What is manipulative advertising?
All subliminal advertising and semi-subliminal advertising can be considered manipulative. In each case some elements of ads are designed to influence consumers without consumers having any possibility of rejecting that information. It is, after all, rather difficult to consciously appraise an ad if it contains emotive images and messages that one cannot consciously perceive. However, although all semi-subliminal (and subliminal ads if they exist) are manipulative, all manipulative ads are not semi-subliminal or subliminal in nature. It is possible to attempt to manipulate consumers values, beliefs, ideas and behaviour using images and messages that are quite clearly visible. For example, visualize a two page magazine ad containing the well known phrase Come to Marlboro Country. This would normally be spread across a two page ad alongside an illustration of a pack of Marlboro cigarettes. If a reader temporarily perceived only the initial letters of Come, and the last few of Country, th
