Representation of Legal Issues in the Social Advertisements of the Public Broadcaster’s First Channel
Author : Soso Gazdeliani, Nino Chalaganidze 05/12/2025
Article ABSTRACT
The representation of social issues through media is made possible by social video advertisements. This form of public communication represents a benevolent type of advertising aimed at mobilizing all available resources to foster a better society. In contemporary media, social advertising functions as a significant instrument for shaping public consciousness and influencing behavioral patterns. Unlike commercial advertising, its objective is not the promotion of a product but the “selling” of social behavior.
This study aims to conduct a systematic, in-depth, and discourse-oriented analysis of social advertisements addressing legal issues broadcast on the First Channel of the Public Broadcaster (2005-2024). The primary objective is to determine which themes, narratives, and functions are employed in these advertisements, and how they contribute to the development of legal awareness, a culture of responsibility, and prosocial behavioral models.
The theoretical framework is based on modeling theory, cultural determinism, framing, priming, and agenda-setting theories. The research employs a multi-method approach, including case study and secondary source analysis, quantitative and qualitative content analysis, as well as discourse and narrative analysis, visual analysis.
The examination of 46 social video advertisements revealed dominant thematic clusters related to human rights, cybersecurity, trafficking, and the fight against the “thief-in-law” mindset, femicide and violence, children’s rights, labor safety, and nepotism.
The findings demonstrate the multifaceted role of legal-themed social advertising, including informational, educational, cautionary, and preventive functions. To ensure the adequate representation of complex legal content, the visual components of these videos are accompanied by corresponding illustrative materials, ultimately resulting in television products of graphic-animated, documentary, or artistic value.
However, the research also identified several challenges: staged scenes that lack authenticity and are detached from reality; insufficient use of statistical evidence; restrictive narrative frameworks; and inadequate diversification of the target audience.
The study confirms that social advertising addressing legal topics constitutes a significant media platform. It is a mechanism with considerable potential to enhance legal awareness and transform behavioral patterns. Nevertheless, the effective functioning of such advertising requires substantial improvement in both content and audiovisual characteristics.
Keywords: social advertising, public broadcaster, law, human rights, Georgia
DOI: https://doi.org/10.55367/ZYGG3066