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Abstract

United Colors of Benetton, or UCB, has been using its advertisements to deliver positive messages and values that the clothing company represents. This article analyzes one of the photographs in Benetton’s campaign for their Spring Summer Collection of 2018. The campaign, which consists of some photographs by Oliviero Toscani, raises the theme of equality of gender and ethnicity. It shows various photographs of both female and male models from different ethnicities. However, it is found that there is one photograph that shows inconsistency with the very value that Benetton wants to convey through their campaign. Based on the semiotic analysis, the study shows that the photograph can be read as having an entirely different message that the company intends to voice. This article proves that multiple interpretations can be applied to a text, and a text can betray itself.

Bahasa Abstract

United Colors of Benetton atau UCB sejak lama menggunakan iklan-iklan mereka untuk menyampaikan pesan dan nilai-nilai positif yang didukung oleh perusahaan. Penelitian ini menganalisis salah satu foto dari iklan Benetton untuk koleksi musim panas dan musim semi 2018 mereka. Iklan untuk koleksi itu terdiri atas beberapa foto karya Oliviero Toscani yang menampilkan model laki-laki dan perempuan dari latar belakang etnis yang berbeda-beda dan mengusung tema kesetaraan gender dan ras. Dari analisis ini ditemukan satu foto yang justru menunjukkan pesan berbeda dari keinginan Benetton untuk menyampaikan pesan mereka melalui iklan. Dengan menggunakan pendekatan semiotik, ditemukan bahwa sebuah foto dapat diinterpretasikan dengan berbagai cara, bahkan mungkin bertolak belakang dengan maksud oleh pembuatnya. Dari penelitian ini dapat disimpulkan bahwa sebuah teks bisa memiliki multitafsir dan justru dapat mengkhianati pesan yang dikehendaki penggubahnya.

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