appealing only to individuals of a certain socioeconomic status, gender, age, or culture. In the United States, children of virtually all backgrounds take pleasure in swinging. A swing is also a symbol that evokes nostalgic memories of one’s own youth—especially the particular swing depicted here. The artist selected a swing that is subtly older in style, instead of a more modern, pliable, black swing.
By refraining from including a child in the picture, the advertiser further broadened the audience. Considerations such as age, race, and gender could have resulted in a particular child appealing more strongly to some than others. The viewer is now in a position generate her own image of a child who should be enjoying that swing. The image the viewer creates could be of her own child, of a child that is familiar to her, of herself as a child, or it could simply be of a quintessential child she’s conceptualized herself. Regardless, the child that the viewer mentally places on the swing will be one that makes a strong emotional appeal.
The advertisement argues for an impending risk of child abduction, even in seemingly safe environments. The setting conveys a sense of urgency and vulnerability. The viewer does not imagine a slow, premeditated abduction. The swing implies the child was in action—and snatched before anyone even noticed. The fact that the abduction occurred in a playground unnerves the viewer. It’s more convenient to think that abductions occur when children stray away from areas designated for their safety and enjoyment, than while they are ‘safely’ in them. The text instills a sense of responsibility in the viewer, attempting to move her to action. If an abducted child is everyone’s child, then and abducted child is the viewer’s child. The ad argues that it would be in the best interest of the child (your child) for a network to be in place to alert you and others of his absence.
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