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Devotion Inc. spreads confusion
By Adam Johnson
 Media Credit: Adam Masloski Posters and pamphlets from Devotion Inc have been placed at various locations on campus.
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SCSU students have recently found themselves dumbfounded by a poster campaign on campus for a group calling themselves Devotion Inc. The good news is they are not alone. The bad news is, for now, the meaning behind these advertisements is a closely guarded secret.
About a month ago, a number of confusing posters began appearing all over campus. The posters feature a cryptic white insignia, under which vague slogans such as "devotion = addiction" and "conformity liberates" are written. These mysterious advertisements have teased students incessantly with the notion of what they could possibly represent.
The only other information to be found on the posters is the Web address www.devotioninc.com. Unfortunately, the Web site is just as confusing as the posters. It consists mainly of a quiz in which the test-taker is asked vague questions about freedom and is encouraged to choose the answers that represent surrendering that freedom.
In an informal survey of 50 random SCSU students, 52 percent said they had seen the posters, but most confessed that they had no clue as to what they could possibly be directed towards. The most common theory was that the posters were sponsored by a religious group of some sort.
Others felt that the white symbol on the posters represented a cigarette pack and that it was part of an anti-smoking campaign. Still others thought the slogans could relate to the impending war or anti-war effort.
Like other similar campaigns in the past, the advertisers appear to be relying on a sense of mystery to arouse student interest and keep them wondering what will come next. However, this tactic appears to be sparking suspicion in some students, and a range of emotions from obsession to apathy in others.
Sophomore Peter Bergquist feels that the campaign will most likely suffer as a result of its lack of clarity.
"They're trying desperately to spark interest," Bergquist said. "But by being too vague, they might lose some people who would otherwise be into their cause."
In addition to the posters, a number of pamphlets carrying the same symbol and slogans have begun circulating on campus. Like the posters, the pamphlet is very cryptic, but does provide clues as to the nature of the campaign.
After 15 pages of snappy slogans and mantras designed to entice the reader with the promise of "order, structure, (and) exactitude," the subject of cigarettes is casually brought up. The pamphlet goes on to tell readers that addiction is a myth and that in actuality "to be addicted is to be devoted."
This would lead readers to believe that these advertisements must either be an anti-smoking initiative, or a bid by the tobacco companies to increase sales. However, Advertising Sequence Coordinator Roger Rudolph of the Mass Communications department believes there may be more to it than that.
"It might not be as simple as (anti-smoking ads)," Rudolph said. "It looks as though it may very well be a religious-based addiction treatment organization...trying to break students' devotion to cigarettes in exchange for spirituality."
Student organizations, who must approve all posters displayed on campus, is unable to provide concrete information about the campaign, but promises that the purpose of the ads will become clearer in the coming weeks. Until then, little is known about who is behind the posters or what they intend to accomplish, other than that SCSU is one of six campuses across the state being used to test the effectiveness of this new campaign.
Undoubtedly the posters are effective in that the buzz surrounding them appears to be growing daily, yet some feel this could be a dangerous thing.
Rudolph expressed concern that if the advertiser's motives are less than altruistic, the campaign might hook unwitting students with its alluring sense of ambiguity. He points out that normally, when people are presented with information they make a conscious choice to accept or reject it.
"In this case, however, students are not presented with enough information to effectively process it," Rudolph said. "The ads are thereby holding their interest and increasing the power of the message once it is given to them."
No doubt the organizers behind these advertisements are fully aware of this, and hoping that this tiered-structure campaign will be worth their investment.
But until the meaning behind this Devotion Inc. mystery is revealed, all students can do is keep their eyes open, and hope that the message behind these signs is a positive one.
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