Samantha Olin
Writers Memo
I spent about a good two days writing my rough draft and getting ideas for it, and
then from my rough draft feed back I was able to put it all together better little by little
through out a weeks period I finished. I think the peer feedback helped improve the essay
because Jacob was working on the same topic therefore he was able to give me useful
guidance. He told me I needed to introduce the sources more, which I definitely left out
in my rough draft and was able to work on that. I was stuck on trying to figure out a
thesis, it was the hardest part of it all for me, the model essays helped to demonstrate
what a thesis statement should be like. Other steps I took to improve the essay were
making a correction to everything that was pointed out in my rough draft. After that was
done I re read it and added some more things to make the essay flow better for the reader.
Also reading Jacob’s and Tahn’s essays helped a lot to build more ideas of what I was
missing on my paper. Some of my “global” aspects I am most confident about is how I
provided useful information towards my topic to tie Salt Sugar Fat and the journal article
Food Advertising in the Age of Obesity: Content Analysis of Food Advertising on
General Market and African American Television together. What I’m least confident
about is missing all the necessary information I need to develop my point. A “local”
aspect I am confident about is how I set up my paragraph structure, usually introducing
one topic from Salt Sugar Fat and then from the article to then bring them both together.
What I’m least confident about is my use of word choice. I always feel like I lack the
different and interesting word choice that I see others have to keep the reader going. I
think we had plenty of time to come up with a well-written essay, but if I had more time I
would focus on developing more details about the subject of how African Americans are
targeted. At the same time there was only so much from Salt Sugar Fat about African
Americans, but I could have put more from the Journal reading. It would probably take
another few days to really sit down and break the Journal down further and make it tie
into Salt Sugar Fat more. All the feedback that you think should be pointed out to me I
would like because I always like to see my errors so I can try to improve my writing
skills. Even when I think I’ve written a well-put together essay, I know there can always
be things to work on from it, and criticism doesn’t worry me but encourages me to better
myself. I’d say I put good effort into this essay, there was a lot of time in advance to
write this essay so I didn’t feel rushed or stressed to simply get it done. I’d expect
anything from a B and higher because I think I followed the rubric and instructions pretty
well.
Samantha Olin
Final Draft
Advertising towards African Americans
While reading Salt Sugar Fat by Michael Moss and coming across the certain
topic of how African Americans are being targeted by companies to certain products,
finding another source definitely helps expand the knowledge one already has to the
subject to so many more issues and objectives. Also trying to compare and think of how
the article, Food Advertising in the Age of Obesity: Content Analysis of Food Advertising
on General Market and African American Television by Vani R. Henderson and Bridget
Kelly in the Nutrition Education and Behavior Journal, ties into Salt Sugar Fat helps to
understand the topic. Its interesting how Michael Moss explains his view on how African
Americans are treated and targeted meant for a general audience to read, and then how
academic scholars explain there views in a strictly formal view.
Since the audience of Food Advertising in the Age of Obesity: Content Analysis of
Food Advertising on General Market and African American Television was intended for
other scholarly readers, the purpose was to inform the reader on the subject. Throughout
the journal it sticks to mainly one subject and gives valid information needed to know
more about the issues with advertising to African Americans. The purpose is to finish the
reading and have more knowledge towards the subject. Salt Sugar Fat was intended for
anyone to read who wants to learn more about what they are eating. The main audience is
middle aged, general U.S consumers that could relate and understand what Michael Moss
was saying. It shares how companies sell their products and the conflicts faced with it.
How there are so many things hidden that the public deserves to know. Michael Moss
wasn’t trying to tell us what to do but more so trying to persuade us to make better
choices.
In Salt Sugar Fat the topic of African Americans is brought up when Michael
Moss explains how industries first start their research towards how to sell products on
age, sex, and race. One of the first discoveries in 1970s found how kids and African
Americans craved salty and sweet foods more than any other group. Above all though,
research found that African American kids displayed the greatest craving for salty
products. Companies took these findings for there own benefits. Later on Michael Moss
brings up how Dr Pepper was trying to sell an off brand, cheaper product and was mainly
confident that the Hispanic and African American groups would be there main
consumers. Since it was a lower brand product the company figured the lower economic
status groups would buy it.
Moss uses logos, pathos, and ethos to prove his point towards the issues he shares
in Salt Sugar Fat. He uses logos by giving actual statistics and research in products and
what companies do. He gives us more knowledge with reasoning. Pathos is demonstrated
by giving examples of situations the reader can emotionally relate to. For example how
Michael Moss talks about how bad Lunchables are and the reader can easily feel terrible
about it, whether because they are the ones giving it to there children or personally eating
it. Then ethos is used when Moss talks about how companies sell their products and how
they get the people to buy it. Both Salt Sugar Fat and Food Advertising in the Age of
Obesity: Content Analysis of Food Advertising on General Market and African American
Television, share how they use research to give the reader information how advertisement
towards African Americans is done in a way to only benefit the company.
Food Advertising in the Age of Obesity: Content Analysis of Food Advertising on
General Market and African American Television mainly informs the reader about how
the food advertised on television affects the general market and African American
market. In the introduction it gives statistics on the overweight percentage. The article
was published in 2005 and stated that 65% of Americans were overweight and 30% of
those people were obese. The African American numbers were slightly different, being
higher, 77% were overweight women and 49% of those women were obese and the
African American men, 63% overweight and 28% of those obese. Research was done
through Nielsen Media Research’s list of top African American programs to show how
advertisement on African American channels were different than the general public
programs advertisement. It resulted in noticing a huge connection between television and
food. Either it was displaying some sort of exercise, eating took place while watching
something, and lastly a bunch of food advertisements was shown. It also explains how the
African American programs and channels will display the most food related ads and the
most unhealthy ones too. Making them more prone to becoming overweight. Meanwhile
in the general market programs and channels, less fast food ads were displayed and more
sit down restaurants and packaged foods were shown. Towards the end there’s a
discussion on how these companies and food marketers are going to do what’s best in
their interest to make more money. These companies are aware of who they are targeting
and exposing these ads to the most, they know who the main consumers are for each
product. Therefore it’s good to be aware and try to have more knowledge towards the
overweight issue and try to stay healthy.
The journal article Food Advertising in the Age of Obesity: Content Analysis of
Food Advertising on General Market and African American Television uses mainly logos
to persuade the reader. It only has research, statistics, and reasoning to offer. From the
beginning it introduces the reader with percentages giving off that the article will mainly
only give more of a scientific feel. Its intended for academic uses therefore its only going
to need to use reasoning. The authors aren’t trying to connect with the reader or try to
question the reader’s moral, just try to inform them with what they have found.
Salt Sugar Fat and Food Advertising in the Age of Obesity: Content Analysis of
Food Advertising on General Market and African American Television both treat the
topic with great concern. The authors really want to inform the public correctly and are
concerned with the severe health issues that are occurring within the past several years.
The big thing that’s brought up is advertisement and how companies use that to there
own benefit to make money and keep growing and growing. They don’t care for the
public’s health, specifically African Americans in this case; therefore Michael Moss felt
the need to inform his readers of these issues and the article ties into the subject by giving
the facts. Meanwhile Michael Moss’ purpose was to inform readers to what these
companies are doing with their knowledge of advertising and targeting certain groups like
African Americans. The article is just for academic purposes and gives more knowledge
on the research they found on advertisements through television to African Americans.
Both the Salt Sugar Fat and Food Advertising in the Age of Obesity: Content
Analysis of Food Advertising on General Market and African American Television
definitely opened my mind to how advertising to African Americans is a big issue we are
facing here in the U.S. Salt Sugar Fat gave me more of a general introduction to how
companies target African Americans with certain products, but the article gave actual
comparisons to White Americans and African Americans being advertised through
television programs. The percent differences between how African Americans get
advertised less healthy foods, and more cheap fatty products are unbelievable. It really
shows when you see the result on how many more African Americans are obese or
extremely overweight due to being targeted or given false advertisement.
The article can compliment Michael Moss’ key points in Salt Sugar Fat on how
false advertisements and targeting African Americans is severely affecting them. Salt
Sugar Fat briefly brings up the topic but article, Food Advertising in the Age of Obesity:
Content Analysis of Food Advertising on General Market and African American
Television, can definitely help support his thoughts on how more salty and sugar filled
products are targeted towards African Americans. Also how Michael Moss talks about
how certain products are also targeted to certain economic status groups, which these
products include unhealthier fast food products, can have a link to the charts and statistics
found in the journal article. Both Salt Sugar Fat and Food Advertising in the Age of
Obesity: Content Analysis of Food Advertising on General Market and African American
Television agree on how the public needs to be more informed and healthier habits need
to start for the benefit of the health of the people. In the end both sources leave you with
more knowledge towards the topic and more understanding through rhetorical analysis
used and how the authors treat the topic.
Samantha Olin
Citations:
Moss, Michael. Salt, Sugar, Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us. New York: Random
House, 2013. Print.
Henderson, V., and B. Kelly. "Food Advertising in the Age of Obesity: Content Analysis
of Food Advertising on General Market and African American Television."
Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior 37.4 (2005): 191-96. Print.