A lot of what those sites call “subliminal” is really just suggestive. I mean, peaches have looked like butts for a long, long time. And the foreground/background stuff, with the woman bending over and the guy with the paddle only catches the attention of someone who isn’t already gawking at all the other people frolicking in bathing suits. Where is the payoff supposed to be there? Also, the lady sitting on the computer monitor with a picture of a launching rocket shouldn’t even be included on that site. That one was superliminal.
Suggestive - that’s the right word for it. I discovered inadvertently that tv ads are fantastically suggestive - watch tv with the sound off, or listen to tv without seeing the ads, and you will be shocked at what you’re hearing/seeing without the context supplied by the other channel of interaction. I don’t think for a second that this is accidental. Advertising is all about manipulation.
(That flooring ad - the second in the Google link - the title is “Laid by the best” and it suggests a woman masturbating? :eek: That’s not suggestive - that’s exclamatory!)
Update on studies.
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/security/0,1000000189,39283162,00.htm
Another story on subliminal messages in computer ads.
I don’t know where to see the original video, but my memory says that’s not quite correct. IIRC the word “Democrats” floated across the screen, and to some people it seemed the “rats” portion was strategically placed. There’s no evidence that was done deliberately. If you have some, present it.
The word was “bureaucrats,” not “Democrats.”