With the COVID-19 pandemic and the rise of social movements like Black Lives Matter and #metoo, the field of social good advertising has rapidly expanded as brands seek social relevance, governments and nonprofits look to inform, and activists try to persuade. In this course, students will learn to plan and execute powerful social advertising campaigns, while thinking critically about the blurred lines between advertising and information, and branding and politics, in what Sarah Banet-Weiser calls "shopping for change."

Throughout history, effective activists have utilized the affective power of arts to win campaigns for social change. The goal of this participatory and discussion-oriented interdisciplinary seminar is to develop a theoretical and practical understanding of this "artistic activism." Informed by scholarly writings as well as current and historical case studies from around the world, students will put theory into practice as they develop their own artistic activist interventions.

This course teaches students to research, plan, and craft social impact messages for audio, digital, social and email, mobile and experiential platforms. The goal is not only to become better copywriters and content strategists, but to critically deconstruct and examine methods of persuasion used by advertisers and marketers. Through weekly readings and class discussions, we'll explore the benefits and risks of persuasive communication and models for creating ethical and engaging social messages.

Social Impact marketing includes a wide breadth of communication; from nonprofit and government messages to activist organizations and Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives. Add to this the  proliferation of media platforms, and you have an oversaturated landscape of messages — many of which are non-effective and potentially counterproductive. Strategy, a phase in a campaign in which a blueprint for the creative execution is formed, is the key to producing more effective and meaningful messages.  This course explores how social impact creatives can employ research and build strategies and then measure success.  

This course teaches students to research, plan, and craft social impact messages for audio, digital, social and email, mobile and experiential platforms. The goal is not only to becomPart of 2x2 Keynote Series: New Edges in Media Studies in the Department of Media, Culture and Communication at the Steinhardt School of New York University.

Moderated by Marita Sturken, Jean Railla

Featured Speakers Sarah Banet-Weiser (UPenn Annenberg) and Andrew Essex (author of The End of Advertising and former CEO of Droga 5).

A special keynote conversation on cause marketing with a practitioner in the field Andrew Essex, formerly CEO of Droga 5 and noted media scholar Sarah Banet-Weiser. The conversation took place on December 5, 2022 as part of the 2x2 Keynote Series: New Edges in Media Studies in the Department of Media, Culture and Communication at the Steinhardt School of New York University.  Andrew Essex, author of The End of Advertising: Why It Had to Die and the Creative Resurrection to Come (Random House, 2017), begins by offering insight into historical and cultural forces that have pushed brands to align themselves with social causes, as a way to build deeper ties with consumers.  Sarah Banet-Weiser, author of Authentic™: The Politics and Ambivalence in a Brand Culture and Distinguished Professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School for Communication and Professor of Communication at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism offers a different perspective on cause marketing.  Her critique focuses on the“branding of intersectionality” and the ways in which corporations dilute powerful social movements when they promote progressive ideals like feminism and racial equality.   She argues that the capitalist values of individualism and profit are in opposition to intersectional movements.  After the keynote presentations, Essex and Banet-Weiser take part in a panel discussion moderated by Professor Marita Sturken and Clinical Adjunct Professor Jean Railla, both from the Department of Media, Culture, and Communication at New York University Steinhardt.e better copywriters and content strategists, but to critically deconstruct and examine methods of persuasion used by advertisers and marketers. Through weekly readings and class discussions, we'll explore the benefits and risks of persuasive communication and models for creating ethical and engaging social messages.

Jean Railla, 1st International Triennial Conference on Local Finance, TK South Korea

Out of Home (OOH) advertising, in its most primitive form, has been around for centuries, and continues to be a driving force in marketing while ad buys in other traditional mediums like Television and print decline.  According to a recent study by Report Linker, the global market for Outdoor Advertising is projected to reach US$34.4 Billion by 2027, growing at a rate of 3.6% over the period 2020-2027.  As more and more these ads become part of the city landscape, there is great potential for their use for promoting Korean economic revitalization. However, to be effective, audience engagement must be at the center of creative strategy.mpaigns for social change. The goal of this participatory and discussion-oriented interdisciplinary seminar is to develop a theoretical and practical understanding of this "artistic activism." Informed by scholarly writings as well as current and historical case studies from around the world, students will put theory into practice as they develop their own artistic activist interventions.