Cultural references are key in communication. Schriver says that experience plays a role on how people approach a document (1997). Frequently, documents often show what the creator wants to show instead of what most audience will see (Williams 2003). This is vital when designing a document as inaccurate construction of the message can lead to confusion and anger.
The banned Opium billboard. Courtesy of www.telegraph.co.uk.
Another example of designers not taking local culture and sentiments into account is the Sophie Dahl’s billboard debacle. Playing on the out-dated rule that sex sells, advertisers opts for a billboard that depict model Sophie Dahl completely naked save a pair of golden heels with her back arched as if in ecstasy. The advert drew massive criticism resulting in the 20 feet advert being banned altogether. A survey indicated that nearly a third of the 1000 people surveyed do not like to see those types of adverts and neither does it influence their purchases (Bernady 2006).
The crook of the matter is that designers need to pay more attention to local culture and sentiments in order to avoid public outrage that could have been easily avoided.
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Maslin is a 20 something Communication Student living in the Klang Valley. Maslin is very ---- Archives
This blog was created to examine the many issues of publications and design, particularly ones related to web technology.
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