Decoding Advertisement

In their “Advertising in the Age of Accelerated Meaning”, Goldman and Papson discuss the deciphering of advertisements as an inadvertent and almost absentminded process. They argue that most of the fun is in understanding each ad as a medium through which to tell a story. When watching a commercial, for instance, viewers “rarely pause to consider the assumptions imposed by the advertising framework” as they are far too busy trying to decode the message. Essentially, we are distracted by our inability to simply view a message for its component parts – we fail to recognize the underlying tactics and techniques as we focus our attention on “solving the particular riddle of each ad as it passes before us on the screen.” It is only those ads that excite the viewer (apart from his efforts to decipher) that have any real commercial potential. By tailoring ads to fit the individual media consumer, advertisers have a chance at making a profit. Thus, advertising relies on what Goldman and Papson refer to as “commodity signs”: attaching brand names to images with social or cultural value. When such values are familiar and appeal to viewers of an advertisement, they attend to it further and are more likely to remember a product. By knowing what the individual consumer is looking for, advertisers can be more successful in their tactics. It is this technique, in combination with new forms of media advertising including transmedia storytelling and integrated marketing that makes advertising effective.


Goldman, R., & Papson, S. (2000). Advertising in the age of accelerated marketing. In J. Schor & D. Holt (Eds.), The Consumer Society Reader (pp. 3-19). New York: The New Press.