Prime Time Television

For this week’s discussion I am encouraging you to watch TV. Yes, that is correct, I an encouraging you to sit back and watch a full hour of one of your favorite shows on prime-time television. However, instead of getting up during the commercial break or fast forwarding through the commercials you will need to give your undivided attention to the commercials and even use a stop watch or clock to monitor the length of the commercials. Upon the end of your one-hour of TV time answer the following questions regarding your findings and engage in class discussion on your thoughts, theories, and ideas of commercials. Happy Watching

• In a one-hour (full 60-minute) period, how many minutes were devoted to advertising? How were they distributed throughout the hour?
• How many commercials were roughly 60 seconds long? 45 seconds? 30 seconds? 15 seconds?
• Was the same product advertised more than once during the hour? Were the commercials identical?
• How well do the commercials fit with the program? Do the programs and the products have similar target markets?
• Did you find any commercials to be effective in their advertising methods, why or why not?
• Do you love or despise commercials and why?

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