TOW #2 - Salvation Army/CareHaven "The Dress" PSA

The Salvation Army capitalizes on "the dress" phenomenon that exploded all over social media in February with their Public Service Announcement (PSA). The international charitable organization takes advantage of the great debate of whether the dress was white and gold or black and blue, an illusion brought on by our own personal perception. The Salvation Army teamed up with CareHaven, an organization which provides homes for abused women and children, to create this domestic violence PSA for the viewing of the public. It takes quite a candid and factual tone on the issue of stopping abuse against women. The PSA effectively juxtaposes a woman covered in black and blue wearing the gold and white dress to the headline, "Why is it so hard to see black and blue?". Such an effective image and headline grabs the attention of viewers and causes a shocking realization, as an effect of logos and pathos. The organization also compares the illusion of the dress color to the illusion of the belief that the bruises were her choice. The Salvation Army cleverly chooses to play on the effects of logos and pathos, as this PSA screams out for attention from its imagery to its hard hitting headline. The point of a PSA is to bring attention to a critical issue, and the Salvation Army does so as it reframes the trivial dress discussion into a critical issue which is much more deserving of public attention. Despite it being a very simple PSA, it brings great awareness to domestic violence and the call to action to stop abuse against women. The organization smartly capitalizes on the influence of social media to create much needed attention on domestic violence to effectively accomplish their purpose. The PSA is visual communication at its finest, as it not only brings attention to the subject but also commands readers to at least think about it. The Salvation Army manages to create a powerful and memorable PSA about domestic violence.