Persuasive Campaign Analysis

Persuasive Campaign Analysis: The Campaign for America’s Libraries
Mia Orlandi
Comm 333
11/29/2014

When I was growing up, I lived in an area that didn’t have a lot for kids to do.
There wasn’t a bowling alley or a roller rink, but there was a small little library. Here is
where my parents took me, around 3 or 4 times a week, to find a love for books and
reading. I soon developed strong reading and writing skills, while my peers were
distracted by video games and television. I eventually got a first job when I was 15,
which was also at this library, and here it was where I learned more about how incredible
libraries are. My passion grew for libraries and this was the inspiration for my campaign
project: @ Your Library: The Campaign for America’s Libraries. This type of support is
is public library advocacy, which are donations given to either support the campaign
financially or philosophically (Public library advocacy, 2014,) which aids in the features
of the campaign. This campaign was started in April of 2001 by the American Library
Association, which is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The American Library
Association was founded on October 6th, 1876 in Philadelphia and is the oldest and
largest library association in the world (Campaign for america's libraries, 2014). This
campaign was designed as a multi-year, public awareness campaign to promote the value
of libraries and librarians (Borensztanjn, 2014,) and was also assisted and promoted by
first lady Laura Bush (Campaign for america's libraries, 2014.) The goals of this
campaign include bringing energy to libraries along with updating the image of libraries
and librarians around the nation. This campaign directed the attention not only to public
libraries, but also school, academic and special libraries and librarians. This campaign
was based on specific research and was designed to hit target audiences. This campaign
featured real life stories and programs to help depict the positive influence that libraries
and librarians have on individuals and how this has impacted their lives (Campaign for

america's libraries, 2014.) This is another reason this campaign is so important and
interesting to me. Within the larger campaign, there are also smaller ones, such as the
School Library Campaign, Kids @ Your Library campaign in, and there is also the
Campaign for World’s Libraries, which is closely associated with the Campaign for
America’s Libraries (About the campaign for world's libraries, 2014.) There is also a
toolkit program for rural libraries, which also hits home to individuals such as myself
(Campaign for america's libraries, 2014.) I believe that this campaign is extremely
successful and persuasive in its efforts to establish the goals of the campaign. In this
paper, I will be discussing and evaluating the process of this campaign, relevant theories,
and the persuasion efforts.
As mentioned previously, this campaign had a very successful outcome which
stemmed from its detailed process. In the text Persuasion in Your Life, author Shawn T.
Wahl describes the 5 step process to advertising as identification, legitimacy,
participation, penetration, and distribution. Identification can be defined as becoming
known in the mind of the public (Wahl, 2013, p. 148) The Campaign for America’s
Libraries does just that, with their main goal being to remind the public that libraries are
dynamic community centers for learning (Campaign for america's libraries, 2014.) Since
this goal is directly related to the mind of the public, it relates to the idea of identification,
so that the public can identify this campaign with this positive notion that libraries are for
community learning. With them knowing about this idea, they know about the campaign
which is only the beginning to the advertising process. The next step of the process is
legitimacy, also known as to become known as trustworthy and believable (Wahl, 2013,
p. 148-149) This campaign adheres to this step by educating people about libraries by

using real life stories and programs about how libraries and librarians have had positive
effects on the lives of everyday citizens (Campaign for america's libraries, 2014.) This
shows people that libraries, reading, and education are positive tools and gives the public
a sense of trust and legitimacy. In addition to this, the campaign also used Laura Bush as
a supporter and endorser. Having the help of not only a first lady, but someone who has
obtained a degree in Library Science from the University of Texas is another credential
that adds to the legitimacy of the campaign. Laura also runs another foundation for
libraries in her name, with the goal of that organization being to “support the education of
our nation's children by providing funds to update, extend, and diversify the book and
print collections of America's school libraries” (Laura Bush, n.d.) With her desire to
support and fund library systems, she continues to assist to the legitimacy of the
campaign. Moving on to the third step in the process of advertising, we have
participation. Participation, as Wahl explains, can be defined as the involvement of
individuals who were not committed at the beginning of this campaign (2013, p. 150)
This campaign shows exactly that, plenty of public involvement with the campaign and
its goals. Fun events funded by this campaign such as ‘Library Card Sign-Up Month,’
and ‘National Library Week’ give people to opportunity to sign up and become involved
with The Campaign for America’s Celebrate national library week (Celebrate national
library week, 2012.) Other events, such as ‘Connect With Your Kids @ Your Library’
asks for public participation by encouraging parents to take their children to the library
(Why use the library, 2014.) There is also the ‘I Love My Librarian’ award, which
encourages and recognizes the accomplishments of 10 librarians every year (Get
informed, 2014.) These types of events draw both individuals and groups to this

campaign, and allow for them to become involved in it. The next step in the process of
advertising is penetration, which can be defined as the campaign becoming noticed and
unavoidable (Wahl, 2013, p. 150). This can include occurrences such as people becoming
interested in the library after attending one of the campaign-sponsored events, or even
teachers taking their classes to an event in which they are forced to become involved in
the campaign. Once people to begin to enjoy and see how helpful a library may be, the
campaign won’t have to work as hard to persuade. Public service announcements, such as
National Library Week, also continue to persuade the public in favor of America’s
libraries. Additional resources, such as videos with popular authors speaking in support
of libraries add to the penetration of the campaign. The last step to the process of
advertising is distribution, or the success of the campaign in rewarding supporters (Wahl,
2013, p. 150.) Here it is where the gift of donations and support are shown in the libraries
themselves and their effect on the education of people. It is here where we can see how
these programs are funded and thank sponsors such as The New York Times and the
Lifetime Network. Without donations and support, the libraries wouldn’t be able to have
events, or even continue to build themselves and their positive reputation and impact on
the lives of America’s citizens.
Many theories from the Wahl text also related and assisted to the success of this
campaign. First off, we have the classic Aristotelian theory, which dates back to his book
Rhetoric. Here he explains the three modes of proof- ethos, pathos, and logos (Wahl,
2013, p 37). These proofs go hand in hand with the persuasive efforts of the campaign.
Ethos is the first mode of proof, and is the charisma and credibility of the speaker or
campaign. (Wahl, 2013, p. 37-38). First off, ethos plays a big part in the Campaign for

America’s Libraries. This campaign has so much credibility, such as Laura Bush being a
promoter. Since Laura has a degree in library science, as previously mentioned, she
assists to the credibility since she obviously understands what goes in to and what comes
out of a library. This type of credibility also established before the campaign even begins.
Having a spokesperson definitely adds to the successful of the campaign. There is also
credibility that begins during or after the campaign, such as the positive, real life stories
that came with the use of a library and through the Campaign for America’s Libraries.
With the public knowing of these stories and situations through the campaign, they
receive and evaluate the credibility of the campaign, and in turn become persuaded.
There were also authors who were interviewed about their experiences with libraries and
reading, and they also offered credibility to the campaign. The second proof is pathos, or
the emotional appeal and passion (Wahl, 2013, p 39). This campaign presented a lot of
emotional appeal. As mentioned before, the real life stories bring the campaign to life and
offer emotions to the public. These stories depict how libraries and librarians have
impacted each and every individual’s life, especially children (Campaign for america's
libraries, 2014.) These types of examples are extremely persuasive because how real the
stories are and how much passion is embedded in them. The more persuasion equals the
higher success of the campaign. The videos that were previously mentioned, which
depicted famous authors, also included high amounts of emotion with narratives
explaining their experiences with reading and literature. The third mode of proof is logos,
or logic and facts (Wahl, 2013, p. 39). This proof is displayed quite a bit in this
campaign. The campaign’s goals are clearly stated and include increasing awareness,
bringing energy, and updating the libraries and resources. These goals provide logic to

this campaign, and clearly state what it is all about. Here we can clearly see what this
campaign is trying to do, and it makes sense because these are clean, hard facts with
simple yet impacting goals that can easily be done with the support needed for the
campaign. When people understand and see facts and logic, they are easily persuaded and
that assists to the success of the campaign. Without the three modes of proof, the
outcome of the campaign would be very different, and it could possibly have been
unsuccessful. Another theory that is depicted in this campaign is the idea of visual
communication. Visual communication can be defined as the ways in which images
either intentionally or unintentionally create meanings in their lives (Wahl, 2013, p 95).
This campaign uses various visuals to help communicate their message and persuade the
public. One year, the campaign had a National Library Week PSA, which included a
poster featuring famous author Judy Blume (Celebrate national library week, 2012.) If
you recognized Judy, you may be persuaded to not only read the poster, but also
participate in National Library Week. This is a direct example of how visual
communication works. Also, the campaign’s Facebook page offers various visual
communication efforts to persuade users to “like” the page or sponsor the campaign (@
Your Library, n.d.) Another theory that is represented in this campaign would be the idea
of social proof. According to Wahl, social proof is a powerful form of influence that
involves observing others before determining if a behavior is acceptable (2013, p. 136)
The Campaign for America’s Libraries shows this in many ways. First off, the
campaign’s website shows videos that involve famous authors speaking of the
importance of libraries and librarians. The idea of this is not only to involve famous
people, but also to persuade the public that libraries are positive and that they can truly

make a difference. Everyone knows that using someone with credibility, such as a
famous author, can persuade the public and show what is known as the “bandwagon
approach,” also known as everyone is doing it-so should I! This campaign also has many
public events, such as National Library Month, and World Book Night (Campaign for
america's libraries, 2014,) which encourages individuals and groups, who are assumed to
attract others through the idea of social proof. This adds to the success of the campaign
through not only persuasion, but also fun. When people can involve themselves in fun,
social activities, they have a positive idea about the campaign, and in turn a positive idea
about the goals of the campaign. Another interesting idea that this campaign uses is a
gesture called an emblem. An emblem is a specific, widely understood meaning in a
culture that possibly substitutes for a word or phrase (Wahl, 2013, p 209). The emblem of
this campaign is an “at” sign, or “@” (@ Your Library, n.d.) This campaign uses this
sign to represent their goals and ideas, and with deeper meaning it may symbolize the
idea of literally being “at” the library. Success with this topic means seeing that symbol,
and instantly thinking of this campaign. Wahl also explains the idea of the Narrative
Paradigm, which was coined by Walter Fisher. The Narrative Paradigm is the idea that
stories and narratives are the most persuasive and powerful tool that humans possess
(2013, p 136). This is one of the most powerful theories that explains the most about this
campaign. As mentioned previously, the campaign used many stories and narratives to
explain the importance of libraries. From the stories of people who were positively
affected by libraries, to the stories from authors about the importance of reading, the
Narrative Paradigm is clearly spelled out in this campaign. The outcome was clearly
based on these, since nothing is more influential than hearing the stories of other people.

I believe that the argumentation of the campaign clearly affected the outcome.
This type of argument was what is referred to as the public sphere, or the idea of
arguments with a broad public concern (Wahl, 2013, p 68). The campaign was to
promote libraries, since there have been many budget cuts to remove libraries and
funding for them. This was a very easy-going campaign, without a lot of ethical issues
and was a very light and refreshing campaign compared to many of those that are also
going on. Since the argument was light and easy to “get along with,” I believe that is
why it continues to be funded and assisted. While many other campaigns can cause riots
and other catastrophes, those are the types of campaigns that end up with a completely
unintended outcome. The simplicity, positivity and ethical features set the campaign up
for a positive and intended outcome.
I truly found this campaign interesting and it will always be close to my heart.
Along with being a communication major, I plan to write a children’s book someday to
add to the all the libraries in America. Researching this campaign has reminded me once
again how important libraries, librarians, reading, education and books are to the citizens
of America. We have the opportunity to go to libraries, attend programs and events, and
check out books- all for free. Some people don’t realize the value, and that’s why this
type of campaign is necessary. No, it isn’t a campaign that involves death, rape or drugs.
But it does involve something very important to me, and others. Overall, I believe that
this campaign was successful in its efforts to persuade the public to assist, fund and
support America’s Libraries. The five steps to advertising have assisted this campaign to
be successful, along with theories such as the three modes of proof, visual
communication, and the narrative paradigm. These theories and ideas all reflect how the

campaign uses persuasive efforts to move the public .The persuasive efforts of the
campaign are highly visible, from using famous authors and fun events to remind people
that libraries aren’t just a boring building with a crabby librarian. The outcome of the
campaign is truly successful, but the campaign is not done yet. Each year, events
sponsored by the campaign continue to go on. By attending these events such as National
Library Week, or reading or watching the public service announcements, you can too
help support the Campaign for America’s Libraries and help make a difference.

Bibliography:
@ Your Library. (n.d.). Retrieved November 28, 2014, from
https://www.facebook.com/atyourlibrary
About the campaign for world's libraries. (2014, March 24). Retrieved October 19, 2014,
from http://www.ifla.org/about-the-campaign-for-the-worlds-libraries
Borensztanjn, T. (2014, September 11). Help showcase what librarians and libraries are
doing. Retrieved October 19, 2014, from http://discovery.ebsco.com/pulse/article/help-
showcase-what-librarians-and-libraries-are-doing
Campaign for america's libraries. (2014). Retrieved October 19, 2014, from
http://www.ala.org/advocacy/advleg/publicawareness/campaign@yourlibrary
Celebrate national library week. (2012, January 1). Retrieved October 19, 2014, from
http://atyourlibrary.org/national-library-week
Get informed. (2014, January 1). Retrieved October 19, 2014, from
http://www.ilovelibraries.org/getinformed
Laura bush. (n.d.). Retrieved November 26, 2014, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laura_Bush
Public library advocacy. (2014, January 1). Retrieved October 19, 2014, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_library_advocacy

Wahl, S. (2013). Persuasion in your life (p. 38, 39, 47, 95, 136, 148). Pearson Education.
Why use the library. (2014, January 1). Retrieved October 19, 2014, from
http://www.atyourlibrary.org/why-use-library

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