Malvinas/Falkland Islands War: a look into ads

Abstract

Purpose Little is known about patriotic appeals and Latin American symbols in ads. The purpose of this study was to content analyze Argentine and English print newspaper ads to examine how advertising expression and content differed in the two countries while they were fighting the Malvinas/Falkland Islands War. Design/methodology/approach A total of 3,707 ads were analyzed from La Nación and The Times from April 1, 1982, to December 31, 1982. Appeals, advertised products, cultural values and code-switching were studied. Findings The War resulted in marginal changes to advertising in Argentina and England. Interestingly, while the use of national symbols was scarce across both countries, Argentina accounted for the majority of the references to the war. A number of Argentine brands that adapted their names from English to Spanish are taken into account. Research limitations/implications By drawing comparisons to English ads, this paper illustrates the boundaries of strategies and appeals in two different cultures over the same time period. This study extends the literature on the use of advertising during periods of conflict. Practical implications This content analysis provides a look at the strategies, tactics and symbols used by print advertisers in Argentina and England during the War. Originality/value The study provides a depiction of advertising campaigns featured in Argentine and English newspapers during one of the most recent armed conflicts in South America. The study provides a summary of changes in advertising as a result of the War. In doing so, the paper extends the advertising literature to an understudied market.

Advertising as discursive reflections of the political realm: Turkish-Cypriot advertisements between 1940-1974

“…Adding to Gao's (2018) work which shows how ideas of frugality are circulated through the lens of official state discourse, to Gross and Sheth's (1989) work which shows that American advertisers used patriotic appeals during Second World War to emphasise the necessity of saving time for women to juggle work and home and to Pollay's (1985) work which documents how Second World War advertisements show discourses of sacrifice, courage and patriotism, we show how ideas of cosmopolitanism, nationalism and patriotism circulate in a way that mimics the state discourse. Simultaneously, we inform the literature on advertising as an important method of communication during periods of conflict and war in contexts outside of North America and Europe (Lewis and Neville, 1995;Mundel and Nieves-Pizarro, 2019;Mundel et al, 2019).…”

“…These ads also featured intertwined themes of sacrifice and consumption (Young, 2005). Despite the plethora of literature in advertising as an important method of communication during periods of conflict and war, contexts outside of North America and Europe have received very little attention (Mundel et al , 2019). One exception is Mundel and Nieves-Pizarro (2019) work which shows how advertising styles in Argentina changed between periods of war and peace, echoing Lewis and Neville’s (1995) study of US ads during war.…”

Red Tsars and Iron Ladies: Exploring the role of marketing forces in the construction of political heroism

“…Such twist of political fate was also underpinned by a well-coordinated State war propaganda, parliamentary support and friendly media campaigns, especially newspapers, aiming to stir patriotic sentiments and increase print circulation revenues respectively. Although the use of national symbols in print advertising/brand campaigns was low during the war (Mundel et al, 2019), censorship, tabloid journalism and Ministry of Defence's absolute information control cultivated Thatcher's idealized and gallant image of the decisive and liberator leader. Falkland/ Malvinas War's glorious outcome and pro-Tory tabloid press support secured a second term and immensely facilitated Thatcher's vision to promote and establish an amalgamation of radical freemarket/anti-state policies with invigorated British nationalism.…”