Need for studying advertising from communication perspective

Continued from my previous post:

Another important problem with advertising programs is that they are often seen as a specialty programs and not inherently central within the paradigm of the traditional university faculties such as pure sciences, natural sciences, management, commerce or arts. So the question arises here is that in which academic discipline should advertising be taught? Or a separate need of faculty of communication is there within which advertising education must be fitted. In such a case, the purpose of this advertising division must be to:

1.      encourage the study of advertising as an integral part of our communication and marketing system.

2.      encourage the study of advertising as it relates to other institutions in society.

3.      encourage its members to bring to their teaching and research as a conception of the whole of advertising and not just its individual parts.

4.      provide liaison between its members and scholars in other areas who are interested in advertising and its role in society.

5.      stay abreast of current research; recent publications and research grant opportunities through its regular newsletters, conferences and periodicals.

6.      incorporate diversity in curriculum.

7.      maintain consistency in the content and title of such programs.

Charles H. Sandage once humorously explained the early history of advertising in his book, ‘Advertising as a Social Force’, 1998. He wrote:

From these early beginnings what has become recognized as an academic discipline of advertising was born. The father of this child was psychology and the mother, journalism. It might, therefore, be said that advertising education was sired by psychology and damned by journalism ... The child was abandoned by its father at an early age, but business-marketing moved in as a sort of stepfather to share with journalism the task of rearing the child in its formative years. There was some conflict in the family as to how the child should be brought up. One parent thought it should be nurtured on a diet of creativity, while the other recommended a menu closely related and subservient to the marketing aspect of business. Both parents viewed the child as chattel and directed its life toward serving the particular interests of journalism and business.

....to be continued.