Subliminal Messages in Media

Subliminal messaging in media is a subject of some controversy. It raises questions as to if media is geared with subtle messages to influence the subconscious mind and, thus, impel people toward specific decisions. Subliminal messages can appear in a movie at a theater, in the local news, in music or in political ads.

Popcorn and Coke

Could people be subliminally impelled to buy more popcorn?

In 1957, James Vicary, a market researcher, claimed that, by flashing subliminal messages on a theater screen to buy popcorn and Coke, he was able to increase popcorn sales by 57 percent and Coke sales by 18 percent. However, an experiment he led in 1958 -- in which the Canadian Broadcast Corporation flashed "phone now" on the television screen during the airing of a popular show with no indication of increased phone usage -- challenged his claims.

KAKE-TV

Television station KAKE-TV of Wichita, Kan., received special permission from authorities in 1978 to run subliminal messaging in an effort to catch a killer. The message contained the phrase "now call the chief" as well as an image of a pair of glasses. The glasses were included because the murdered victim's glasses were found upside down at the crime scene, and police felt this could stir regret in the killer, getting him to turn himself in. The plan did not succeed, with no influx of calls to the police being reported.

Music

It has been alleged that music can contain subliminal messages.

In 1985, the band Judas Priest was accused of inserting subliminal messages into their music and causing the attempted suicide of James Vance and Raymond Belknap. Vance survived, and his family argued that Judas Priest had inserted the phrase "do it" in their song "Better By You, Better Than Me." A similar case shortly after -- in which a minster's son shot himself -- alleged it was due to subliminal messaging in Ozzy Osbourne's song "Suicide Solution."

Politics

Subliminal messaging in political ads could sway public opinion.

During the 2000 presidential race, George W. Bush's campaign ran an ad opposing Democratic-hopeful Al Gore's drug prescription proposal. In the ad, the word "rats" appears a split second before the word "bureaucrat" appears. The Gore campaign accused the opposition of using subliminal messages to sway public opinion. The Bush campaign claimed the creator of the ad did not intend a subliminal message but was endeavoring to make the word "bureaucrat" visually interesting.

References

• "Skeptical Inquirer"; The Cargo-Cult Science of Subliminal Persuasion; Anthony R. Pratkanis; 1992
• KAKE-TV: BTK Back
• "Skeptical Inquierer"; Scientific Consensus and Expert Testimony: Lessons from the Judas Priest Trial; Timothy E. Moore; December 1996
• Subliminal Video; George Bush Bureaucrats RATS Subliminal Message Video; 2009