Cultural Taboo in Advertising. Differences in the Transmissions of Audiovisual Advertising in American and Hindu Market

• Main Author: Hensoldt-Fyda Magdalena
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Sciendo 2018-06-01
• Series: Social Communication
• Subjects: cultural taboo; culture of low and high context; communication style; transmission of advertising content
• Online Access: http://www.degruyter.com/view/j/sc.2018.4.issue-1/sc-2018-0010/sc-2018-0010.xml?format=INT

The aim of this article is to examine differences between the transmissions of advertising content in the low and high context culture where the content contains subjects that are widely recognized as taboo. In order to do this, the analysis of audiovisual advertisements broadcast in the USA and India was used. These adverts introduce the problem of gender discrimination (particularly important in Hindu society) and different approach to gender stereotypes in both cultures (in American culture this subject is not suppressed). There are contrasting ways of presenting these difficult subjects in American and Hindu cultures. The things that are taboo in one culture become a stereotype in the other. And so, the question arises: do the cultural differences determining transmission of advertising content in the countries with cultural taboo of a product on sale still exist?