So, in 2005 or 2006 I read an article about product placements in comic books, and that led me to start thinking about advertising in a way I had never thought of before: as a profession.
Working my way through grad school, I always kept an eye on product placement in comics (and in other mediums) and finally just decided to dive into it. So, I spent an inordinate amount of time combing through everything I could about the connection between the world of creating comics, publishing comics and marketing them/in them. What I ended up with was a paper that combined a bit of investigative journalism, focus group sessions and in-depth literature review.
The paper exists in two parts, the paper proper, in which I do the whole thesis thing, and an extended interview with former Marvel Advertising Director Joe Maimone, in which I talk a lot and try to listen more. Below are both parts wrapped up in one document, with the interview portion also available elsewhere on the site (read part 1 and part 2).
You can also view or download this paper at:
