Ads can aid U.S. image, expert says

By Chris Casteel, The Oklahoman
September 22, 2006

It works for beer and deodorant, but can television advertising work for public diplomacy?

An Oklahoma State University professor who has co-authored a book on a brief U.S. ad campaign in the Muslim world, said here Thursday the approach can succeed as a diplomacy tool.

Jami Fullerton, who teaches advertising and mass communications at OSU, said at a news conference that a series of TV ads featuring American Muslims was effective, despite criticism within and outside the government.

The ads were aired in some Muslim countries four years ago but were suspended amid accusations of propaganda.

Fullerton and Southern Methodist University advertising professor Alice Kendrick have written a book about the experiment and contend the ads could have worked to improve America's image with the targeted audience.

The five spots, part of the Shared Values Initiative, show foreign-born Muslims in America talking about their success in various occupations and acceptance in society.

The ads were targeted at women, Fullerton said, and reached 91 million people in Indonesia alone. They were also shown in Kuwait, Malaysia and Pakistan.

Fullerton and Kendrick studied internal State Department documents about the campaign and showed the ads to college students in London, Singapore and Cairo.

There was criticism the ads were one-sided, but viewers voiced a more positive attitude about the U.S. government and the treatment of Muslims here, Kendrick said.

"Empirical research shows advertising may be one tool in improving America's image abroad," Fullerton said.

The professors' book is called "Advertising's War on Terrorism: The Story of the U.S. State Department's Shared Values Initiative."