The Culture Of Television Advertising

380 Pages·2015·21.28 MB·English

The Culture Of Television Advertising: An Historical
And Eknpirical Analysis Of The Content Of Television
Commercials And Of The Saudi Viewers Responses To
Advertising.
Thesis submitted for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
at the University of Leicester
By
Fahad Abduhiziz Al-kheraiji, B.A.,M.A.
Centre for Mass Communication Research
University of Leicester
September 1992
UMI Number: U040720
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Fahad Al-kheraiji
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Saudi Arabia
TO THE ADVERTISERS
"We know the feedback is important: its failure can lead us
into making mistakes and continuing to do so because we
have no way of knowing that we are in error. On a larger
scale, effective feedback may be crucial to political
stability". (Mytton, 1983, P. 11)
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I owe an enormous debt to the individuals and institutions who have
given me substantial guidance and personal encouragement, without which
this thesis would have been most difficult.
The deepest appreciation is extended to His Excellency, Dr. Abdullah
A1 Noaim, former Mayor of Riyadh City, for his personal support, and his
daughter Dr. Lulu, for her active participation in the pilot study.
In the Centre for Mass Communication Research at Leicester
University, I owe most to my supervisor. Dr. Ralph Negrine, for his ideas,
suggestions and criticisms which have shaped my research in numerous ways.
He has given me his support and time which enabled me to complete this
work in a reasonable time. I am also grateful to Professor James Halloran,
Roger Dickinson and Mr. Paul Hartmann. Their encouragement and
understanding will always be remembered.
I extend my thanks to the consulting services of the Leicester
University Computer Centre, and in particular to Mr. John Beckett. I would
also like to single out Sue Williams and Jan Simpson who have done a
remarkable job, without their ready care and willingness to suffer the
frustration of typing an enormous data file - I would not have finished my
analysis on time.
From the BBC World Service, I would also like to thank the head of
the international Broadcasting & Audience Research (IBAR), Dr. Graham
Mytton for his personal support, valuable comments, advises, and for the
literature which helped improving the study. Thanks also goes to Mr. Mark
Eggerman, a researcher in the International Broadcasting & Audience
Research, for his help during my visit to the IBAR.
Credit for bringing this project into reality is also shared by Saudi
Arabia’s Ministry of Information. I would like to offer a special thankyou to
His Royal Highness Prince Turkee Ben Sultan, Deputy Minister for Planning,
for his personal support and encouragement. I would also like to thank Mr.
Abdulaziz Al-hassan, Manager of the Commercial Advertising Division, and
his Technical Manager, Mr. Saeed Othman Al-Ghamdi, for helping me to
collect the necessary data for this study.
My colleagues at King Saudi University have also given their unfailing
encouragement. I would like to offer my special thanks to Mr. Abdulaziz
Al-Khudair, Manager of the Scholarship Department, for his support to keep
me afloat during my field trip to Saudi Arabia. I would also like to thank all
of my colleagues at the Department of Mass Communication at King Saudi
University who have given their unfailing encouragement.
More personally, I would like to thank my family for their support and
encouragement and in particular to my brothers Abdulah, Khalid and Badder,
who proved that it could be done. I also offer my love to my parents and to
my wife’s parents for giving me their love and support, for having faith in me
and for having the confidence necessary to embark upon this and other
endeavours.
I offer special love to my children, Noaf, Norah, Adulaziz and
Mohammad who have spent years living with a busy father and mother.
I would like to offer my greatest thanks and love to my wife. Dr.
Zeinab Abotalib, without her I could not have completed this work. She has
broadened my understanding of health factors and provided me with an
enlightened perspective through which to view food/drink advertising issues.
Finally, I must thank all those who have given me their continued
support and encouragement over the past years.
ABSTRACT
The Culture Of Television Advertising: An Historical
And Empirical Analysis Of The Content Of Television
Commercials And Of The Saudi Viewers Responses To
Advertising.
By
Fahad Al-kheraiji, 1991
This exploratory study is to fill in some of the gaps in the current state
of knowledge about the cultural exports of Multinational Corporations and
Multinational Advertising Agencies. Another primary purpose of this research
has been to investigate the nature of the relationship between advertising
culture and Saudi television audiences and how this is reflected in both the
content of television commercial and audience responses’.
This study provides, firstly, a link between the past and present history
of advertising in Saudi Arabia; secondly, it follows the detailed development
of television advertising in Saudi Arabia from its inception in 1986 until 30th
December 1989; thirdly, it indicates that the content of television
commercials does not focus mainly on the selling intent (physical benefits and
economic values) of products and services, but rather on the creation and
enforcing of a global culture - a multinational culture - which plays on
emotions, and social and personal values to achieve its ultimate goals;
fourthly, it explores, empirically, the theoretical arguments about the effects
of advertising on cultural values and national identity and the claim that it
helps to implant Western ideology in less developed societies.
This study raises concerns about the loss of cultural and national
identity within Third World communities. The fear is that the threat arises not
only from Western ideology but also from that of neighbouring countries, with
their inexpensive production and opportunities for MNC manipulation at the
expense of local culture, as in the case of Egypt and Lebanon’s effect on
Saudi Arabia culture. This concern is explained through the interaction
between television commercials (senders) and Saudi society (receivers).
Finally, the study encourages the use of more than one technique to
tackle the complexity of studying advertising and culture. Two instruments,
content analysis and survey, were used to bridge the gap between the sender
and the receiver, or in other words, the gap between television presentation
and viewers perceptions. The researcher hopes that this study is the seed for
future work which can provide a more complete picture of advertising culture
in the Third World.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter _ Page
PART ONE:
INTRODUCTION AND METHODOLOGY
1 Introduction 2
2 Methodology and Procedures 11
PART TWO:
THE THEORETICAL CONCEPTS AND FRAMEWORK
3 The Study Of Culture And Advertising 36
4 Literature Review 45
PART THREE:
SAUDI ARABIAN AND THE MASS MEDIA
5 Saudi Arabia’s Socio-Political System 69
6 Media Availability In Saudi Arabia 99
7 Advertising Regulation 161
PART FOUR:
A CONTENT ANALYSIS OF SAUDI TELEVISION ADVERTISING
Introduction 175
8 Advertising Agencies 178
9 Saudi television Content 195
PART FIVE:
SAUDI VIEWERS RESPONSES TO ADVERTISEMENTS
Introduction 237
10 Television Exposure and Effects ^ 241
11 critical Evaluation by Viewers 263
TABLE OF CONTENTS (Continued)
Chapter Page
12 children and Advertisements 285
13 summary and Conclusions 299
REFERENCES 309
APPENDICES:
A. The Principles And Basic Rules For 332
Commercial Advertising On Saudi TV.
B. Tables For Part 4 338
C. SAS Programme Generator For Random Numbers
Questionnaire and content of analysis sheets 343
D. Tables For Part 5 346