Gruen Transfer, The: Series 1 - Episode 5 (ATOM Study Guide)

Fast, funny, seriously entertaining and informative. This ten-part series about the advertising industry and how it works is hosted by Wil Anderson, stand-up comedian, now commercial radio host and one-time frontman for the ABC's The Glass House. In each half-hour episode we find out more than we might ever want to know about how advertising works, all within a racy format that creates advertisements, deconstructs advertisements and takes us inside the sometimes hidden and hilarious world of how advertisers work and think. You get the opportunity via the Gruen Transfer website to create your own ads for products and ideas.

In this episode:

• 'What's Wrong With This Ad?' – Pedigree dental kibble biscuits for dogs
• 'How Do You Sell This?' – four-wheel drives and SUVs in a world where we claim to be concerned about the consequences of man-made global warming
• 'The Pitch' – As always, two advertisers compete for the coveted Gruen Trophy in devising and presenting an ad to sell the unsellable. This week it's plastic bags.
• 'Ad of the Week' – raising awareness for sex trafficking

Curriculum Links

Watching, talking about and taking part in this series via the program's website will give students the opportunity to learn about how advertising really works, all within a highly engaging format. It would be suitable for middle and senior secondary students as well as tertiary students studying marketing, advertising, public relations and media studies. For secondary students, the themes and issues explored have relevance to:

• Media Studies
• English
• Graphic Design
• Ethics and Philosophy
• Psychology
• Culture and Society