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Journals / Kent Akademisi / 2026 / Cilt: 19 Sayı: 7

Subliminal Enchantments of Advertising Witches: A Critical Analysis of Tourism Aviation Advertisements

Reklam Cadılarının Eşik Altı Büyüleri: Turistik Havacılık Reklamları

Ebru Bağçı(BALIKESIR UNIVERSITY)0000-0002-2763-069X
Pages
1–19
Publication Date
2026-10-06
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AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

The study critically reveals the role of aviation advertising in destination and city branding, and contributes to debates on advertising ethics.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

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Objective & Hypothesis:This study analyses the covert persuasion mechanisms of touristic aviation advertisements through the metaphor of “advertising witches,” developed from Williams’s concept of the “magic system.” In this research, the notion of the subliminal is employed not in its clinical sense of a stimulus operating below the perceptual threshold, but as a conceptual metaphor describing the covert-emotional persuasion process that operates beneath the consumer’s conscious scrutiny.
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Key Findings & Data:Through purposive sampling, four advertising films from Turkish Airlines (THY) and Pegasus Airlines—representing the largest share of the Turkish civil aviation market and two opposing business models (full-service vs. low-cost)—dated 2015 and 2024 are examined comparatively.
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Conclusion & Impact:The study critically reveals the role of aviation advertising in destination and city branding, and contributes to debates on advertising ethics.
🔬Design:Modeling & Simulation
📍Scope:2015 Verileri
⚙️Variables:Turizm Pazarlaması · Havacılık Reklamları · Eşikaltı Mesajlar

Abstract

This study analyses the covert persuasion mechanisms of touristic aviation advertisements through the metaphor of “advertising witches,” developed from Williams’s concept of the “magic system.” In this research, the notion of the subliminal is employed not in its clinical sense of a stimulus operating below the perceptual threshold, but as a conceptual metaphor describing the covert-emotional persuasion process that operates beneath the consumer’s conscious scrutiny. Designed as a qualitative case study based on document analysis, the study analyses its data through the combined use of Barthes’s denotation–connotation–myth analysis, complemented by the social-practice dimension of Fairclough’s critical discourse analysis. Through purposive sampling, four advertising films from Turkish Airlines (THY) and Pegasus Airlines—representing the largest share of the Turkish civil aviation market and two opposing business models (full-service vs. low-cost)—dated 2015 and 2024 are examined comparatively. The findings show that both brands construct symbolic processes consistent with Baudrillard’s theory of sign value; THY builds Turkey’s destination image around prestige and national identity, whereas Pegasus does so around accessibility and experience. The study critically reveals the role of aviation advertising in destination and city branding, and contributes to debates on advertising ethics.

Özet

Bu çalışma, turistik havacılık reklamlarının örtük ikna mekanizmalarını, Williams’ın “büyü sistemi” kavramından hareketle geliştirilen “reklam cadıları” metaforu üzerinden çözümlemeyi amaçlamaktadır. Araştırmada eşik altı (subliminal) kavramı, klinik anlamda algı eşiğinin altında işleyen teknik bir uyarandan çok, tüketicinin bilinçli sorgulamasının gerisinde işleyen örtük-duygusal ikna sürecini betimleyen kavramsal bir metafor olarak kullanılmıştır. Çalışma, nitel araştırma deseninde tasarlanmış; doküman incelemesine dayalı bir vaka çalışması olarak yürütülmüştür. Veriler, Barthes’ın düz anlam–yan anlam–mit çözümlemesi ile Fairclough’un eleştirel söylem analizinin toplumsal pratik boyutu birlikte kullanılarak analiz edilmiştir. Amaçlı örneklem kapsamında, Türkiye sivil havacılık pazarının büyük bölümünü temsil eden ve zıt iş modellerini (tam hizmet–düşük maliyet) simgeleyen Türk Hava Yolları (THY) ile Pegasus Hava Yolları’nın 2015 ve 2024 yıllarına ait dört reklam filmi karşılaştırmalı olarak incelenmiştir. Bulgular, iki markanın da Baudrillard’ın gösterge değeri kuramıyla tutarlı sembolik inşa süreçleri kurduğunu; THY’nin prestij ve millî kimlik, Pegasus’un ise ulaşılabilirlik ve deneyim ekseninde Türkiye’nin destinasyon imajını farklı biçimlerde kurguladığını göstermektedir. Çalışma, havacılık reklamının destinasyon ve kent markalaşmasındaki rolünü eleştirel bir perspektifle ortaya koymakta ve reklam etiğine ilişkin tartışmalara katkı sunmaktadır.

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Cite This Article

Bağçı, E. (2026). Subliminal Enchantments of Advertising Witches: A Critical Analysis of Tourism Aviation Advertisements. Kent Akademisi, Cilt: 19 Sayı: 7, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.35674/kent.1938379

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