Food Advertising Analysis in Ebony and People: Advertising Appeals and Ethnic Targeting

Lee, Bean, Galliford and Underwood 2009

Food Advertising Analysis in Ebony and People: Advertising Appeals and Ethnic Targeting

Introduction

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has declared obesity to be a public health

epidemic, equivalent to smoking as the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S. (CDC,

2009a). In 2000, 16.6 percent (400,000) of deaths were attributed to poor diet and physical

inactivity (Mokdad et al., 2004; Rabin 2009). Estimates place the direct and indirect costs of

overweight and obesity in the U.S. at 117 billion dollars per year (National Institute of Diabetes

and Digestive and Kidney Disorders, 2005). In the last 30 years, obesity has increased

disproportionately among minorities, with African Americans accounting for 60 percent of the

total overweight population in the United States (Tirodkar & Jain, 2003). After analyzing data

from 2006 to 2008, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention determined that African

Americans had 51 percent higher obesity prevalence compared to whites (CDC, 2009b).

The prevalence of obesity among non-Hispanic black boys aged 12-19 increased from

10.7 percent in 1994 to 18.5 percent in 2006. The rate of obesity among non-Hispanic black girls

of the same age group increased from 13.2 percent to 27.7 percent over the same time period. It

was reported in 2007 that 30.9 percent of African Americans did not participate in any physical

activities, compared to 20.4 percent among Whites. In addition, 19.8 percent of African

Americans were considered inactive, defined as participating in ten minutes or less of moderate

and vigorous physical activities a day, compared to 10.9 percent of Whites who were reported to

be in the same category.

There have been significant efforts to promote healthy eating and exercise among the

population in general and among children, in particular. On the consumer education front, the Ad

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Council launched a National Obesity Prevention Campaign in 2004. The campaign targeted

adults of all races and encouraged them to take small steps to direct their lives in a more healthy

direction (Ad Council, 2009). In 2005, the Ad Council expanded their target to children of all

ethnicities and conveyed a similar message. The overall goal of the campaign was to educate

overweight Americans to adopt a healthier lifestyle by eating healthy, controlling portion sizes at

meals, and incorporating light physical activity into their daily lives (Ad Council, 2009). On a

policy level, an overall restriction of food advertising has been addressed together with other

price-based policies on food marketing (Mooreman and Price 1989; Seiders and Petty 2004,

2007). Several economic analyses contend that restrictions on fast-food advertising to children

will substantially reduce the childhood obesity rate (e.g., York, 2008).

However, similar efforts are lacking when it comes to promoting healthy eating among

African Americans as a special segment that is at the highest risk of obesity-related health issues.

Similarly, there has been no particular discussion of policies concerning potential disparities

between food advertising targeting the general population and those targeting African Americans

or other minority groups. The CDC has determined that African Americans, along with other

minorities, need policy support to promote healthy eating and physical activity (CDC, 2009a).

The purpose of this study is to explore whether there are any systematic differences in the

ways foods are advertised to African American consumers compared to the ways they are

advertised to the general population. Specifically, the study will examine whether food

advertising in magazines geared toward African American consumers differs from food

advertising found in magazines targeted toward a general audience. Similar research has been

conducted in the past and found significant differences in both the types of foods advertised and

the kinds of appeals used in the advertisements (Henderson and Kelly 2005; Kean and Prividera

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2007, Mastin and Campo 2006, Pratt and Pratt 1996). Considering the significant increase in the

media in recent years about the disparity of obesity among African Americans, the current study

attempts to provide insights as to whether there have been any changes in the way food products

are advertised to African Americans compared to the general population.

Literature Review

Social Learning Theory, Targeted Marketing, and Food Advertising

The basic premises of social learning theory include a notion that “appropriate” human

behavior is learned through such mechanisms as observation, role models, and responses from

others, and that individuals are more likely to model the behaviors of people with whom they

identify or feel similar to (Bandura 1977; Miller and Dollard 1941). Part of social learning occurs

through observations of the world depicted in mass media (Bandura 1997.) Television and print

advertisements are reported to have strong impacts on people’s nutritional choices (Henderson

and Kelly 2005; Pratt and Pratt 1996). Food advertising messages are likely to help consumers

learn the proper context of food consumption within a culture. Through repetition, these

advertising messages reinforce and reward modeled behavior of food consumption. According

to advertising industry data, manufacturers of food products spend a significant portion of their

advertising budget on magazine advertisements, which allows a high level of repetition of

modeled behavior in food advertising. Out of all measured media advertising expenditure, the

portion spent on magazine advertising ranged from 20% for the “sweets and snacks” industry to

over 40% for the “prepared foods” industry (TNS Media Intelligence, 2008).

Targeted marketing, through a process of segmentation, targeting and positioning, forms

a basis of effective marketing (Kotler 1997). In targeted marketing principle, different

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consumers may be exposed to different advertising messages for different food products.

Targeted marketing of food and beverage products to African American consumers has existed

since the 1930s (Gibson 1978). African American consumers are reported to shop for food more

often and, on average, spend more money on food per shopping occasion compared with the

population in general (Gallop-Goodman 2001). Results from several experimental studies

suggest that African American consumers respond more favorably to targeted advertising, often

depicting African American models or spokespersons, than their white counterparts do (Grier

and Brumbaugh 1999; Grier and Deshpande 2001). The findings appear to be consistent with the

premise made in social learning theory above (Bandura 1997).

Content Analysis of African American Magazines

A study that analyzed both editorial content and food advertisements in Ebony, Essence,

and Jet over a 20-year period between 1984 and 2003 concluded that sweetened beverages, fast

foods, and foods with no nutritional value were the most frequently advertised products in these

magazines (Mastin and Campo, 2006). Foods that were advertised least often included

vegetables and fruits. It was during this period that obesity in America reached an epidemic

level.

Even though these magazines did not advertise nutritional food groups often, each

magazine continued to suggest that eating from them is a way to lose weight. For example,

approximately 83.3 percent of Ebony’s overweight and obesity-related articles mentioned eating

more vegetables as a strategy and 66.7 percent of the magazine’s coverage named eating more

fruits as a strategy, Similarly, 40 percent of such articles in Essence, 33.3 percent of such articles

in Ebony, and 20 percent of such articles in Jet suggested limiting sugar or sweets as a strategy to

overcome obesity (Mastin and Campo, 2006).

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A meta-analysis of studies published from June 1992 through 2006 showed a comparison

of food and beverage marketing to African Americans versus Caucasians (Grier and Kumanyika

2008). The review included results from a content analysis of all health-related advertising in 12

women’s magazines published in June, July, and August, 2002. The twelve magazines consisted

of four lifestyle magazines popular among African Americans, Hispanics, and the mainstream

(predominately whites), respectively (Duerksen et al. 2005). The study concluded that African

American magazines were more likely than mainstream magazines to advertise alcohol and fast

food. The study also found that half of the advertisements for unhealthy products in African

American magazines used African American models, whereas only six percent of such

advertisements in mainstream magazines used white models. In contrast, 58 percent of health-

promoting advertisements in the mainstream magazines used white models (ibid.).

McLaughlin and Goulet (1999) analyzed advertisements in People, Cosmopolitan,

Ebony, and Essence, and concluded that advertising appeals in magazines targeting the general

population differed from those targeting the African American population. Despite the limited

scope of research that investigated only one month’s worth of publications, their findings

indicate that advertisers ran similar advertisements in all the magazines, but changed the ethnic

appeals to suit the audience of the magazine (McLaughlin and Goulet, 1999).

In a study that compared food advertisements in Ebony, Essence and Ladies’ Home

Journal from 1980 to 1982 and from 1990 to 1992, authors found that the number of

advertisements for alcoholic beverages increased in Ebony and Essence while it decreased in

Ladies’ Home Journal during this time (Pratt and Pratt 1996). Ebony and Essence carried almost

no advertisements for vegetables, fruit, milk, and dairy products while 12 percent of food

advertisements Ladies’ Home Journal belonged to these categories.

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Ethnic Targeting, Food Category, and Advertising Appeal

Ethnic targeting of African American consumers is especially widespread in alcohol

advertising. According to Alaniz and Wilkes (1998), marketers of alcoholic beverages

commonly practice ethnic targeting and portray ethnic heroes, holidays, and cultural facts in their

advertisements to appeal to minorities. A content analysis of alcohol advertising in magazines

between 1979 and 1992 reports that alcohol advertising is more prevalent in minority magazines

(Cui 2000). Convenience and prepared meals have also become increasingly popular. Once seen

as a type of food that was only used for last minute emergencies, frozen foods and entrees have

evolved into a 30.3 billion dollar business (Reyes, 2002).

In addition to the food categories, past research also has investigated the types of

advertising appeals used in food advertisements within the context of ethnic targeting. Several

studies have reported that there has been an overall increase in the use of nutritional appeals in

magazine food advertisements (Hickerman and Gates 2003). For example, a content analysis of

food advertisements in three women’s magazines reported that 41% of the advertisements

contained at least one health or nutrition claim (Parker 2003). Other popular appeals in food

advertising include taste/flavor and emotional appeals (Warren et al., 2008). However, there has

also been a concern that there is disparity in the use of health/nutrition appeals in food

advertising between the ads targeting African American consumers and those targeting the

general population. A study by Pratt et al. (1996) reported that weight control claims in food

advertising were far more frequently found in Ladies Home Journal, a magazine with a

predominantly white audience than they were in Essence, a magazine targeting African

American female audience.

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From the literature review, it is evident that the high obesity rate in the United States,

especially among the African American population, is a serious health issue. The literature

review also suggests that, based on social learning theory, magazine advertising is an important

way for consumers to learn the context within which foods are consumed in American society,

and that disparities exist in the ways foods are advertised in magazines due to ethnic targeting.

Within the current climate of heightened attention to obesity issues in the African American

population, the proposed study is an attempt to replicate previous research on the topic by

analyzing food advertisements in current issues of consumer magazines. Of particular interest

are the types of food categories and the types of advertising appeals used in food advertisements

that appeared in 2008 issues of Ebony and People. It is hoped that the results will be useful to

gain insights on any meaningful changes in food advertising in recent years. The following

research questions are explored:

RQ1: Is there a significant difference in the types of food categories advertised in Ebony vs.

those advertised in People magazine in 2008?

RQ2: Is there a significant difference in the types of advertising appeals used in food

advertisement in Ebony vs. those used in food advertisement in People magazine in 2008?

RQ3: Is there a significant difference in the advertising appeals used for a particular food

category in Ebony vs. those used for the same food category in People magazine in 2008

(category x appeal)?

Method

Sampling Frame

Content analysis was conducted to examine the food advertisements appearing in Ebony

and People from January to December 2008. Ebony is published monthly, and all 12 issues in

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2008 were analyzed. People a weekly publication, thus the first issue of every month was

selected as a matching sample to Ebony, resulting in 12 issues from the year.

Ebony magazine was chosen because it is the lifestyle magazine with the highest

readership among African American readers. According to Mediamark Reporter Inc.’s fall 2008

data on magazine readership, over 10 million (40.1%) of all African American adults read Ebony

in any given month. Nine out of ten readers of Ebony are African American (MRI+ Fall 2008).

People magazine was chosen as a mainstream lifestyle magazine whose readership reflects the

general population distribution in the U.S. About 33 million of 43 million People readers, or

76.3%, are white, as compared to the proportion of whites in the U.S. adult population, 76.1%

(index 99). Similarly, 5 million readers, or 11.6%, of People readers were African American, as

compared to the proportion of African Americans in the U.S. adult population, 11.5% (index

101) (MRI+ Fall 2008). Readers of Ebony are skewed towards female (index 121), and so are the

readers of People (index 130).

In addition, Ebony magazine was chosen because previous studies have conducted

content analysis of food advertisements in the magazine, the most recent being from the 2004

issues of Ebony (Kean and Prividera 2007). The current study attempts to see if there have been

any meaningful changes in the kinds of food advertised and the types of appeals used in these

food advertisements during the last decade in light of the increasing awareness of obesity as a

public health issue, especially obesity in the African American population.

Coder Training, Coding Scheme and Inter-Coder Reliability

A preliminary coding sheet was created which contained 15 variables, including ad size,

food category, brand, company, headline, and advertising appeals, among others. The coding

sheet also included summary information about the number of ad pages out of all magazine

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pages, and other product advertisements appearing in the magazine. Nineteen food

advertisements found in current issues of general consumer magazines were analyzed using the

sample coding sheet. All food advertisements which were at least of half-page size, including

those of alcoholic beverages, were coded.

The preliminary coding sheet was used to train the coders and to build a detailed coding

scheme. Three student coders participated in the coding of the advertisements. First, the coders

received instructions on the definitions of each of the 15 variables. Second, 36 ads from four

issues of Ebony and 32 ads from two issues of People were selected, and each ad was assigned to

two coders who independently completed the coding. Afterwards, all three coders met and

discussed their coding results. An important component of the discussion was to generate a

coding scheme for the two key variables for this study, food categories and advertising appeals.

The coders agreed on a coding scheme of 13 categories for the variable of food category, ranging

from nonalcoholic beverages to dairy products. The coders also generated 12 categories for the

variable of advertising appeals (see Table 1). Advertising appeals were identified from the

headline, subheads, or main visual in each advertisement. When an ad communicated more than

one distinctive appeal, only the primary and secondary appeals were coded. The coders then

recoded the food categories and advertising appeals using the coding scheme they developed.

During this process, the coders compared and discussed differences in one another’s coding

results for inter-coder reliability. An overall inter-coder agreement on the coding of food

categories reached nearly 100% after a short discussion. The coding of advertising appeals was

more problematic and required additional discussion and training. In the end, the agreement over

advertising appeals reached slightly over 90% between each pair of coders, or .90 based on

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Holsti’s (1969) method of inter-coder reliability. Each coder then completed the coding of

advertisements in all 12 issues of Ebony and 12 issues of People, respectively.

Table 1: Coding Scheme

Food Category Ad Appeal

1. Nonalcoholic Beverages2. Alcoholic Beverages3. Snacks4. Fast Food5. Soup6. Sweets7. Condiments8. Fruit/Veggies9. Convenience Entrees/Meals10. Breakfast11. Pasta/Bread12. Meat13. Dairy

1. Taste/Flavor2. Nutrition-General Claim3. Nutrition-Specific Claim4. Emotion-Personal5. Emotion-Social6.Convenience7. Value8. New9. Ethnic Appeals-Spokesperson10. Ethnic Appeals-Ethnic Culture11.Spokesperson-General12. Other Appeal

Results

Overview

A total of 276 advertisements were coded from 24 issues across the two magazines in

2008: 103 from 12 issues of Ebony magazine and 173 from 12 issues of People magazine. The

number of advertisements in each issue varied from as few as 4 in the January issue of Ebony to

19 in the January issue of People.

Across all 24 issues, the most frequently advertised food categories were snacks (51 ads,

18.5% of all food ads) and beverages (43 ads, 15.9%). The next most frequently advertised food

items were alcoholic beverages, soups, sweets, condiments, and convenience entrees. Each food

item was advertised 23 to 29 times, accounting for 8.3% to 10.5% of all food advertisements

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found in two magazines. Fast food, breakfast food, and dairy products were advertised

infrequently, ranging from 11 to 14 ads, accounting for 4.0% to 5.1% of all food advertisements

(see Table 2).

Table 2: Food Category

Ebony People Total

Code #

Food Category Freq % Freq % Freq %

1 Beverage 14 13.6% 28 16.2% 42 15.2%

2 Alcohol 20 19.4% 4 2.3% 24 8.7%

3 Snack 9 8.7% 42 24.3% 51 18.5%

4 Fast Food 8 7.8% 5 2.9% 13 4.7%

5 Soup 12 11.7% 14 8.1% 26 9.4%

6 Sweets 13 12.6% 16 9.2% 29 10.5%

7 Condiment 13 12.6% 10 5.8% 23 8.3%

8 Fruit/Veggies 0 0.0% 1 0.6% 1 0.4%

9 Convenience Entrees/Meals 4 3.9% 23 13.3% 27 9.8%

10 Breakfast 6 5.8% 8 4.6% 14 5.1%

11 Pasta/Bread 0 0.0% 6 3.5% 6 2.2%

12 Meat 4 3.9% 5 2.9% 9 3.3%

13 Dairy 0 0.0% 11 6.4% 11 4.0%

Total 103 100.0% 173 100.0% 276 100%

A total of 476 advertising appeals were coded from the 276 advertisements. Both the

primary appeal and the secondary appeal were coded from a single ad when such distinction was

clear. The results indicated that taste/flavor appeals were the most frequently used (184 times,

38.7% of appeals coded) in the magazine food advertisements in this study, followed by

emotional appeals (121 times, 25.4%) and nutrition appeals (77 times, 16.2.0%). Both

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convenience (33 times, 6.9%) and ethnic appeals (32 times, 6.7%) were also somewhat

frequently used (see Table 3).

Table 3: Advertising Appeal

Ebony People Both

Code #

Ad Appeal Freq % Freq % Freq %

1 Taste/Flavor 47 31.3% 137 42.0% 184 38.7%

2 Nutrition - General 0 0% 32 9.8% 32 6.7%

3 Nutrition - Specific 24 16.0% 21 6.4% 45 9.5%

4 Emotion - Personal 18 0% 68 20.9% 86 18.1%

5 Emotion - Social 16 22.7% 19 5.8% 35 7.4%

6 Convenience 3 2.0% 30 9.2% 33 6.9%

7 Value 2 1.3% 2 0.6% 4 0.8%

8 New 7 4.7% 9 2.8% 16 3.4%

9 Ethnic Appeal - Ethnicity of Spokesperson 12 0% 0 0.0% 12 2.5%

10 Ethnic Appeal - Reference to Ethnic Culture 18 20.0% 2 0.6% 20 4.2%

11 Spokesperson 3 2.0% 4 1.2% 7 1.5%

12 Other Appeal 0 0% 2 0.6% 2 0.4%

Total 150 100.0% 326 100.0% 476 100.0%

Research Questions

The first research question examines whether there are any differences in the food

categories advertised between Ebony and People magazines (food category x magazine). In

Ebony, the most frequently advertised food category was alcoholic beverages (20 ads, 19.4% of

all food ads). Nonalcoholic beverages (14 ads, 13.6%), sweets (13 ads, 12.6%), condiments (13

ads, 12.6%), and soup (12 ads, 11.7%) were also found somewhat frequently. In contrast, the

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most common food products advertised in People were snacks (42 ads, 24.3%), followed by

nonalcoholic beverages (28 ads, 16.2%) and convenience entrees (23 ads, 13.3%). The results

indicate that while nonalcoholic beverages were advertised frequently in both magazines,

alcoholic beverages were advertised almost exclusively in Ebony. On the other hand, snacks and

convenience entrées were advertised far more frequently in People than were they in Ebony (see

Table 2).

The second research question addresses whether there are any differences in the types of

appeals used in food advertisements between the two magazines (ad appeal x magazine). In

Ebony, taste appeals were most frequently found (47 times, 31.3% of all appeals coded),

followed by emotional appeals (34 times, 22.7%), ethnic appeals (30 times, 20.0%), and nutrition

appeals (24 times, 16.0%). In People, taste was again a dominant appeal (137 times, 42.0%).

Emotional appeals (87 times, 26.7%) and nutrition appeals (53 times, 16.3%) were also common.

The convenience appeals (30 times, 9.2%) were also frequently used in People, reflecting a

relatively high frequency of convenience entrees advertised in the magazine as discussed in the

above analysis for RQ1.

The results suggest both similarities and differences in the types of appeals frequently

found in two magazines. Overall, the two magazines were similar in that taste, emotion, and

nutrition, in order of prevalence, were popular appeals used their food advertisements. In a close

examination, however, there are several notable differences between the two magazines for each

of these three popular appeals. First, taste appeals were more frequently found in People (42.0%)

than were they in Ebony (31.5%). Second, the emotional appeals were used differently in the two

magazines. When the emotional appeals were separated between personal emotions (e.g.,

personal happiness, pride, indulgence, feeling better, intimate relationship, family love) and

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social emotions (e.g., cool, successful, or popular in the crowd), personal emotions and social

emotions were somewhat equally found in Ebony magazine, 12.0% and 10.7%, respectively, of

all appeals. On the other hand, personal emotions were far more frequently found (20.9%) than

were social emotions (5.8%) in People. Third, the nutrition appeals were based on different

claims in two magazines. All nutritional appeals were further separated between those based on

general health claims (e.g., nutritious, better, good for your body, etc.) and those based on

specific health benefits (e.g., less fat, lower cholesterol, less sodium, more calcium, etc.). In

Ebony, all nutritional appeals were based on specific health claims (16.0%) whereas in People,

general health claims were found more frequently (9.8%) than were the specific health benefit

claims (6.4%).

In addition, there were advertising appeals uniquely found in each magazine. The ethnic

appeals were found almost exclusively in Ebony (20% of all appeals coded). Less than one

percent of advertising appeals from People magazine were coded as ethnic appeals. On the other

hand, the convenience appeals were far more frequently found in People (9.2%) than were they

in Ebony (2.0%).

The third research question explores whether there are differences in the types of

advertising appeals for food products that appear in both magazines (food category x ad appeal x

magazine). It was shown (RQ2) that ethnic appeals were frequently found in Ebony. Further

analysis indicates that ethnic appeals are almost exclusively used in the advertisements for

alcoholic- and non-alcoholic beverages, but are rarely found in the advertisements for other food

products in Ebony (See Table 4). Over half of the appeals in the non-alcoholic beverage

advertisements were coded as ethnic appeals (52.2%). More than one quarter of appeals used in

the alcoholic beverage advertisements were coded as such (27.8%). However, ethnic appeals

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were hardly found in the rest of food advertisements. Instead, taste, emotion, and nutritional

appeals were commonly found.

Table 4: Food Categories and Advertising Appeal

Ebony People

Nonalcoholic Beverages Freq % Freq %

Ethnic Appeals 12 52.2% 2 3.6%

Emotion 5 21.7% 19 34.5%

Nutrition 4 17.4% 10 18.2%

Taste/Flavor 2 8.7% 21 38.2%

Alcoholic Beverages Freq % Freq %

Taste/Flavor 6 16.7% 5 62.5%

Emotion 16 45% 3 37.5%

Ethnic Appeals (Spokesperson) 10 40% 0 -

Snacks Freq % Freq %

Taste/Flavor 9 64.3% 35 46.1%

Emotion 1 - 22 28.9%

Nutrition 4 28.6% 11 14.5%

Soups Freq % Freq %

Taste/Flavor 6 35.3% 10 35.7%

Nutrition 6 35.3% 9 32.1%

Convenience 1 - 3 10.7%

Convenience Entrees Freq % Freq %

Taste/Flavor 1 - 17 38.6%

Emotion 2 - 12 27.3%

Convenience 0 - 11 25.0%

Nutrition 1 - 4 9.1%

Note: Only categories that have substantial number of appeals are shown. Not all appeals are shown for each food category

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Taste appeals were most common in the ads for snacks, soups, sweets, and condiments.

Emotional appeals were frequently found in the ads for alcoholic beverages and sweets.

Nutritional appeals were most distinctly used in the ads for breakfast and soups.

Among the food advertisements in People, taste appeals were most frequently found

regardless of food categories, accounting for at 35%-46% of all appeals in each food category.

Emotional appeals, which were the second most common appeals in People, were especially

popular in the ads for beverages, snacks, sweets, convenience entrees and breakfasts accounting

for 27%-47% of all appeals used within each food category. Nutritional appeals, the third most

common appeals in People, were used most frequently in the ads for soups.

When taken together, the overall results for RQ3 indicate that in People magazine,

popular advertising appeals were similar across most of the food products, in the order of taste,

emotion, and nutrition. In Ebony magazine, popular appeals changed depending on the types of

products being advertised. Taste appeals were most frequently found in several products (snacks,

sweet, condiments, and soups). But emotional appeals were most common in alcoholic beverages

and ethnic appeals were most common in the ads for non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages. In

both magazines, nutritional appeals were most commonly found in the advertisements for soup.

Discussions and Future Research

Overall, the findings suggest that ethnic targeting in food advertising continued in 2008

to some extent, but also has shown some changes from the previous years. Continuing the past

trends, alcohol advertising appeared predominantly in Ebony, advertising for sweets was still

more common in Ebony than in People, and advertising for healthy foods (fruits, vegetables, and

dairy) was almost nonexistent in Ebony. However, there appears to be a noticeable decrease in

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the advertising for nonalcoholic beverages, snacks, and convenience entrees in Ebony, in

comparison to their counterparts appeared in People. While past research reported a significantly

higher occurrence of advertising for these products in Ebony, the current study shows either no

difference (in nonalcoholic beverage) or a reversal of the results (in snacks and convenience

entrees) between the two magazines. It is too early to tell whether the changes reflect a true

turning point in ethnic targeting of unhealthy foods, and future research is called for.

Another finding that is similar to past research is that taste, emotional appeals, and

nutrition were three most commonly used appeals in the food advertisements in both Ebony and

People. The results also confirmed that ethnic appeals were almost exclusively found in Ebony,

although readers of People include both white and black, proportionate to population distribution

in the U.S. Beyond these similarities, several interesting results were found that have not been

addressed in previous research. First, the use of emotional appeals in the food advertisements in

each magazine showed a contrast. Far more frequent use of personal emotions was observed in

the advertisements from People while a more balanced use between personal emotions and social

emotions was found in the advertisements from Ebony. Psychologists and psychiatrists have

been investigating possible ways to prevent obesity by treating eating as a psychological problem

behavior when it is used to satisfy individuals’ emotional needs (emotional eating) (Steinhardt,

Bezner and Adams, 1999; Van Striden et al., 1986). The use of emotional appeals in food

advertising in general and the similarities and differences within the context of ethnic targeting in

particular need to be further investigated in future research. It is also interesting to note that

nutrition appeals in People tend to be based on general health claims whereas similar appeals in

Ebony are based on specific health benefits (low cholesterol, low sodium, less fat). Again, it is

not clear why the difference is shown or whether it is a sustained difference. The issue needs

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further investigation. Other interesting findings and questions for future research include a

prevalent use of ethnic appeals only in the advertisements for alcoholic and nonalcoholic

beverages, but not in the advertisements for other products in Ebony.

As a content analysis, the current study does not establish any causal relationships

between high rates of obesity among African American and ethnic targeting in food advertising.

Rather, the study is based on an assumption that advertising is a form of persuasive message that

has been shown to influence people’s choice of product, including the food products, and that

targeted marketing is an effective form of marketing that influences the preference and purchase

of products among the target consumers. Also, the findings are limited to the analysis of 24

issues of magazines in 2008. Despite these conceptual and methodological limitations, findings

from the current study appear to present several interesting topics for future research in food

advertising and ethnic targeting.

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Food Advertising Analysis in Ebony and People: Advertising Appeals and Ethnic Targeting

Health & Medicine