Vicks Nyquil Propaganda

Connie Yonn

Professor Zaragoza

English 1

November 23, 2015

Good Sleep is Vicks Nyquil

Propaganda is a technique use to persuade the audience’s opinions to one’s favorite side or to win the audience over. Propaganda does not concern whether the messages that are being delivered out are good or bad, true or false. Propagandist overall focus is to have the audience’s believe the messages even if the messages are full with deceptions or lies, but just as long as the audiences are convinced and changed their opinion (McClintock, 1998). Today advertisements uses propaganda techniques as Ann McClintock claimed in her article, “Persuasive Appeals in Modern Advertisement” in an effort to advertise the product to consumers who are subconsciously unaware

of such propaganda techniques; therefore, consumers are drawn to the glamour and testimonial ideas of the product without factual evidence. According to McClintock, advertisers utilize propaganda techniques to promote the product even though the product is not good and has no factual proof that product is worth purchasing. Yes! I agree with McClintock claim about advertisements uses propaganda techniques to persuade consumers to their liking. One of the brands that use propaganda techniques is Vicks Nyquil. Vicks Nyquil commercials use propaganda techniques to persuade the audiences to purchase the product without proof of the fact if the product produces the effect that the company claims. The slogan focus on good sleep is Vicks Nyquil, the only thing consumers need for a good night sleep. Some propaganda techniques used in the commercials are glittering generalities, plain folks, and card stacking.
One of Vicks Nyquil commercial entitles “Call My Mom” uses glittering generalities propaganda.

Glittering generalities are defined as an emotional appealing phrases or words uses to associate with highly valued concepts and beliefs that it carries conviction without support or reason (McClintoch, 1988). Some words and phrases that are consider glittering generalities are Freedom, Justice, Democratic, and All-Americans, which have a strong and affirmative tone that can motivate positive feeling from people (McClintoch, 1988). Vicks Nyquil commercial generally states that people do not need their mommy when they are sick and all they need is Vicks Nyquil. The commercial took place late at night, when the middle aged man who is sick, grouchy asking his wife to call his mom. The wife appears irritated and cannot sleep because the husband is tossing and turning. The wife then looked at husband and tossed him the Vicks Nyquil. This demonstrated Vicks Nyquil could take the place of mom if the husband consumes the product. The commercial later showed the husband slept peacefully and snored the night away. Even with a cold, an individual can sleep like a 200-pound baby. The commercial target audiences are general house whole families, husbands, wives, and adults who are sick and all they need to rely on is Vicks Nyquil for good night’s sleep. The commercial emphasized on the Vicks Nyquil bottle and the tablets with a green logo in the center of the bottle so it stand out to the

consumers’ eyes claiming that it will relieve nighttime sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching, and fever if people choose Vicks Nyquil; on the other hand, the commercial does not show scientific approach toward the product. The rhetorical technique used in the commercial was pathos or emotional appeal because the speaker was an ordinary guy whom the audiences see and could relate to the situation.
Plain Folks are also another propaganda used in Vicks Nyquil commercial entitle “Call My Mom”. Plain Folks are defined as a common person who claims to understand or relate to the audience expectation. The phrase is usually represented as “Buy me or vote for me. I’m just like you” (McClintoch, 1988). This propaganda technique placed an emphasis on the emotion in relation to “trust me” idea. The Vicks Nyquil commercial showed an average Joe who is sick and seek for the comfort of his mom. Most people need their mom like Joe in the commercial, so take Vicks Nyquil in the place of mom is what the advertiser implies. The propaganda approach in the commercial is when the wife tossed the Vicks Nyquil to the husband to illustrate that people do not need mom, people need Vicks Nyquil to help get through the night and will eventually wake up fully rest. The Call my Mom commercial is one of the many commercial that Vicks Nyquil use propaganda to encourage audiences to count on Vicks Nyquil for sickness. The rhetorical technique is pathos, an emotional appeal to the audiences to relate to Joe the average person who the audiences can trust. Another well-known Vicks Nyquil commercial called “Dad Don’t Take Sick Day” which also uses propaganda techniques.
In the second Vicks Nyquil, commercial called “Dad Don’t Take Sick Day” is a slogan aim to relate to consumers who are parents and Vicks Nyquil is what parents need to cure the flu. There is no proof of the fact base on scientific logic shown in the commercial, but only an emotional appeal that everyone is doing it so everyone should follow. The commercial states, “Most parents take Vicks Nyquil and why not all parents?” This commercial promotes the product by using the Bandwagon propaganda technique. Bandwagon is defined as a convincing approach or advertisers’ pressure by directly pointing out “Everyone’s is doing it. Why don’t you do it?”(McClintoch, 1988). These are fixed view of people, groups, friends, and institutions accepted and rejected as a whole (Erlbaum, 2001). The target audiences for the commercial are geared toward parent. The commercial attempted to illustrate that being a parent is a full time job and there is never a time off from taking care of a child and the only time off with a good rest and without interruption is Vicks Nyquil the consumer’s choice of regimen. Vicks Nyquil commercial sent out this message saying that most Americans are parents, and parents could understand the need for rest when encountering the flu so why not purchase Vicks Nyquil. According to Erlbaum, people should follow as a group so parents choose Vicks Nyquil. The commercial showed dad is sick and asks Dave the baby for a day off tomorrow, but there is no such thing as a sick day for parents. The commercial then showed the baby in the crib, too small to comprehend the dad requested. The commercial then illustrated the slogan “Dad doesn’t take sick days; dad takes Nyquil for nighttime sniffling, sneezing coughing, aching, and fever” letting consumers know that they will get the best sleep with this cold medicine. The medicine bottle is green and has a hypnosis effect, drawing audience’s attention focus to the triangle Vicks logo as a choice of brand. The slogan or image, usually demonstrated the main point to the commercial overall purpose is to persuade the audiences in the direction of advertisement messages (X.J. Kennedy, D. Kennedy, & Muth, 2013, p. 297). The rhetorical effect is the pathos aim to convince because everyone is doing it and so should the people.
In conclusion, today advertisements use propaganda techniques to subconsciously persuade consumers to purchase the products.

McClintoch discuss Propaganda is a systematic approach used to change peoples’ opinion to one’s side or win the audiences over. Propaganda has no concern whether the message projected out is right or wrong, false or truth as long as the messages convince the audience in the favor of advertisements intention. McClintoch states facts about today advertisements uses propaganda to assist in advertising their products or messages. Most Americans are unaware of these hidden messages and grasp on to the appearance of glamour approach that advertisements uses in their product. Vicks Nyquil advertisements incorporate the dark green color, triangle logo encircles the brand name, and slogan to capture the audiences focus to the product. Vicks Nyquil commercials use propaganda techniques such as glittering generalities to glamourize and focus on the production, plain folks to relate to audiences as a common person, an average Joe in meaning, “I’m just like you” and enforce the “trust me ideas,” and bandwagon approach saying most Americans take Vicks Nyquil, why don’t you? All of these propaganda techniques are common terms to convince the audiences to believe, trust, and purchase the ideas, but has no prove in scientific logic or evidence to the

product.

Word cited
Ann McClintock, “Propaganda Techniques in Today’s Advertising.” From College Writing Skills with Readings by John Langan. Copyright  1998
Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc, “Journal of Mass Media Ethics,” 16(2 & 3), 121-137 Copyright  2001
Kennedy, X. J., and X. J. Kennedy. The Bedford Guide for College Writers: With Reader, Research Manual, and Handbook. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2013. Print.
Vicks, NyQuil and DayQuil 'Don't Take Sick Days' - YouTube. Retrieved from:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOMKi49XMzs, Oct 6, 2014 - Uploaded by Vicks
Nyquil Commercial Pam - YouTube. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Mq36t6R_zE, Oct 14, 2012 - Uploaded by 10SammyJ10