12 Examples Of Subliminal Advertising and Hidden Messages Messing With Your Head

Justin Andress
Updated December 12, 2017 12 items

Consumer culture drives and directs global society. Annual holidays revolve around it, children are reared on the dogma of corporate product, those in developing nations spend disposable income on products made by those in developing nations. Jobs disappear from wealthy nations only to reappear in poor ones, so those who own companies can drive down cost and increase profit. The desire of the consumer changes the make up of society, not always for the better, as conscious consumerism is an unwelcome value. And coded messages in advertisements keep dutiful, unwoke consumers coming back to the trough for more slop every time a fresh batch is whipped up. 

Popular brands use subliminal advertising to ensure consumer loyalty, hopefully across multiple generations. What better way is there to celebrate Christmas, for instance, than to share a coke with someone you love? Wait, does Coke have anything to do with Jesus? Why would you drink cold soda when it's freezing outside? What are those polar bears doing? Are they going to eat Santa? This is a trick of association, not mind-control, but real examples of subliminal advertising are more prevalent than you might think. 

Of course, being a slave to corporations and banks isn't as nefarious as it sounds, but that doesn't mean capitalist subliminal messages embedded in public spaces aren't ethically questionable. There aren't laws against ads with hidden messages, so it's perfectly acceptable for advertising executives to put subliminal advertising in action. You've probably fallen for these coded messages without even realizing it.

  • A Nice Fat BK Seven-Incher For Your Mouth Hole #FaceRape

    A Nice Fat BK Seven-Incher For Your Mouth Hole #FaceRape
    Photo: Burger King

    All hyperbole aside, the following things appear in this ad:

    • An attractive young women with her mouth and eyes wide open
    • The phallic tip of a sandwich filled thick with meat (pointed at her mouth)
    • The word "blow" right under the phallic sandwich
    • The word "it" right under the woman
    • The term "seven-incher"
    • The phrase "it just tastes better"

    In fact, the ad is so obscene, the model who appears in it (who didn't know she was in the ad), called for a boycott of the company and stated, “I believe in sexual expression in art and the media; it's beautiful and necessary for a healthy society, but IT MUST BE CONSENSUAL otherwise it's RAPE. Nice family restaurant you're running there Burger King. #boycottbk #facerape #SuckOnYourOwnSlimySevenIncher.”

  • You Can Think Of Skittles As Skeetles If You Prefer

    You Can Think Of Skittles As Skeetles If You Prefer
    Photo: Mars, Inc

    Skittles Berry Explosion? More like rainbow-colored sexplosion, given the convenient positioning of the Skittle just to the left of the flavor line name. 

  • It's Not Just Your Floors That Get Laid By The Best

    It's Not Just Your Floors That Get Laid By The Best
    Photo: DJ Flooring

    The tagline on this DR Flooring ad let's you know straight away what's being sold: "Laid By The Best." Don't we all want to be? Here's where it gets run: flip the ad upside down, cover the woman's head and champagne glass, and you'll see a woman double clicking her mouse, presumably lubricating herself in preparation for being laid by the best. 

  • A Palmolive Print Might Ad Gets You All Hot And Nasty For Shower Sex

    A Palmolive Print Might Ad Gets You All Hot And Nasty For Shower Sex
    Photo: Palmolive

    What's strange about this shampoo and body wash ad? It's your standard thin, large-breasted, naked-but-tastefully-covered woman-in-the-shower piece. Or is it? Take a look at the hand on her leg. That's a man's hand. The ad isn't selling the tantalizing  image of a naked woman, but the fantasy of you screwing that woman, which will undoubtedly happen if you load up on Palmolive. Or the notion you'll get lucky in the shower with whomever is your life and willing to sleep with you if you have the right shower and body wash.

    A similar Palmolive ad, with less nudity, ran around the same time as this one, driving home the man-hand theme. 

  • The Bush Campaign Called Gore A Rat In An Attack Ad

    The Bush Campaign Called Gore A Rat In An Attack Ad
    Video: YouTube

    Long before Donald Trump gaslighted America with a deceptively complex method of poisoning the well, the people running George W. Bush's presidential campaign used subliminal messages to turn the tide of the election against Al Gore.

    In an ad designed to poke holes in Gore’s healthcare proposals, the Bush campaign released an attack ad in which the word “rats” appeared on the screen for no more than a thirtieth of a second. The message was discovered almost instantly, leaving the Bush campaign to deny the attack from top to bottom, no matter how much the evidence was stacked against it.

  • Disney Hides Mickey Ears Everywhere To Sear Its Logo Onto Your Brain

    Disney Hides Mickey Ears Everywhere To Sear Its Logo Onto Your Brain
    Video: YouTube

    Even when it was nothing but a creepy animatronic ride, Disney was seriously proud of Pirates of the Caribbean. When the intellectual property made the leap to the big screen, the company wanted to make damn sure people knew who had dominion over the high seas.

    You can make Mickey yourself from the Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl poster. Take a pen and make two circles around the hilt of the blades (or torches, as the case may be) behind the skull at the center of the poster. Blacken the whole thing and, voila, you have the recognizable silhouette of a very famous mouse.

    This shouldn't be at all surprising for those familiar with the way Disney repeatedly advertises itself in all its product. Take a look at this clip of hidden mouse ears in the first Pirates movie, or see Rogue One: A Disney Cash Cow Star Wars Story for the silhouette of a mouse head in an explosion during the Battle of Scarif. And check out this massive list of hidden Mickeys in Disney animated films.

  • A McDonald's Ad Popped Up For A 30th Of A Second On Iron Chef

    A McDonald's Ad Popped Up For A 30th Of A Second On Iron Chef
    Video: YouTube

    In 2007, McDonald’s was caught in the crossfire when its logo popped up for a split second during an episode of Food Network’s Iron Chef. Though the logo was only on screen for a brief moment, YouTubers caught it and accused the animal death plant family restaurant of subliminal advertising.

    McDonald’s, a sponsor of the show, flatly denied the accusation. Spokesman Bill Whitman said bluntly, “We don't do subliminal advertising.” Food Network spokesman Mark O'Connor chalked the appearance of the logo up to a technical glitch: "It was a technical error on our part and not a subliminal message as suggested by a website running the slow-motion playback."

    What do you think, sheeple? A technical glitch, or an attempt at mind control from corporate overlords gone wrong, which they then backpedaled on?

  • Your Average Coke Vending Machine Has Two Naked Women On It

    Your Average Coke Vending Machine Has Two Naked Women On It
    Video: YouTube

    The Coca-Cola Company has mastered subliminal messaging. For example, your standard Coke vending machine supposedly features the silhouettes of two naked women, as evidenced in the video above. The first is in the ice formation at the top of the can, the second is leaning over provocatively between the glass bottle and the label. What effect this has on straight women and gay men remains unclear. Because everyone gets thirsty for naked women.

  • Marlboro Sponsors Ferrari Despite Ban On Tobacco In Sports Thanks To trompe L'oeil

    Marlboro Sponsors Ferrari Despite Ban On Tobacco In Sports Thanks To trompe L'oeil
    Video: YouTube

    In 2010, the European Union decided to crack down on smoking. One of its primary targets was advertising at sports events. This news bothered ad execs at Marlboro, which had just spent $1 billion on advertising at Formula One.

    How did the company respond? By replacing its standard logo on the Ferrari car with a bar code. When the car reached top speeds, the unintelligible bar code morphed into the Marlboro logo. The association of cigarettes with sports is also surely a form of subliminal advertising, as athletes are very healthy, and yet everyone knows smoking is bad for you.

  • Amazon’s Logo Wants to Bathe You In a Sense of Security

    Amazon’s Logo Wants to Bathe You In a Sense of Security
    Photo: Amazon

    A close look at the logo for Amazon.com reveals an arrow running between the A and the Z. The reason is two-fold. First, the implication is the site has everything you could possibly want, from A to Z. The second, slightly more subtle use for the arrow is it’s upward curving smile-like appearance. In other words, the logo says you can get anything you want at Amazon, and you’ll be glad you did. Now go, consumer slave, and purchase. 

  • KFC Created A Meta Subliminal Campaign Out Of A Subliminal Ad

    KFC Created A Meta Subliminal Campaign Out Of A Subliminal Ad
    Video: YouTube

    In 2008, KFC snuck a tiny one dollar bill into the lettuce of a 99 cent sandwich in a commercial, presumably to drive home the point the glob of fried dead bird, watery leaf, and seeded roll  tasty snack could be yours for less than a buck. Someone online pointed this out, and it was quickly uncovered that the individual who "discovered" this was a marketing employee of the company trying to get it to go viral. Which begs that question, which was the actual subliminal advertising, the dollar bill or the leaking, about which you're still reading years later? Where's the line, dear sheeple, between sharing knowledge and generating free advertising for corporations based on their advertising? Is the world naught but a snake consuming its own tail?

    It should be noted Youtuber Dapper Turtle left an Internet-winning comment on a video pointing out the lettuce dollar: "HOLY SHI* THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING 9/11 IS SO CLEAR NOW." 

  • SFX Likes To Remind Nerds They All Want To Sex Scorching Sci-Fi Ladies

    SFX Likes To Remind Nerds They All Want To Sex Scorching Sci-Fi Ladies
    Photo: SFX

    Science fiction magazine SFX has been a UK nerd favorite for more than 20 years. And yet, not every sold can be attributed to sterling editorial standards. The magazine has repeatedly been accused of altering its cover whenever a woman is the focal point.

    In the instances in question, the woman's head is positioned in such a way that the title of the magazine appears to be SEX. What could the publication possibly hope to accomplish hinting at the possibility of seeing boobs when marketing to teenage science fiction fans?

    To be fair to SFX, this also happens sometimes when there's a man on the cover. But who doesn't want to have sex with Christian Bale in his Batman costume?