Our use of images to stir emotions has been thought-provoking in order to help people question their viewpoint. It is through the reaction of our audience that we have managed to make the campaign successful. Barnardo's has spent £1 million in this advertising campaign, and generated a revenue of £1.5 million simply through donations. However, even though we have managed to raise a vast amount, there is a lot more work to be done now. You will be surprised to know that Barnardo's has to spend close to a staggering £200 million every year just to run its 390-or-so projects and services across Britain. Without the help of our patrons, we may not be able to achieve our aim of caring for some 115,000 children in unfortunate circumstances.
With respect to your specific allegation, the images were selected by a sample audience to be thought provoking, and depict the harsh reality of these children's lives. The idea of a defenceless baby being devoured by a cockroach is universally objectionable, even thought the photography was acceptable to the Advertising Standards Agency.
You, like so much of our audience felt emotional reposes of shock and disgust; however I would like to further assure you that no babies were put in harms way during the making of our appeal. The photographer Miles Aldridge has worked for several of our previous campaigns, and has gained a a reputation for his image construction. Using various techniques, he managed to arouse audience discontent. In order to construct such images, babies between two and fifteen weeks were chosen. They were cared for by a nurse throughout the shooting and no individual was every placed at any risk throughout the whole process.
The picture was taken at 'point-of-view' angle, and contrasts the baby against the dirty white background. The point of view angle enable sus to only make selected elements of the picture appear in our image. Further computer enhanced editing culminated in a unique photograph were an image of a cockroach was superimposed onto the baby's mouth. The reason for using the cockroach was to create a metaphor of a defenceless baby, and no one is there to help 'baby Greg' out of poverty and deprivation.]
There were many reasons why the poster was a success for Barnardo's. The crying baby affected our emotions - it helped appeal to the audience because man y of us could relate to in our own individual way. The point-of-view shot could be one from a helpless mother's perspective, a metaphor of how no one is there to help lift her and her family out of destitution. Your concerns of the image being too 'shocking and disgusting' are therefore in keeping with our constructs.
The dirty white background showed us a side of poverty many would not have expected New borns are associated with cleanliness and a fresh start, however for baby Greg, there are no such luxuries. The whole image was thought provoking to put it mildly.
Another technique we used is called anchoring - where the text and image combine to deliver a much more powerful effect on the reader. We believe one of the reasons for the success for campaign was effective 'anchoring'.
In this advertisement, the image creates the effect of horror and disgust and the text convinces the reader to act on this issue. The choice of lexis were also important for the overall impact.
The use of emotive language played a further part in imparting the message 'Poverty is waiting to robe Greg of hope and spirit'. This emotionally and personified language persuades the reader to act and get involved. The text also uses shared values - 'We can't end poverty, but we can...'. This creates a feeling that the reader is part of the solution and unifies the reader with the text. By calling the baby Greg we can empathise with him by understanding the situation he will be in - 'he should have a bright future, but poverty is waiting to rob Greg'. Personification of poverty makes it fell like an enemy, which can be beaten, whilst creating a sense of urgency.
The choice of words help to persuade the reader. The lexis 'Silver spoon' and 'poverty' stood out from the rest of the text by using a larger font. these words are contrasting against each other and the smaller-font text as well. these lexis have metaphorical undertones - asking us to consider a life with a silver spoon and a live of poverty.
The use of imperatives - 'Call... or visit... now' - begs action. Short sentences in the beginning make the text seem dramatic,. As the text progresses, the sentences become longer, providing the explanation.
Repetition of the word 'poverty' helps hammer home Barnardo's message, making it stronger and more likely for the reader to act upon.
Ultimately, Barnardo's unites the reader with the charity by using the personal pronoun of 'we'. By using this personal pronoun, it enables the efforts of Barnardo-s to be linked with the reader, and making it a shared value.
Through the tireless efforts of many individuals Barnardo's has managed to generate awareness on the issue of child poverty in the UK, as well as bring in donations. I have shown you many reasons why Barnardo's has had such a prosperous campaign, and I apologise on behalf of Barnardo's for any offense caused to you; however I have given you an insight into the rationale behind Barnardo's 'End Childhood Poverty' campaign. I hope you continue to have good faith in the efforts of Barnardo's. I wish you well and hope you may consider helping support our causes in the future.
Yours sincerely,
Your Name Here,
Public Relations & Customer Care
