Social Distance in Safaricom Chattitude Dating Cartoon Advertisement

Abstract

This study closely looks at the Safaricom Chattitude advertisement for any form of representation of the social variation exhibited therein. Language use tends to establish specific social group uniqueness. Certain unique terms would include culturally specific vocabulary, context sensitive topics and shared attitudes. It is more than likely then that an advertisement would influence the consumer by defining 'reality' in a way that would make him or her respond positively to the product. The purpose of this article is to use an animated advertisement to demonstrate how social distance and proximity is reflected in verbal, and in indirect or paralinguistic communication. The study adopted an analytical research design domiciled within the qualitative methods and employed a hybrid version of Social Identity Theory in the process of analysing data.