Advertising & Marketing (Old Spice)

Media language : How the media through their forms, codes, conventions and techniques communicate meaning(s).

Old Spice-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owGykVbfgUE

The representation in this advert is that men should be independent and have their own scent leading to why the slogan is 'smell like a man' as most of the body washes have quite feminine scents in which their aim is to make you smell like a man making you feel powerful. Their message is

We're not saying this body wash will make your man smell like a romantic millionaire jet fighter pilot, but we are insinuating it. The beauty appeal of this is that as he is quite a young good looking man, men might buy it to feel like they are him and get the same experience whereas women might buy it for a man to make them try and be like he is. Physique has also been used as in most of the advertisements he has his shirt off which links to him being strong and muscular. This links to the sexual attractiveness as well. In the race aspect he links to being exotic due to the fact that he is mostly at the beach with his top off, he is not really seen to be dangerous whereas Terry Crews when he did it seemed to be, he has quite a bit of dry humour and Terry Crews is more energetic and humourous. There is no factor of pitied. The black stereotypes shown are sports-people, comedians and promiscous/sexual and not criminals, gangsters and musicians.

Mise en Scene-

The arrangement of the scenery, props, etc. on the stage of a theatrical production or on the set of a film.

The setting or surroundings of an event.

This advertisement is from the 1970's and it focuses on the brand Old Spice, it shows the man to be the centre of attention with the women focusing on him, it shows to the customers that this will happen to you if you wear thisaftershave/body wash. The adverts have changed a lot from 1970-2010 with it being the same concept as each other but a different way of presenting it, there is more women see in the earlier adverts whereas in the 2010's it's men voicing the message. It has the same font in both linking to the heritage from the product.

 Celebrity Endorsement- Isaiah Mustafa and Terry Crews, sells the product
Humour- Dry humour with Isaiah Mustafa, but humourous/ more energetic with Terry Crews
Escape- Made from The Bahamas, like an exotic getaway
Unfinished Claim- 'This fact is not fact checked' adds humour, being honest and relatable.

 Logo - The same font and logo, keeping the heritage
Product Image- Being two different sizes, good if you just want to try it, shows variations
Typeface/font style- Two different styles, eye catching.
Shot types and angles- Close up to focus on him and then a long shot to capture the scenery and product.
Composition and rule of thirds- one third is Isaiah Mustafa and the other two thirds is the writing and the product.

 Colour palette- Bright colours and eye catching
Special effects/image manipulation- Editing to create the scenery of the products environment
Location and settings- Made to seem like it's on a beach when in reality it's in a studio, relates to the scent of The Bahamas
Costume and Makeup- His body is covered in sand to blend in with the scenery
Register/mode of address- It is humourous and informal as they are not really taking it seriously to fit in with the message of the product.
Anchorage- We read from left to right so we have put the main image on the left so it is the first you will see, captures attention.
Intertexuality- Relates to audiences from him playing a role in a tv series and being a sports- person relates to more people.



The female gaze is a feminist film theoretical term representing the gaze of the female viewer. It is a response to feminist film theorist Laura Mulvey's term, "the male gaze", which represents not only the gaze of a heterosexual male viewer but also the gaze of the male character and the male creator of the film.






Uses and gratification theory seeks to understand why people seek out the media that they do and what they use it for. UGT differs from other media effect theories in that it assumes that individuals have power over their media usage, rather than positioning individuals as passive consumers of media.

It assumes that members of the audience are not passive but take an active role in interpreting and integrating media into their own lives. The theory also holds that audiences are responsible for choosing media to meet their needs. The approach suggests that people use the media to fulfill specific gratifications.

Personal Identity, Information, Entertainment and Social Interaction


Postmodernism- A late 20th-century style and concept in the arts, architecture, and criticism, which represents a departure from modernism and is characterised by the self-conscious use of earlier styles and conventions, a mixing of different artistic styles and media, and a general distrust of theories.


Viewpoints and ideologies

Old Spice Smell like a man campaign can be seen to reinforce patriarchal ideology.   

The use of Isaiah Mustafa to promote the product and slogan will reinforce the ideological dominance of men within society.

The advert constructs representations that communicate to men and women. The idea that the product if purchased willlead to self fulfilment and men become better men.
The advert draws on common patriarchal stereotypes such as

•- Male dominance - power(body image, facial expression)

•-Black Men (Sports- Comedy)

•- Sexually attractive women

It uses visual codes in media language to appeal to the target audience.
The advert also reinforces ideological assumptions about :

-The appearance of others

-Consumerism

-Individualism

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The representation of masculinity also (arguably) reinforces ethnic stereotypes of the hypersexualised black male within the media.