Linguistic complexity and second language advertising audiences

Abstract

In many Anglophone developing countries, the language of most public serviceadvertising is English, a language that is second rather than primary for audiences.Set in a dual-language context where English exists alongside several local languages,as means of interaction, this means that audiences must engage with messages in alanguage not necessarily preferred for conversation. In addition, messages are oftencarried on radio, a transient medium where meaning can be lost in the temporality ofmessages. This increases the task on audiences for processing messages, as the abilityto understand most advertisements becomes contingent on their attainment offormal education. While this highlights the critical role of the English language indetermining the effectiveness of public service advertisements among second language audiences, it remains understudied in media/communication scholarship. Usinga textual analysis of two public service advertising campaigns in Ghana, the studyunpacks the English used and examines the implications for audience comprehension.