Media vs. the Real Life: Through a Window to the Parallel Reality and What You Saw There Essay

Introduction: Media vs. the Real Life: Where the Line Is Drawn

Advertisements and commercials are supposed to inform people on the newly invented facilities or recently produced goods, explaining the benefits of each and commenting on the possible outcomes of their usage. With the help of various media informers, people are supposed to obtain the necessary information that will help them choose the most preferable object which will satisfy their needs and suit them most.

However, because of the needs and wants of the goods manufacturers and facilities producers, the qualities of the product and the general information in commercials and advertisements often does not coincide with the reality. In their book The Media Equation, Reeves and Nass [1] argue that people tend to equate media and life. That is, in fact, the “media equation”: media = real life (Earnshaw, 2001, p. 40). Making efficient use of the given rule, advertisers crate the media messages that allow them to increase the sell rates.

Since the difference between the media and the real life is obvious, yet people tend to associate the two elements, thus, following the argumentations of the media, there is a sufficient necessity to consider the two and research the way media coincides with the real life and the way it impacts the latter. One of such examples is the myth concerning the immediate efficiency of Head & Shoulders shampoo.

When Visuals Speak Louder than Words: Analyzing the Video

Although in most cases, the Head & Shoulder video advertisements take the audience into the world that has nothing to do with the reality, offering the public the messages that are basically a lie, one must admit that the visual elements of the given commercials are quite impressive, and the scenarios are rather witty.

With the help of the hilarious plots and the messages behind them, the authors of the commercials manage to convince the audience in the ideas that are completely unrealistic. Considering such masterpieces of commercial art as the one involving Troy Polamau (Head&Shoulders, 2011), it will be possible to see several recurrent features of Head & Shoulders advertising.

One of the most obvious elements of Head & Shoulder commercials, the element of complete irreality is what arrests public’s attention immediately: with the help of Polamau’s unbelievable hairdo and the question “But who used my nop.?” (Head&Shoulders, 2011) makes the audience perceive the information that precedes the hilarious situation and provides a detailed description of what the shampoo can do.

Though the scenario is truly funny and completely perfect, it is still worth noticing that the commercial offers the facts that have nothing to do with the real life, since no shampoo can make people’s hair soar and beards grow in several hours.

As Culligan explains, the power of the fresh, informative and at the same time entertaining idea was so great that the statue of the actor is now in Madame Tussaud’s Museum (Culligan, 2011), which certifies that the given advertisement has had a great impact on the audience, despite it was completely detached from reality.

Another peculiar specimen of a typical Head & Shoulders commercial is the one that was shot in the distant 1993 (TheCommercialKing, 2007). What is the most important about the given piece is that the video offers snapshots of the hair restoration process, including washing, combing and comparing the results of the Head & Shoulders and a regular shampoo effect.

It is essential that the video demonstrates the real hair with the real problems – though it is not quite esthetic, it is still more graphic than the cartoonish elements offered in Richard and Angel’s version (Welkin, 2007), which portrays a drawn scheme of shampoo effect. The video offered by TheCommercialKing (2007) is much more realistic, yet it is deprived of the liveliness that makes the Troy Palamau’s acting so irresistible.

The Messages Behind the Textual Elements: What You See

Considering the existing textual evidence, one must mention that the given papers offer comparatively fair assessment of the qualities of the product, which can be related to the real life and, therefore, can be considered the truth.

Since the textual element of the message that the commercial or the advertisement conveys is easier to spot than the visual or the audio element, the developers of the commercials approach the textual component of the product advertisement more carefully and with considerably greater caution, as it can be seen from several examples.

Analyzing the way Head & Shoulders brand is represented in newspapers, it is essential to emphasize that in the given case, there are no supportive visuals that help to build up the required legend, which differs them from the corresponding commercials. Moreover, when a brand appears in a newspaper article or in a magazine, the brand is likely to be criticized, which will help to figure out what negative effects the given product has.

As for the brainchild of Proctor & Gamble, Head & Shoulders, One must admit that the textual message that follows the visuals also has little to do with the reality: “Removes more dandruff in 1 vs. 3 washes. Special offer price” (Mad Poster, 2010). Despite the fact that the advertisement does not say that the shampoo removes all dandruff, the picture in the ad shows clearly that after the third washing there is no dandruff, even though the black strip in the corner signifies that there is still some dandruff left.

Hence, Head & Shoulder advertisement does not coincide with the reality in the given case, which is a reason for concern, since the information that the visual and the audio parts of the advertisement convey does not coincide, thus, confusing the audience. Even the name of the product presupposes that the head and the shoulders are going to be safe, which is a perfect find for a shampoo brand name (Olser & Chang, 1995, p. 9).

The Impact of the Media on the Real Life: The Incompatible

Taking a closer look at several examples of the advertisements of Head & Shoulders in the mass media, one will necessarily see that these are mostly the enumerations of the alleged positive effects on human body, hair in the given case, with a pinch of humor in them to attract the potential clients.

According to the scientific research conclusions, these are the most efficient ways to convince people in the necessity to use Head & Shoulders, yet the effect of these is bound you inevitably wear off in quite short amount of time. Hence, the promoters of the given product have suggested even more successful approach that concerns people’s desire to love and be loved, one of the instincts that cannot be strangled.

Taking a closer look at the media representation of the product qualities, one must point at the obvious legend that follows and sometimes even ousts the message that the product conveys.

The message that the visuals offer to the customer concern the stability of the psychological well-being of the latter, making the customers associate the product not only with its real qualities, but with the legend of the supposed comfort. For instance, the picture posted by Keith (2007) conveys the idea that Head & Shoulders is somehow connected with care, love and mutual trust between a man and a woman.

Conclusion: Something to Ponder over. Living in Media World

Although the Head & Shoulders brand uses the elements that are quite detached from the real-life environment and the laws of physics and chemistry, it cannot be doubted that there is a tendency to approach the reality, adding several touches of the unbelievable to it. Therefore, the brand becomes more tangible and trustworthy.

Thus, the differences between the images portrayed or depicted in the media and the real products that Proctor & Gamble used to demonstrate could be considered not a flaw, but the company strategy. According to what critics say, customers need much more realistic images and texts; it is worth noting that there were several cases when “the message was reinforced by the characters, who were portrayed as real-life individuals, rather than slick-looking models” (Kennedy & Hills, 2009, p. 126).

Hence, taking into consideration the experience with the Head&Shoulders brand, one must say that the difference between the media advertisements, commercials and the real life are considerable, and the fact that the shampoo does not restore hair after three washing procedures is a fact. Without the distortion of the information and the grotesque images, the promotion of most brands would be impossible, and Head & Shoulders is one of such.

Reference List

Culligan, A. (2011). Head & Shoulders immortalizes Tory Polamau’s legendary locks through renowned Madame Tussauds. New York Times. Web.

Earnshaw, R. E. (2001). Frontiers of human-centered computing, online Communities and virtual environments. Berlin, DE: Springer.

Head & Shoulders (2011). Head & Shoulders – Troy Polamau “Lyin’ fool” commercial. YouTube. Web.

Keith (2007). Head & Shoulders – irresistible hair. TV Ad Music. Web.

Kennedy, E., & Hills, L. (2009). Sport, media and society. Oxford, UK: Berg.

Mad Poster (2010). Kareena Kapoor latest Head & Shoulders advertisement poster. Bollywood Wallpapers Unlimited. Web.

Olser, C. L., & Kevin Chang, P. H. (1995). Reserve Bank of New York staff reports. New York, NY: The Federal Reserve Bank.

The Commercial King (2007). 1993 Head and Shoulders Commercial. YouTube. Web.

Welkin (2007). Richard & Angel – Head & Shoulders Commercial. YouTube. Web.