Mass Media Appeals

Persuasive communication techniques employed as potentially effective and efficient measures to influence audiences of print or broadcast mass media. The goal of the appeal is to sway viewers or readers to either purchase a commodity or adopt a particular opinion. Examples include bandwagon appeals, which rely on the human instinct to go along with the crowd; testimonial appeals, which involve an influential person's positive personal experience with the product; and glittering-generalization appeals, which involve the use of provocative but usually nonfactual language that masks the real issue.

While conventional wisdom holds that one-on-one, face-to-face persuasion is most effective in changing attitudes and affecting opinion, research has shown that attitude changes can also result from group discussions. Political speeches provide an ideal example. While a candidate can meet thousands of voters over the course of a campaign, it is likely that his or her televised speech will be more efficient in disseminating a message and will have a more substantial impact. In addition, because the same message will be received by a large number of people, the resulting media coverage and ensuing social discourse will continue to emphasize the content of the speech. This model could be applied to any form of propaganda or message that a company, group, or individual producer or creator wishes to transmit. For further reading, see Petty and Cacioppo (1996) and Walton (1999).