Blog Post 6

           Pollan, a food author with many books and articles, writes about our problems with eating in this country. He begins by describing many Americans fascination in dieting, citing examples of the lipophobia (the fear of fatty diets) and carbophobia (the fear of eating carbohydrates). Pollan then goes on to compare and contrast the American and French styles of eating and the overall health that results from these varied habits. He uses examples of the stereotypical American snacking and worrying about their diets resulting in a typically unhealthy society. The stereotypical Frenchman is seen as eating at meal times and not worrying about the food they eat and a much healthier society. He attributes the ability to eat whatever the French population wants to their eating habits, carefree approach to eating, and some genetics. Genetics are important to health, people may have predisposed conditions that allow them to eat whatever and retain a healthy body while others need to be a strictly regimented diet to retain the same health. The comparison between the French and American styles of eating was very interesting and made me think about my own eating habits in comparison to the styles presented in the article.

            While I have never been one for diets, mainly due to my age and outlook that eating should be enjoyable and not regulated I have always fit the snacking stereotype, especially when life gets stressful. However, I accompany this with working out and the French mentality that it does not matter what I eat as long as it is nourishment. If I truly do care about my body the exercise and the less stressful stretches in life will allow me to recover from the unhealthy snacking. While I do fit the one stereotype I believe I have a healthy balance between the two controllable aspects of the stereotypes and with the physical exercise in my life I hope this will counteract the negatives of snacking. Also, genetically it is unclear in my family; some relatives are nearing 90 and still going great while others are having health problems at a younger age. Who knows how I will end up? Time will tell and all we can do is do what we think is right for our own bodies to stay nourished while enjoying what we are eating.

4/29 In-class post

When I am not restricted by food availability my food choices come down to mood and timing. Mood is important because if I am nervous or bored at the time I am feeling hungry I will likely go for snack foods, such as chips or crackers. This is likely because I am not too hungry; however, I want something quick and easy to eat. Timing is also important when choosing foods because if I am preparing for a game or going to work out I will indulge in much healthier choices of food. Before a workout my meal usually consists of a small portion of a main dish and a large helping of fruit. This allows me to be full with nutritious food that will not leave my stomach full while I am working out. However, before a big game it is necessary to get one’s body in the best shape possible and at our coaches request we have a few days of hydrating and eating the most healthful foods possible. Taste is also an important factor, however, as a college student these choices are not always an option.

Extended Essay 1 Rough Draft

Ian Roche

Professor Leake

WRIT 1133

23 April 2013

Marketing: What decisions are made to be successful?

            The goal of a business is to have a product and outcompete other companies with the same type of product to receive a larger share of the market. The food business is no different and in fact has another facet to their marketing. This additional facet is the restaurants must attract people to their product and entice them to return to the restaurant for food time and again. To do this the restaurant must attract people with deals and all the other aspects that other companies use to attract their target audience and then with the mood, atmosphere, and food the restaurant needs to entice the target audience. Mood and atmosphere are so crucial to a restaurant because everyone wants to feel in place and this is not accomplished by creating a mood unsuitable for the desired demographic. Food quality and style is also important, first, because no one wants to eat disgusting food and, secondly, the style of food is important. Overall, to create a successful restaurant it is incredibly important to blend the appropriate mood and atmosphere with the appropriate food.

            Mood and atmosphere are needed to create a suitable environment for the desired customers. Mood and atmosphere are two very similar concepts concerning the physical environment of a restaurant. However, in this paper mood will be used to discuss the psychological decisions made by the restaurant such as music and employee attitudes, while atmosphere is referring to the physical characteristics that make up the restaurant. These include layout, features, and employee looks. Restaurants have to make many decisions to appeal to the psyche of their customers. Many people have gotten the feeling of being out of place when they enter a restaurant; this is a sign that the customer is not the target audience of the restaurant. One may feel out of the target audience due to the mood, atmosphere, or both. These aspects are used to establish a familiar or comfortable setting for the patrons of the target audience. Creating such an environment promotes customers to return because of the pleasurable experience of dining at the particular restaurant. This idea is supported by a Taiwanese study completed by Lin Yann-Jou and colleagues, “The results suggest mat restaurant operators should provide quality services mat appeal to customers' intentions when they are searching for pleasant dining experiences […]”³ As mentioned above music, employee attitudes, and physical characteristics are all used to create the favorable and desired restaurant environment.

Music is an additive to most restaurant scenarios. While the music seems to be purely background noise to the customers, this subliminal sensing is targeted by the restaurants. Many studies have been done on the musical choices of restaurants. One study done on the fast-food industry showed a softening in music volume led to a decreased amount of eating and a rise in the restaurant approval of the customers.¹ This shows not only promise to possibly reduce calorie intake of American citizens, it also can be used to explain the musical choices of higher tier restaurants as well. These restaurants are typically playing barely audible classical music with low lighting. The low lighting was another aspect of the study done by van Ittersum and Wasink. Their study showed that low lighting had the same positive effects as soft music.¹ The specificity of classical music is referencing the study done by Wilson showing that classical music made customers expect and inclined to spend more money at the restaurant.² However, many other types of restaurants do not play this music. These restaurants tend to be more “hip” restaurants trying to appeal to a younger, less sophisticated, and lower socioeconomic class target audience. Therefore, it seems playing music that appeals to the target audience is more important than playing soft classical music to boost sales. Snarf’s is a very good example of this change in musical style and volume. The colorful and college oriented sandwich shop near the University of Denver blares music from the 1980s and 1990s. Snarf’s has the ability to do this and continue to be a successful restaurant because their target customers are the college kids passing by and intrigued by the loud music and vibrant atmosphere. While music establishes mood another important characteristic is the employee interactions with the restaurant goers. This phenomenon varies widely from restaurant to restaurant, again greatly depending on the target audience. In a relaxed college-aged environment the employees are much more relaxed and tend to be much louder. This was shown in a Dallas taco stand, Fuzzy Taco’s. The young man working behind the counter was yelling at the top of his lungs to get people to come get their food. At a high tier restaurant this would be an instant firing. First of all it is not how the patrons want their food delivered at a high tier restaurant. Second, a high tier restaurant is typically more sophisticated, leading to a much more professional environment. While it has been constantly reiterated in this paper, target audience is the basis of all of these marketing decisions.

Atmosphere is another incredibly important aspect of a successful restaurant. To create the proper atmosphere the restaurant must decide on décor, features of the restaurant, and the physical appearance of the employees. Décor is important because this sets the vibes of the restaurant. Snarf’s does a very good job with their décor. As a restaurant attracting college students Snarf’s combines the loud lively mood with bright neon colors and stainless steel tables to create a lively atmosphere that is attractive to most college students. However, when one goes to a higher tier restaurant they can observe a stark difference in the décor. Similar to the music and employee-patron interactions the décor will be much more refined and professional. These two characteristics give the restaurant some ethos because of the pathos they invoke. Seeing professional and refined décor gives many people a sense of respect for the establishment and likely have a similar effect to classical music, promoting more spending.² While, it is necessary to establish the atmosphere with décor, the employee looks also establish the atmosphere. Tokyo Joe’s, a fast-food Asian restaurant here in Denver, is an example of employee looks. Each employee is seems to be covered in tattoos and piercings, giving the fast food and relaxed atmosphere, while at this archetypal higher tier restaurant would never have employees that gave off any sense of lackadaisical or unprofessional. The third and final major part of atmosphere is the other features of the restaurant. During observations at Snarf’s there were many features that were signals of a college restaurant. The presence of arcade games and a bar were give-a-ways that the target audience was a younger audience, who wanted to drink and have fun, two characteristics of college students. While in a higher tier restaurant one usually finds a classy bar that is there to attract social conversations and no arcade games would be found in a restaurant appealing more to refined adults. Appealing to the target audience is the job of a marketer and restaurants must continue the process of marketing throughout the entire dining process to have repeat customers.

            Appropriate food is the food that will appeal to the needs and desires of the target audience. Food is the central material object of a restaurant. While, people may venture to restaurants for social interactions the food is the material component that draws people back. Once enticed by the appropriate mood and atmosphere a restaurant goer will then venture to the menu and find the desired food. It is essential to know what the quality and type of food should be. Here at the University of Denver there are many restaurants surrounding campus, as mentioned above each has varying moods and atmospheres that appeal to the masses of college students that comprise the majority of their businesses. The quick service is one component of the food that seems to be incredibly important to these restaurants. From experience college students lead incredibly busy lives and this creates the need for quick food. Horwitz, an author and professor, discusses this idea of how our lives are becoming more hectic and on-the-go resulting in this quick restaurant appeal. She exhibits this by writing, “[…] calories consumed from what people call snacks, while the calories consumed at meals, particularly at dinner, actually decreased during the same period of observation. On such a frontier, I am more tempted to pause than to parse—to pause to reflect on how temporal-spatial patterns of eating shift over time.”⁴ This quote in “Eating at the Edge” is discussing the above idea that we are transitioning from the typical eating styles of sitting down to eat with family to eating meals quickly and solitary. Also, the quote is discussing the change in typical eating habits. The habits have shifted from minimal snacking and three major sit down meals to nearly constant eating which comprises of lots of snacking and small meals. This style of eating, referred to as “eating on your own time” by Horwitz seems to be a large reason for the increase in our countries weight.⁴ Another essential aspect of college food is low cost. The ingredients need to be the highest quality for the lowest cost. This is where “appropriate” food comes into the restaurant business. While it may seem that choosing the highest possible quality food, this is not the case. A restaurant must chose the level of their food quality and around a college campus the food quality seems to take a slight dip to accommodate a price drop. The price drop is an appeal to college students because it allows them to escape the typically sub-par cafeteria food for higher quality food in a more appealing setting.

            What can be taken from the argument is that mood, atmosphere, and food are all important aspects of a successful restaurant, however, these aspects vary from restaurant. Appropriate is a key term in the argument. This is shown in each example used because restaurants make their decisions based on their audience. When a restaurant is aiming to attract a high class customer base they will make decisions based on that demographic. While these may seem like the decisions to attract customers with money a fast food place does not make these same decisions because their target audience is not attracted by these decisions. A restaurant that can capture the mood, atmosphere, and food types to appeal to the psychological desires of the appropriate demographic will be a successful business.

Bibliography

¹van Ittersum, Koert, and Brian Wansink. “Fast Food Restaurant Lighting and Music can Reduce Calorie Intake and Increase Sastisfaction^1,2.” Psychological Reports. 111.1 (2012): 228-232. Online.

²Wilson, Stephanie. “The Effect of Music on Perceived Atmosphere and Purchase Intentions in a Restaurant.” Psychology of Music. 31.1 (2003): 93-112. Online.

³Lin, Yann-Jou, and Liu, His-Lin, and Chiang, Wan-Erh. “The Effect of Experiential Providers on Restaurant Patronage Decisions.” Social Behavior and Personality. 40.7 (2012): 1065-1066. Online.

⁴Horwitz, Jamie. “Eating at the Edge.” Gastonomica: The Journal of Food and Culture. 9.3 (2009): 42-47. Online.

Post 5: Horwitz

There are many ways to develop arguments, especially when discussing a social concept such as the role of eating in people’s daily lives. Horwitz discusses the variation in eating styles of different cultures, focusing primarily on the stereotypical eating habits of Americans. Horwitz brings up the points of how Americans eat less at meals and snack throughout the day much more today than in the past an attribute to the increase in obesity and the cultural differences in eating together. The author points out how Americans are much more on the go and snack during the entire day while taking quick lunch breaks and are decently full by dinner time, leading to a reduced intake during the major meals of the day, but an increased intake during the day. The stereotypical eating habits of Americans are seen in this article as solitary, unless collectiveness is forced. This change is a disappointment because of the social cohesion food can create.  Horwitz argues the above points by using many examples and focusing on one. The author gives multiple examples of people eating on the run and not eating together, however, the astronaut example was the major focus. This example was the focus because it exemplifies Americans eating alone and other cultures eating together. This snacking and solitary eating is becoming somewhat of a reality in our fast-paced lives.

            Reading this article made me take a look at my own life and eating habits. My conclusion was that Horowitz is correct with the point that Americans snack much more than they used too, because I snack fairly regularly. However, try to make the food better nutritionally than chips and other typical snack foods. The other point, on the solitary eating habits of Americans, seems to be much less accurate for my life. Solitary eating does occur when homework needs to be done and I grab a quick bite to eat, however, dinner is a meal I especially try to eat with friends. This extends the prior conclusions of the class that food is a social tool. As many people would much rather eat with friends so they can talk and joke while eating. Eating solitarily is good when work needs to be done, however, when there is time to relax and eat with friends it is a much more enjoyable experience. This seems to be the point of the astronaut example, allowing them to eat alone when work needs to be done, however, promoting group meals when time permits to foster relationships. Food is an incredible thing; it nourishes us and brings us together.

Snarf's Observations

                                                   The Cultural Experience of Snarf’s

Located on Evans Boulevard in Denver, Colorado Snarf’s is a small restaurant serving up primarily sandwiches and drinks. This restaurant is always cranking out their popular sandwiches and add alcohol to the mix for those who are of age. The proximity to the University of Denver campus and the atmosphere seem to attract a young, “hip” demographic. After an hour of observations on Thursday the 11^th from 12 pm to 1 pm it can be concluded that restaurants attempt to bridge the generational gap between parents and kids by combining activities that appeal to the youth and the feel of a new age, yet older restaurant. For Snarf’s in particular this seems to be the vibe attempting to combine the interests of DU students and their parents, who typically attended college in the 1980s. Also, based on this one time observation, Snarf’s does a very good job of capturing this particular vibe as a major observation was the demographic consisted of nearly all college age students with a few small groups of older patrons.

The restaurant attempted to capture an older restaurant vibe by playing the music of the 1980s. The music was played at a very loud volume, but one where the patrons could still talk. This seems to be important because the loud music projects a fun and lively atmosphere that attracts college-age kids while allowing the patrons to still converse. Music in restaurants is a fascinating phenomenon. We have all been to more upscale restaurants where the music is quite and typically classical. These two attributes are cited in two studies. The first determining that softer music will increase enjoyment and decrease the amount of food patrons eat.^1,2 Also a British study showed that when a restaurant played classical music the patrons were more willing to and spent more money than when other types of music were played. While this is not the case it can likely be explained by the culture of the restaurant. Snarf’s is not a restaurant worried about the calorie-cutting of the patrons and take out was a popular option. These two observations lead to the conclusion that Snarf’s is a restaurant trying to attract patrons who will stay when they hear the lively environment. Also, many of the customers were college students, a typically poor demographic. Therefore, the British study does not relate to Snarf’s as is trying to appeal mainly to the college students that live all around the establishment. As a typically poor demographic the sandwiches, the main commodity sold at the restaurant, are in the $5-$10 range. However, the money is attempted to be made in the addition of chips and a drink, including the alcohol at the bar. One observation that relates was that the majority of patrons, who ordered the full meal, sandwich with chips and a drink, were typically the older patrons. This is another aspect that appears to be attempting to close the generational gap.

While the music, vibrant colors, and youthful vibes are used to attract the older generation the restaurant also uses many specifics to appeal to the college students that live in the area. First, the workers are all of a similar age and when selling a commodity like sandwiches peers seem to buy from peers. Also, a bar was present and although this was not in much use at noon, at night times I have seen many people at the Snarf’s bar. This appeals to college age kids in the reality that they want to go to bars to hang out with friends and have a few drinks. Also, the few arcade games attract kids to come and have fun while waiting for their food to be made. Another aspect that likely appeals to both generations is the hand-made assembly line, similar to a Subway type restaurant, another sandwich shop very popular with the college generation. This relation to something familiar is very important for the business to invoke pathos of joy in the customers. Finally, the most important relation to the college age kids is the loud and lively atmosphere that was discussed above. Bridging the generational gap is difficult; however, it is an important aspect of Snarf’s

Another interesting, yet less prevalent cultural idea that was found at Snarf’s was the lack of diversity in food orders. While observing Snarf’s I noticed patrons had multiple choices on the menu however, sandwiches were the only meal that was chosen. This seemed to lead the management from Snarf’s to focus the restaurant on sandwiches. An understandable approach for a restaurant aiming to capitalize on college students and their wallets. The low cost, high quality and convenient sandwiches are very appealing to the college and post-college demographic that populates this portion of Denver. The conclusions that can be drawn from this occurrence deal with the management of restaurants and the attitudes of patrons. First, this shows the management of any restaurant will do what it can to capitalize on a favorite of the customers. In the case of Snarf’s the sandwiches are a big hit, therefore, the restaurant exploits the sandwiches over the other food items to make more money. Also, this works because of the patrons’ attitudes toward the sandwiches. Their favorability is what allows the management to focus on selling sandwiches instead of the other food products.

¹van Ittersum, Koert, and Brian Wansink. “Fast Food Restaurant Lighting and Music can Reduce Calorie Intake and Increase Sastisfaction^1,2.” Psychological Reports. 111.1 (2012): 228-232. Online.

²Wilson, Stephanie. “The Effect of Music on Perceived Atmosphere and Purchase Intentions in a Restaurant.” Psychology of Music. 31.1 (2003): 93-112. Online.

Sources for Paper

The article "Fast Food Restaurant Lighting and Music can Reduce Calorie Intake and Increase Satifaction" is an article found from the library website. This piece discusses how a softening of music increases the enjoyment and decreases the amount of food eaten at a particular restaurant. More can be read at:
http://jc3th3db7e.search.serialssolutions.com/?ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&ctx_enc=info%3Aofi%2Fenc%3AUTF-8&rfr_id=info:sid/summon.serialssolutions.com&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:journal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Fast+food+restaurant+lighting+and+music+can+reduce+calorie+intake+and+increase+satisfaction.%28Human+Resources+%26+Marketing%29&rft.jtitle=Psychological+Reports&rft.au=Wansink%2C+Brian&rft.au=van+Ittersum%2C+Koert&rft.date=2012-08-01&rft.pub=Ammons+Scientific%2C+Ltd&rft.issn=0033-2941&rft.eissn=1558-691X&rft.volume=111&rft.issue=1&rft.spage=228&rft.externalDBID=n%2Fa&rft.externalDocID=303754555

A second article "The Effect of Musical Style on Restaurant Customers' Spending" discusses a British study concerning the difference in spending of patrons with different music. The findings show that classical music resulted in a higher amount of spending than pop music or no music being played in the restaurant. The full article can be read at:
http://0-eab.sagepub.com.bianca.penlib.du.edu/content/35/5/712

Post 4: Cate and O'Donnell

In most societies food is much more than strictly sustenance. Cate and O’Donnell both wrote fascinating articles concerning the social value of food. Cate wrote about “spread” in the prison culture while O’Donnell discussed the culture of food in China. Prison spread is a delicacy in prison and not only valued for the change in taste from the typical prison food, but for the social aspect of “spreading.” Spreading is the process used to make spread and inmates say it is an enjoyable part of their otherwise mundane lives. The inmates interviewed in the article discuss how spreading brings friends closer together. This seems to be the magic of food. Dates are usually located at restaurant, business meetings usually involve a lunch, and holidays and celebrations are centered around food. O’Donnell also expressed the sentiment of the social cohesion that food promotes in her article “The Cultural Politics of Eating in Shenzhen.” While she expressed a similar sentiment about the social cohesion that food provides various communities she discussed the differences between regions that show the differences around the world. The world has an incredibly diverse population in terms of people, customs, and foods. These differences are shown by her explanation of the differences between the north and south of China. In Guangdong, the south, seafood is the major food source and according to the article this requires a sneaky and cunning person to be able to catch the quick seafood. While in the north, near Shenzhen, cows and other mammalian livestock are the major food source. This food source is much slower and less cunning. According to O’Donnell the difference in food sources is a direct correlation to the type of people that live in these different regions. While people differ all around the world, this point seems unrealistic to generalize that all people who catch fish are so cunning when catching their food that this bleeds over to their life and are known to be liars. From the fascinating prison spread culture to the variation in peoples ideals due to the difference in regional Chinese food sources these two articles expand my interest in the social implications of food. The social implications of food are extensive and the culture of bringing prisoners together over a handcrafted meal is an amazing example of how food is a social congealer.

Short Essay 2

Ian Roche

Professor Leake

Short Essay 2

7 April, 2013

Burger King: Then and Now

            Advertising is a war between companies trying to vie for the largest share of a target audience. Target audience is defined as the desired group of consumers for a certain product or service. Even when similar companies are advertising to the same target audience these companies have various ways of attempting to attract business and these methods change over time. The above examples of advertisements exemplify this change in advertising styles over time. The change comes as a result of social evolution and an evolution in target audience. Effective advertising uses ethos, logos, and especially pathos to appeal to certain audiences. While these advertisements cannot provide cultural and food values for an entire society, they do provide insight into the values of certain groups and makes society aware of the presence of these values.

            The advertisement on the left, referred to as Ad 1, is a Burger King advertisement from 1975 while the advertisement on the right, referred to as Ad 2, is a Burger King advertisement from 2009. The advertising, therefore, social evolution over the 34 years in astounding. Both advertisements use minimal ethos, which is demonstrated by the fact that Burger King, a fast food mogul in this country, is the advertiser. Ad 1 clearly shows a company trying to attract families who want low cost, yet personalized and tasty food. The advertisement uses pathos and logos to attract working class families. This can be inferred because Burger King is known to be low cost food and the slogan “Have it your way…It’s the only way” shows the company is promoting personal choice. The personal choice is important because people can feel a personal connection to their food, inciting pathos. The personal connection is important to establish in order to entice customers into venturing to a Burger King and get the meal they want. This establishment of connection in conjunction with the family picture in the advertisement seems to be an attempt to create a family atmosphere. A place where one could get low cost, home-cooking style food. Working class families need lower cost food and in some cases it may be more cost and time efficient for a family to go to Burger King, instead of spend the money and time to make a full meal at home. Time is another concern addressed in Ad 1, the writing in the lower left hand corner says, “Why wait for what you want…” The aspects of family, low cost, time efficiency, and personalization are all components of the ad, which implies that the target audience is a working class family who is usually on a tight schedule. Ad 2 is for Burger King as well, however, 34 years later the market has shifted in response to changing demographic and cultural beliefs.

            34 years ago our generations’ parents were in high school, the President was Gerald Ford, and Ad 1 was attempting to attract busy, working class families to Burger King. Many things changed over those 34 years. In 2009 our generation was in high school and college, the President was Barack Obama, and Ad 2 was attempting to attract young, working class males to venture to Burger King for a burger. It is easily shown by this racy advertisement that young males are the target audience because “sex sells,” especially with the young males. Ad 2 was eventually banned and removed from circulation because of the reference to oral sex. This reference and the attractive young woman were used to catch the interest of males from high school age to late 20’s. This age demographic is stereotypically motivated by sexual desires and this advertisement uses this stereotype to attract these young males. The oral sex reference is also included in the use of the length of the sandwich (seven inches) in the name. This sexual innuendo is the pathos aspect of the advertisement. Young males will see the reference and take a second look at the advertisement, hopefully, enticing them into buying a “BK Super Seven Incher.” Logos is included with the price of $6.25 for a full meal. A low price is essential to attract the young demographic because these customers typically have low paying jobs and cannot afford to spend too much on food. This distasteful advertisement combines sex appeal and food, another cornerstone of being a young male, to attract this demographic to Burger King.

            Advertising styles have experienced a profound change over the last 34 years and this is exemplified by the two Burger King advertisements above. In 1975 advertising was family oriented, attempting to target kids into convincing their parents to take them places or lend them money to go spend at an establishment. However, the advertisement from 2009 shows the shift in the style of advertising to a sexualized ad attempting to make profit from young males with their own money. While the advertising changed, it was in response to social changes. From stories, television, and stereotypes life in the 1970s was much more family oriented and less open sexually. However, by 2009 changes in culture due to a plethora of factors such as music, legal action, and variation in work habitats all contributed to a more sexualized, fast paced society. Since the day Puritans landed on the East coast this country has gotten more “racy” and free socially. Ad 2 shows how much this country has changed, while it is not necessarily a problem it is a major change that society has created.

Post 3: Analysis of Freedman and Jurafsky

Advertising has become a science. With so many brands flooding the market individual companies have to increase their advertisement departments and abilities to compete for the consumers of their product. In the article Authenticity in America: Class Distinctions in Potato Chip Advertising written by Freedman and Jurafsky the correlation between many social constructs are compared with the advertising practices of twelve potato chip companies. Freedman and Jurafsky discuss the connection between language and advertising. This research judges six more expensive and six less expensive potato chip brands and quantitatively examines the language on each package. Their results found that the use of more and higher level language was present on the more expensive chip bags. They determined this by using the frequency of the words on the bags in “standard reference texts” and the Flesch-Kincaid readability test. These two examinations of the chip bag give the article logos and show the more expensive bags are targeting the upper-middle class due to the increased difficulty in reading level which is typically concurrent with the higher societal standing. The target audience was again exposed in the use of health talk on the chip bags. Concern with healthfulness of food is connected with the upper classes because their increased capital allows them to not worry about the 28 cents per ounce difference in price. These data added even more logos to the article.

Logos is necessary in an article like this due to the nature of the argument. This argument based on socially constructed stereotypes such as the rich care more about health and have a higher vocabulary than the lower class individuals’ needs data to back the statements made. Freedman and Jurafsky do a great job using the cultural aspects of variation in food consumption and language in conjunction with scientific data to prove that different brands attempt to attract various customers. This research could be extrapolated to other food products and using similar tests one would likely find these same results that more expensive products are aimed at enticing higher class individuals while the lower priced products will use lower level reading and fewer nutritional facts. I find the process of advertising fascinating and this specific article shows how important every word is important to appeal to just the right audience.