How consumers subvert advertising through rhetorical institutional work

Abstract

We consider consumer subversion of advertising by investigating social media activity in response to an advertisement aired by a global brand. We draw on Aristotle's rhetorical justification to show how consumers used logos (logical appeals), ethos (credibility or moral authority), pathos (emotion‐inducing), and kairos (opportunity) rhetoric to challenge and undermine this advertising. Our study provides greater understanding of the mechanisms of consumer activism, examining how rhetorical strategies were deployed within consumers' institutional work toward the subversion of contentious advertising. We also examine the work of an organized boundary group to marshal consumer support for marketplace change and identify how ensuing argumentation led to the development of novel message frames intended to delegitimize advertising practices. We warn advertisers and brands to consider the implications of such collective consumer subversion at a time when the public and media are increasingly intolerant of organizational transgressions, particularly in relation to social justice issues, for example, gender stereotyping in advertising.

Adbusting: How advertising altered by activists affects brands

“…Thus, the adbust occurs offline but is quickly disseminated online to increase reach and impact. Yet, this does not preclude activist groups from increasingly posting altered brand communication online to leverage brands as a platform for their messages, similar to rhetoric subvertisement of brand advertising on social media (Middleton et al, 2022). While our research investigates consumers' intentions to share positive or negative sentiments about adbusts, we do not study how they do so (i.e., whether they advocate the adbust or distance themselves from the message) and with how many people they would share such content.…”

Calling for Cancellation: Understanding how Markets Are Shaped to Realign With Prevailing Societal Values

“…Institutional work allows actors to create, maintain, or disrupt the underpinning institutional logics within an organizational field (Baker, Storbacka, and Brodie 2019;Middleton et al 2022). It is an intentional effort by an actor to shape an organizational field or institution (such as a market or marketing practices) or manage (including maintaining) a given situation (Lawrence and Suddaby 2006) and can occur at a micro (individuals and practices), meso (governments, firms, etc.…”