Jay Livingston, who blogs at MontClair SocioBlog, put up a set of ads for a bank that illustrate a basic sociological insight. The message in the ads is “Different values make the world a richer place” and they each feature the same image triply labeled.
Privilege. Sacrifice. Role model.
Decor. Souvenir. Place of prayer.
Freedom. Status symbol. Polluter.
Style. Soldier. Survivor.
Glorified. Vilified. Gentrified.
They say that a photograph is worth a thousand words, but this exercise reminds us how much words, even one word, can shape our interpretation of an image. The world doesn’t just exist, it must always be interpreted. Those immediately around us have a great ability to influence how we see the world, but the people with power over media do also… and their power is vast.
Lisa Wade, PhD is an Associate Professor at Tulane University. She is the author of American Hookup, a book about college sexual culture; a textbook about gender; and a forthcoming introductory text: Terrible Magnificent Sociology. You can follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
Comments 21
Jaxin — March 16, 2010
Wow... it's really refreshing to see a marketing campaign not only this beautiful, but this smart.
adamson — March 16, 2010
This is genius. I'm literally taken aback.
ibis lynn — March 16, 2010
Truly stunning - a thoughtful, insightful ad campaign. The rug & bald head iterations are especially moving.
Anon Y. Mouse — March 16, 2010
I saw this at London Heathrow airport while I was walking out of my plane. It was all over the walls. I literally stopped walking to take a look at these.
Iris — March 16, 2010
Wow. I love it. Thank you for posting this!
Liz — March 16, 2010
Excellent marriage of strong images and minimalist copy; drives the point home exceptionally well.
Ketchup — March 16, 2010
"but this exercise reminds us how much words, even one word, can shape our interpretation of an image."
Just like applying labels to people.
Ketchup — March 16, 2010
Then, there is also the fact that these ads are to woo the public and build an adorable trendy image for a major, filthy rich intl bank. Although people have different values, we are all part of the same human family, open you account with your big family today. We deeply value diversity and we are color blind--as long as the only color to be seen is green.
“Different values make the world a richer place”
and "syrupy diversity ads make HSBC a richer bank."
This Is Baller « Thought Experiment Party — March 16, 2010
[...] This Is Baller http://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2010/03/16/the-power-of-words/ [...]
Kate — March 16, 2010
There are lots of other brilliant HSBC adverts. They have had then up at Heathrow for the last few years. I think they are fabulous and really interesting. There is a collection of them here : http://theinspirationroom.com/daily/2007/altruism-or-consumerism-your-point-of-view-at-hsbc/
I particularly like trendy/traditional. It really highlights the the exoticism of the East.
miriland » Blog Archive » The Power of Words — March 16, 2010
[...] Words matter. [...]
Deaf Indian Muslim Anarchist — March 16, 2010
i LOVE those ads! I've been seeing those ads everywhere on airports since 2007, when they first started doing that.
Something from Sociological Images « marry me moses — March 16, 2010
[...] Something from Sociological Images The Power of Words. [...]
Rebecca — March 17, 2010
Yes, but because these are ads for a bank, the ultimate message is: but we get to make money off of all of them! Woo hoo!
I've seen these ads for years on the city where I live and I do not believe they are positive. They are about reducing the richness of interpretation in to one meaningless message that can all be used for profit.
Weekly news round-up « Upstream — March 19, 2010
[...] Sociological Images, an interesting exploration of the importance of values and the power of words [Sociological [...]
Imane — October 8, 2023
So intriguing! Makes me really look at how I am using my pre-programmed believes to mold my life!