Mass media and communication in International Management - Essay Example

Mass media and communication in International Management 1. Introduction This paper provides an analysis of an advertisement and discusses important aspects and meanings of the ad. The Ad selected is of Jamie Oliver, the famous Chef from Britain, endorsing and advertising marinated tray-bake range of chicken. The reason for selecting this Ad is because the endorser, Jamie Oliver, is a successful chef and entrepreneur and who has a number of cooking shows such as the Naked Chef and others (Jamie Oliver, 2013). Jamie has successfully managed to campaign for healthier eating habits for schoolchildren in UK schools and for people across the globe. An analysis of the Ad will help in assessing his magnetic personality and use of props that have helped Jamie to become so widely popular (Oliver, 2000). The paper is divided into a number of sections and these cover a literature review of communication and meaning and analysis of the Ad from different perspectives. Given below is a copy of the Ad to be analysed. 2. Theory and literature review The concept of meaning and linguistic turn of language is discussed by Tietze (2008) who suggests that meaning is transferred through a language sensitive enquiry. Metaphors, stories and discourses are related by the use of audio visual aids such as advertisements and product literature. Meaning is transferred through four dimensions of a language and these are descriptive/categorizing dimension; phatic dimension; performative dimension and hegemonial dimensions. Among these, descriptive/categorizing dimension and phatic dimension are more relevant since the former refers to a symbolic sign system where signs are combined with meanings. Advertisements are usually created so that they converge to the English label and different tropes such as synecdoche and metonym are used to create group identities. Phatic dimension indicates that more than the importance of the content, the manner in which it is said is important since it unites people and creates common grounds for the discussions. Some amount of imagery is associated in a language and communication and complex thoughts are communicated. According to Whorf (2011), language tends to create real and imaginary plurals and conjures up mental patterns. When an image is created or presented, some associations tend to form in the mind and create patterns of objectification. Kramsch (1998) argues that language is the main method where social lives and relations are carried out. It is used for different communication contexts and people express facts, events, ideas that are communicated through words and images. These reflect the culture, attitude and beliefs of the authors and hence language is used to express cultural reality. Therefore, language is a system of signs with a cultural value that is symbolised by social appropriateness norms and social conventions. Language, culture and social norms help people to identify themselves as members of a social group where common ways of viewing the world are acquired. In light of analysing the Ad by Jamie Oliver, these associations become relevant since he is attempting to use the language of cooking to sell products to people. According to Agar (1994), words can have words have multiple meanings and these are connotative or denotative. Denotation refers to the explicit meaning and translation of the word as mentioned in a dictionary. 3. Description of the Ad Please refer to figure 1.1, where the celebrity cook Jamie Oliver is showing adding vegetables and cooking a dish of chicken. Prominent in the Ad is the ad copy with the words 'Chicken. Jamie Style' and these words are expected to have multiple implications for the audience. He is shown adding leafy vegetables to a large platter containing potatoes and chicken. Another similar dish filled with chicken pieces and potatoes is placed on the right side. In the background, a cupboard is shown and the top is filled with leafy vegetables, potatoes and other types of vegetables. Jamie is shown wearing casual attire of informal shirt and jeans and his wedding ring is also prominent. The overall image is of an average person, a family man preparing a meal and the meaning derived is that a full meal of delicious and wholesome marinated chicken can be prepared with the least effort. 4. Analysis of the Ad In the Ad, the word “food”, therefore, would mean bread, chicken, meat and other items that form items of food. The connotative meaning of food would mean wholesome, filling, comfort, warmth, home, mother’s cooking and that gives a feeling of security. Important connotative meanings derived from words in the ad copy are tray-bake, high-welfare British chicken, fresh veg and these are analysed as follows (Myers, 1994). Tray bake is a word with denotation meaning of purchasing items that are packed in trays and can be directly placed in the oven without any further preparation. This becomes important and significant since Jamie in the Ads is showing the simplicity of cooking and that elaborate preparations are not needed. Thus, tray-bake becomes a word with connotative meaning (Kramsch, 1998). The term 'high-welfare' chicken also has denotative and connotative meanings. Almost 95% of chicken in UK are bred and grown in very unhygienic conditions that make their life very miserable. High-welfare chickens are reared in much better and hospitable conditions with sufficient air, sunlight, food and daily activity. High-welfare chickens are different from free-range birds that are bred in the open. However, the chickens are treated much better and get natural sunlight with more open spaces and they do not have to live in battery lit light (The Telegraph, 2013). The connotative meaning is that such high-welfare chicken stand for better ethics, fair treatment and a civilised culture on the part of the consumers. 5. Culturally specific and accessibility The Ad is not culturally specific and it is accessible to anyone who likes to make and eat wholesome, healthy and ethical food. While white Britons would be the primary target, other groups such as Africans, Indians, Asians and other minority groups can also use the products. Jamie Oliver is a businessperson and he would not want to include as many demographic groups as possible. Hence, the ad is culturally neutral and it would appeal to all people interested in consuming healthy food made from high-welfare chicken (Oliver, 2009). 6. Target market for the Ad The target market for the Add appears to be people who like to eat and live in healthy manner and who consume wholesome food that is made from high-welfare chicken. The use of tray-baked chicken, use of vegetables and the message of fresh food indicates families with school going children, single people who like to cook at home, men who take up cooking occasionally and other such groups. In other words, the Ad appeals to a wide user group made of people who like healthy food that is simplistic in cooking. Jamie Oliver also known as the 'naked chef' brings about a cooking that is shorn of too many embellishments, and it is simple, direct, wholesome and healthy. Target audience for the Ad, thus, includes a wide range of people (Oliver, 2009). 7. Conclusion The paper has discussed the advertisement by Jamie Oliver and examined the meaning of words, multiple meanings of words and the meaning they convey. The ad has used imagery and words that have connotative or denotative meanings. Some of the words such as tray-baked, high-welfare chicken, food, vegetables and others are used to indicate healthy living, ethical rearing of chicken and fresh vegetables. All these words refer to simplistic cooking of food that not only tastes well but also is also nutritious. The ad indicates how language and imagery is combined to relay complex thoughts and feelings. References List Agar, M., (1994). Language Shock. Understanding the Culture of Conversation. New York: HarperCollins. Jamie Oliver. (2013). Recipes and Dishes. Accessed 30 September 2013 from http://www.jamieoliver.com/ Kramsch, C. (1998). Language and Culture. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Myers. G., (1994). Words in Ads. London: Hodder Education Publishers. Oliver. J., (2000). The Naked Chef. London: Hyperion Publications. Oliver. J., (2009). Jamie's Food Revolution: Rediscover How to Cook Simple, Delicious, Affordable Meals. London: Hyperion Publications. The Telegraph. (2013). Jamie Oliver campaigns for chicken welfare. Accessed 30 September 2013 from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1574267/Jamie-Oliver-campaigns-for-chicken-welfare.html Tietze, S., (2008). International Management and Language. London: Routledge Publications. Whorf. S., (2011). The relation of habitual thought and behaviour to language. (Eds) Zhu, H., (2011). The Language and Intercultural Communication Reader. Abingdon: Routledge. Read More