Visual Analysis: “Baby Can Wait” advertisement

RWS 1301 (Online)

University of Texas El Paso

Carmen A. Lozano

April 28, 2018

Purpose of the Image and Its Message

The humorous imagery of a 14-16 year old year teenager seated in a baby’s car seat

(Figure 1) or in a baby’s high chair (Figure 2) with an undeterminable, yet impatient facial

expression of used in these visual messages, helps to break the ice, the awkwardness parents

may feel about addressing how a child grows into a teenager, with an incredibly curiosity with

many adult and mature questions as they transition to adults; yet many parental units are

mentally fixated that their “baby will always be a baby”. The term “parental unit” originated

with the characters, the “Coneheads” from NBC’s long running late night show, “Saturday Night

Live” and has become a part of common language referring to those who take care of children,

whether they are theirs biologically, by guardianship, fostering, or adoption.

There are multiple purposes of this image, and variations in the messages sent because

it varies from whom is looking upon it. The old adage of “a picture is worth a thousand words”

rings loud, clear and true with the “Baby Can Wait” campaign that began in March 2006 (and

currently operating) with the help from Serve, a non-profit marketing and advertising services.

This style of advertising is meant to strike up dialogue, as it’s images demand attention to a

multi-faceted issue that requires the consideration of all who are involved. “You are either part

of the problem, or you are part of the solution.”

This mental fixation pokes fun at multiple issues that needs to be addressed. These

issues include: acknowledgement that one’s child is developing into a teenager and young

adult; this transition brings upon many questions about their body, concerns about intimate

relationships, their sexual health and sexual curiosity. These images also bring to light how

many young teens may feel how they are being treated, as a baby, with no freedom, no say, no

way to express themselves that they would be understood as a fellow human, through their

thoughts, and their emotions.

Audience Description

According to the site, BabyCanWait.com, the advertisements are directed to “parents to

talk with their kids about sex” with their assistance. These ads were put on billboards,

“postcard versions were printed and distributed in the community at key locations, such as

libraries, barbershops and beauty salons” and throughout many social media outlets according

to BabyCanWait.com. They canvassed their area of operations within the Milwaukee and

Waukesha Counties in Wisconsin.

When I reviewed these advertisements, I think otherwise, that there are four audiences.

There are two primary audiences, the teenager and their parental unit; then there are the two

secondary audiences, the other relatives of the teenager and their parental unit, then the

community at large.

Ethos - credibility

Teenage pregnancy brings many challenges to the mothers, the children they bear and

the fathers, these cumulative effects continue to cascade into the family, community and

economy; through a multitude of facets: physical, mental and emotional health, continuing and

acquiring education, finding suitable child care, while obtaining employment, securing financial

stability and so much more. Of high concern, are the “psychological well-being for parents for

effective parenting and ensuring healthy child development” (Biello, 2010); without the

parents’ good health in order, the child may be directly affected, unless there is a support

system in place. Teen mothers are “more at risk for postnatal depression, being a school

dropout, and a bad socioeconomic status” (Goossens, Kadji, Delvenne, 2015). Hence, the

importance to educate our teenagers, as they are our future.

Regarding my professional experience being a medic and giving sexual health education

and “safe sex” briefings to our most junior soldiers, who are often young adults in their late

teens and early twenties, it was all too easy to see how uncomfortable they were in getting this

information and that they were highly uncomfortable about the sexual education subjects.

Pathos

From my personal experience of being an unaware teen and young adult, as I have

obtained the services for abortions twice in my early adulthood. Each abortion broke my heart

and I mourned each life that I ended. Other personal experiences come from seeing teen

pregnancies in junior high and high school. In junior high, the girl was a classmate acquaintance,

after she started to show her pregnant belly, she did not return to school, and I did not see her

again. I do not know what became of her. During high school, I saw a couple of girls go through

their pregnancy, one did not finish their education in a traditional manner; but did so in a

separate program to obtain their GED, the other girl did not finish, and I do not know what

became of them. Who do you know who has gone through this - was it you or a friend? What

would you do if your child experienced this?

Logos

The “Baby can wait” campaign is a “long running teen pregnancy prevention effort” of

the United Way of Greater Milwaukee; as spearheaded by the creators of their advertisements,

Serve, “which is the country’s only all-volunteer, non-profit advertising agency, whose mission

is to give underserved charitable causes a stronger voice in the community”, according to their

site, servemarketing.org ; which falls under the parent company of “BVK”. In aggressively

pushing the importance of parents communicating with their teens, these ads were placed

within the areas where they had historically high teen pregnancy rates and where they would

be seen by their primary audiences – the teens and parents – at cleverly located bus shelters

within the areas of historically high teen pregnancies according to Serve.

“The birth rate for teenagers has declined by more than half since 2000”, according to

the 2015 Annual Wisconsin Birth and Infant Mortality Report (page 5). Also, within the

Wisconsin city of Milwaukee, their teen birth rate has reached a historic low in 2015, according

to the Journal Sentinel (Spicuzza, 2017). These undeniably “in your face” advertisements have

stirred up what the creators wanted – a drop in teenage pregnancies. According to United Way,

teen birth rates have dropped 65% since 2006, and they continue with ambitious goals with

their “all hand on deck approach”.

Conclusion

The blatant refusal to address these curiosities of sex, sexual relationships, as a natural

part of growing up and learning about oneself has resulted in Wisconsin having some of the

highest teen birth rates in the nation. With the highly aggressive and intelligently placed

advertisement campaign across different media outlets from print on billboards to cards

distributed throughout the community at key locations, social media outlets, radio air time,

false movie trailers, fake music artists, United Way with the help of Serve have accomplished

multiple tasks and reached many goals, while inspiring similar campaigns nationally and

internationally. This successful campaign is currently working toward to continuing this trend of

educating teenagers, “empowering them to make good choices” (Angresano, 2017).

Reference:

Biello, Katie; Sipsma, Heather; Kershaw, Trace. “Effects of Teenage Parenthood on Mental Health

Trajectories: Does Sex Matter?”, American Journal of Epidemiology. June 24, 2010. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2917053/

“The Coneheads at Home.” Saturday Night Live, written by Tom David, Al Franken, Bonnie Turner,

directed by Christopher Guest, NBC 1977. www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/the-coneheads-at-home/3006757

Corpus, Maria. Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service. Teen pregnancy campaign turns heads, resonates with youth. January 29, 2015. milwaukeenns.org/2015/01/29/teen-pregnancy-campaign-turns-heads-resonates-with-youth/

Daily Mail Reporter [na]. New billboard campaign launched in Chicago features images of pregnant boys to remind them that a baby isn’t just the girl’s responsibility. www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2325100/New-billboard-campaign-launched-Chicago-features-images-pregnant-boys-remind-baby-isnt-just-girls-responsibility.html

Goossens, Gwendoline; Kadja, Caroline ; Delvenne, Veronique. Teenage pregnancy: a psychopathological risk for mothers and babies? Psychiatria Danubina. September 2015.

www.hdbp.org/psychiatria_danubina/pdf/dnb_vol27_sup1/dnb_vol27_sup1_499.pdf

Herzog, Karen. Journal Sentinel, United Way launches ‘Your baby’s not a baby anymore’ ad campaign. archive.jsonline.com/newswatch/172492311.html

“Milwaukee teen birth rate reaches all-time low.” Today’s TMJ4, WTMJ, NBC November 2017 www.tmj4.com/on-air/milwaukee-teen-birth-rate-reaches-all-time-low

Pregnant boys (April 2007) [Advertisement campaign] www.unitedwaygmwc.org/TPP-Campaigns/Pregnant-Boys

Spicuzza, Mary. Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee’s teen birth rate reaches historic low. November 1,2017. www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/milwaukee/2017/11/01/milwaukees-teen-birth-rate-reaches-historic-low/821112001/

Wisconsin Department of Health Services, Division of Public Health, Office of Health Informatics,

Annual Wisconsin Birth and Infant Mortality Report 2015, released August 2016. www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/publications/p01161-16.pdf

United Way of Greater Milwaukee and Waukesha County, Wisconsin [Organization],

www.babycanwait.com/home.htm

United Way of Greater Milwaukee and Waukesha County, Wisconsin [Organization], Teen Pregnancy Prevention. www.unitedwaygmwc.org/Teen-Pregnancy-Prevention

Your Baby’s Not A Baby (October 2012) [Advertisement]. www.babycanwait.com/etc/In-the-Community/Your-Babys-Not--A-Baby.htm

Serve, An all-volunteer, non-profit advertising agency, servemarketing.org/about/ ; www.unitedwaygmwc.org/Teen-Pregnancy-Prevention-Campaigns

Appendix

Figure 1: Image one of three used in the October 2012 campaign.

Figure 2: Image two of three used in the October 2012 campaign.