This advertisement was

created by Covergirl + Olay

around 2009 and sought to
persuade people to buy CC
Creams. This advertisement
would be considered to be
more contemporary
propaganda, letting pop
culture influence celebrity
brand endorsements. The
idea is that people will see
that Ellen is used in the
advertisements, think she
uses the creams and want to
buy the product to try this
product that Ellen uses and
endorses. There is also some
humor with a raccoon
involved, using the age old
stereotype that people with dark circles under their eyes look like
raccoons.

Bandwagon is a propaganda technique displayed in this

advertisement. Humans are social animals and spend a lot of time
trying to blend in, or do what seems most popular. People will
generally hop on whatever is trending, and celebrities that are well
liked are more likely to be able to sell these trends to consumers.

Another technique displayed is testimonial propaganda; it uses a

well-known celebrity to endorse their product. In this way, they can
easily convert fan-base of that celebrity to convert into their
customers. People have a tendency to believe when a popular
person vouches for something. The brand uses the credibility of a
person to establish the credibility of the product.

Makeup companies rely tremendously on testimonial and

bandwagon propaganda, using beauty trends and pop culture to sell
products with a popular celebrity smiling in the background,
endorsing the product.
 -Write an Introduction that summarizes the state of affairs in the
USA and the world at the time the poster or advertisement was
created.

The ad was produced around 2009, at the time the United States’
economy was in recession, unemployment was up. Barack Obama was
sworn in as the 44th President of The United States and the push to
legalize gay marriage swept across the nation as well as the world.
Certain states and countries start allowing or legalizing gay marriage.
Swine Flu causes the first pandemic in almost 40 years, over 500,000
people died worldwide.

1. Find the approximate date of the poster or ad.

2008/ 2009, I couldn’t find an exact date on it.

2. What medium was used to create the original piece. (Painting,

drawing, illustration, photograph, other.)

Photograph, Photoshop

3. What is the name of the agency, organization or company that

produced the poster?

Covergirl, Olay
4. Who is the intended audience or purpose of the poster or ad?

People with dark circles under their eyes, people worried about
signs of aging, fans of Ellen

5. What is the poster trying to persuade the reader to do?

Get consumers to use the eye cream

6. Which of the seven propaganda techniques discussed in class

were used. (Bandwagon, Testimonial, Snob Appeal, Transfer, Name
Calling, Demonizing, Fear-Tactics, Glittering generalities, Patriotic
appeal, Plain Folks Appeal) Could be more than one.

Bandwagon, testimonial

7. Describe how and why each technique was used and how
effective you feel the intended message is.

Bandwagon- get people to be a part of what’s popular, following

trends

Testimonial- using celebrities or well-known figureheads to sell

product/service

8. Is stereotyping used? Explain how it was used.

The only stereotype I can think of is that of comparing someone

having dark circles under eyes makes someone look raccoon-like.

9. Describe any symbols or symbolism you see in the posters. Why

do you think symbols were used?

Having the raccoon in there is a symbol of ‘dark circles’ (dark

circle experts) being used to reinforce the uses of the cream
they’re selling
10. Does color play an important role in the poster or ad? Explain
why or why not.

It’s a very light ad, very white background, which makes sense since
the ad is against dark eye circles