Bilingualism and code-switching in Philippine television advertisements: An exploratory study

Marianne Jennifer M. GaerlanDe La Salle University-Manila

Introduction

Code-switching is an interesting ability that only bilinguals (and multilinguals)

have. What is even more interesting is knowing when bilinguals code-switch, how they

code-switch and most especially, why they code-switch. A wide array of studies on

codeswitching has looked into almost every aspect of this phenomenon, mostly from a

sociolinguistic perspective.

Surveying recent investigations that have looked into code-switching, one finds

many fascinating and useful studies. Lowi (2005) examined naturally occurring telephone

conversations between bilingual Spanish-English speakers to describe the types of code-

switching that occur. Results of the study revealed code-switches in lexicon, tags,

expressions, phrases, and switches used as discourse features such as for emphasis,

change of topic, and for display of affect. Angermeyer (2003) suggested that lexical

cohesion be regarded as an important factor in determining lexical choice in bilingual

speech. He theorized that speakers use insertions in an attempt to establish cohesive ties

to utterances that they or others have made previously in the course of a bilingual

conversation. He looked at occurrences of code-switching in Spanish-English bilingual

speech in court testimonies and found that insertional code-switching may trigger a more

accurate translation by interpreters, giving non-English litigants more control of the

rendering of their statements.

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Due to the fact that approximately eighty percent of the world’s population is

bilingual, it is not surprising that there are numerous descriptions of code-switching in

several different languages around the world. Jacobson (2002) offered some examples of

Malay-English code-switching evident in naturally occurring conversations in university

faculty meetings, in corporate and business meetings, and in court hearings. Mahootian

(2002) chose to examine code-switching in a Spanish-English bilingual women’s

magazine and concluded that the switches are meant to create a sense of community

among bilingual Spanish-English speakers.

In the Philippines, some research has been done on code-switching including

Bautista’s (1999) analysis of the functions of English-Tagalog code-switching in e-mails

and Chanco, Francisco, and Talamisan’s (1999 in Bautista, 1999) description of code-

switching patterns of some Filipino television hosts. Dayag (2002 in Martin, 2006)

conducted a grammatical and pragmatic analysis of code-switching in Philippine print

advertisements. Martin (2006) analyzed code-switching practices in Science courses

taught in selected Philippine tertiary-level institutions and found that it is actually

beneficial in delivering content knowledge. She concluded that code-switching is actually

a “pedagogical tool for motivating student response and action, ensuring rapport and

solidarity, promoting shared meaning, checking student understanding, and maintaining

the teaching narrative” (p. 135).

The very basic definition of code-switching as provided by Baker (2006) is “when

one language is mixed with another” (p. 109) and the extent and type of “mixing” or

“switching” has been identified, described, and categorized by numerous linguists.

Poplack and Sankoff (1988 in Bautista, 1999) identified four mechanisms at play in a

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code-switch: smooth switching at equivalence sites, flagged switching, constituent

insertion, and nonce borrowing. Smooth switching is “changing the language of the

sentence only at syntactic boundaries which occur in both languages” (p. 19), while

flagged switching is “switching marked by hesitation, metalinguistic commentary, or

pauses to call attention to the code-switch” (Bautista, 1999, p. 19). On the other hand,

constituent insertion is “inserting a grammatical constituent in one language at an

appropriate point, for that type of constituent, in a sentence of the other language”

(Poplack & Sankoff, 1988 in Bautista, 1999, p. 19). Finally, nonce borrowing involves

“borrowing for the time being or for the occasion” (Bautista, 1999, p. 20). These

categories and descriptions overlap with several others provided by researchers on

bilingualism such as Baker (2006) who made the distinction between code-mixing (when

one word or a few words in a sentence change), code-switching (when the first phrase in

a sentence is in one language and the second phrase is in another), and language

borrowing. Language borrowing is perhaps the most difficult type of “mix” or “switch”

to identify because it is used to describe foreign loan words or phrases that have become

an integral and permanent part of the recipient language. Baker admits that “all languages

borrow words or phrases from other languages with which they come into contact” (p.

110) and so code-switches and loans are not really separate and distinct. As was admitted

by Eastman (1992, in Baker, 2006), “efforts to distinguish code-switching, code-mixing,

and borrowing are doomed” (p. 110).

Studies that have painstakingly identified “types” of switches and mixes between

two languages used by a bilingual were usually those who were concerned about

grammar and syntax or the analysis of discourse. From the perspective of those who do

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research in the field of sociolinguistics on the other hand, the purposes or functions of

code-switches is of utmost interest and importance. This inevitably dovetails with

research in the fields of psycholinguistics and bilingualism where the concern is the

processes that bilinguals undergo when they code-switch and also their purposes for

doing so. Heredia and Altarriba (2001) asked the quintessential question, “Why do

bilinguals code-switch?” and proceeded to explain why the oft-given explanation that

bilinguals code-switch because they are compensating for lack of language proficiency

does not hold water. They offered reasons for code-switching such as the fact that

switching to English (or to another language) makes it easier and faster for a speaker to

retrieve the word/s that he needs. There is also the fact that some ideas are better

communicated in one language than another. Grosjean (1982) pointed out that “code-

switching not only fills a momentary linguistic need, it is also a very useful

communication resource” (p. 148). Obviously, bilinguals and multilinguals take

advantage of their having two or more languages as tools for communication.

Despite numerous studies, it seems that the area of code-switching is far from

exhausted in terms of investigations. As observed by Mahootien (2002), there seems to

be a scarcity of research on code-switching in written discourse. In the Philippines, where

almost everyone is at least bilingual (with a large percentage of the population possibly

trilingual or multilingual due to the existence of many Philippine languages), code-

switching is apparent not only in naturally-occurring conversations, but also in media

such as the Internet, newspaper and magazine articles, signage, news and television

programs, and print and television advertisements.

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Because English is a second language for Filipinos, it is not uncommon to find

code-switches from Filipino to English and vice versa in both written and spoken

discourse in the Philippines. Because media is such a great influence on language and

society as a whole, many arguments have been put forth regarding the effects of code-

switching especially in the area of language learning and in the field of education. As

Martin (2006) noted, although code-switching is natural and perhaps even necessary in

Philippine education (due to the advantages that were discussed earlier), it remains to be

a touchy issue. This is probably because many researchers and educators still believe that

code-switching is evidence of a lack of proficiency in either or both of the languages that

a bilingual knows. Nevertheless, because code-switching is natural for bilinguals, what

would be more intriguing to know is why they do it even if they are proficient in both (or

all) languages that they know. Kachru (1986, in Gao, 2005) talked about the concept of

bilinguals’ creativity which refers to creative linguistic processes which are the result of

competence in two or more languages. According to him, bilinguals’ linguistic creativity

usually involves two things: 1) a discourse that features two or more languages (code-

switching or code-mixing) and 2) verbal strategies for various sociological,

psychological, and attitudinal reasons.

As mentioned earlier, code-switching is not only evident in naturally occurring

but also in contrived or “scripted” discourse such as those found in television programs

and advertisements. Advertisements are particularly interesting because they are

practically everywhere: on the streets, on the Internet, in reading material, on the radio,

on television. Copywriters, motivated by their purpose of persuading the consumer to

purchase their product, craft advertisements that are both creative and persuasive.

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In a bilingual or multilingual country such as the Philippines, many

advertisements try to imitate naturally occurring conversation, which would include

code-switches. In all forms of advertisement, some type of language mix or switch is

apparent; as a matter of fact, on television, it is evident in around 40 to 50 percent of

advertisements. Bayer (2005) said that communication through television is a significant

mode to promote new discourse in multiple languages. Since advertisements are very

influential and reflect a society, it would thus be a worthy endeavor to explore code-

switching in television advertisements.

To date, very little research has been done on code-switching in Philippine

television advertisements, specifically from the perspective of bilingualism. Most studies

on code-switching have looked at it from a sociolinguistic angle. Thompson (2003)

investigated language switching in Philippine television commercials to see the

underlying values that advertisers hope will motivate Filipino consumers. The ads were

categorized as being either predominantly English or predominantly Filipino. Results

showed that Filipino-dominant ads were for products like food, health products,

detergents, alcoholic beverages, and government services. On the other hand, English-

dominant ads were mostly for appliances, food, clothing, banking and finance, toiletries,

and non-alcoholic beverages. Thompson concluded that the use of English in the ads was

done to present English as promoter of good character, as promoter of good fortune, and

as “love potion.”

With regard to television in general, Bayer (2005) argued that this medium might

promote language loss and/or shift of the powerless dialects, sociolects, and tribal home

languages in India. As for print advertising, Gao (2005) examined the use of English in

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Chinese-English bilingual print advertisements and concluded that it is evidence of

bilingual creativity. He concluded that the use of English is not primarily intended for

communicating information about advertised products, but is meant for other pragmatic

purposes, such as to give potential buyers the impression that the products are of good

and dependable quality, seeing that a superior quality is usually associated with the use of

English for most Chinese people. Luna and Peracchio (2001) explored how bilinguals

processed advertising messages written in their L1 and L2 and found that ad-related

factors such as the congruity between the ad’s picture and its copy facilitate conceptual

processing. They also found that processing motivation influence ad effectiveness by

enhancing ad recall.

Although there have been studies on code-switching specifically in the

Philippines, there seems to be a scarcity of investigations on code-switches in television

ads considering that the television is a big influence on language learning due to the fact

that the common person is exposed to language in television probably as much as he is

exposed to language used by the people around him.

The present study aims to describe the occurrence of code-switching in Philippine

television advertisements and will specifically try to answer the following research

questions:

1) What types of code-switching occur in Philippine television advertisements?

2) Is switching from Filipino to English more common or is it the other way around?

3) What are the possible reasons/motivations behind these switches?

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Methodology

Data

The advertisements analyzed in this study were from a corpus of 60 television

advertisements audio-recorded from November 17-19, 2007 at different times of the day

to ensure that advertisements shown on weekdays, weekends, morning, afternoon, and

evening would be included. Only advertisements shown on local channels (ABS-CBN 2,

ABC 5, GMA 7, RPN 9, QTV 11, and STUDIO 23) were recorded and only those

advertisements where code-switches occurred were included in the analysis.

Advertisements shown on cable channels were not included as it was presumed that there

would be less or no occurrence of code-switching .

Data analysis

The recordings were subsequently transcribed and each advertisement was first

categorized according to product being advertised. Then, each ad was divided into idea

units. An idea unit is a chunk of information, which is viewed by the speaker or writer

cohesively as it is given a surface form, related to psychological reality for the encoder

(Crookes, 1990). This unit of analysis was selected because it seems to be the more

appropriate way of looking at code-switching in ads compared to analyzing in terms of

utterances or sentences which tend to be difficult in instances when code-switches are not

between utterances and sentences, but instead between ideas.

Idea units in Filipino and English were identified, as well as the idea units that

were code-switched. Despite the position of Eastman (1992, in Baker, 2006) that it is

hopeless to try and make a distinction between codes-switching (or code-mixing) and

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language borrowing, the type of code-switching in each ad in the present study was

identified using Baker’s (2006) categories for purposes of providing a richer description:

Code-mixing – when one or few words in a sentence change.

Code-switching – when the first phrase (or sentence) is in one language and the

other is in another language.

Language borrowing – the use of foreign loan words or phrases that have become

an integral and permanent part of the recipient language.

After identifying the type of code-switch, a modified version of Baker’s (2006)

taxonomy of purposes of code-switching was used to identify the possible purpose of

code-switching in each advertisement; only those purposes deemed appropriate to code-

switches in television advertisements were used to categorize the present data:

1) For emphasis – code-switches may be used to emphasize a particular point in a

conversation. If one word needs stressing or is central in a sentence, a switch may

be made.

2) To express a concept that has no equivalent in the culture of the other language –

words and phrases in two languages may not correspond exactly and the bilingual

may switch to one language.

3) To clarify a point – repetition of a phrase or passage in another language may be

used.

4) To express identity, communicate friendship, or family bonding – for example,

moving from the common majority language to the home language or minority

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language which both the listener and speaker understand well may communicate

friendship and common identity.

5) To ease tension and inject humor .

6) To signal a change in topic – in some bilingual situations, code-switching occurs

regularly when certain topics are introduced (e.g. money, business).

7) To economize terms that will be too lengthy if said in a certain language .

8) To avoid using awkward -sounding words-to use terms that “sound” better.

The study identifies and discusses the types of code-switching found in Philippine

television advertisements but the identification is not intended to be exhaustive but

instead illustrative. The categorization is also not meant to be exclusive as there are

overlaps between categories.

Results and discussion

The breakdown of the ads according to product are as follows: Food (23),

Medicines/Vitamins (13), Detergent/Cleaning aids (5), Toiletries/Cosmetics (13),

Telecommunications (4), Public service (1), banking and finance (1), and Alcohol/Liquor

(1).

Out of the 320 idea units in the 60 advertisements, 88 or around 27 percent were

in English, 103 or around 32 percent were in Filipino and 129 or around 40 percent were

code-switched. These figures seem to prove that code-switching is indeed evident in

Philippine television advertisements and in fact, it can be concluded from these figures

that code-switching is dominant in these ads.

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With regard to patterns of code-switch in terms of which language switches to

what, data show that 39 out of the 60 advertisements started in Filipino and switched to

English, while the other 21 shifted from English to Filipino. This result is not surprising

considering the fact that despite being proficient in English, Filipinos’ native language

and mother tongue is still Filipino.

As regards the specific type of code-switch, 49 of the 60 ads had code-mixed

ideas, 22 out of the 60 ads had code-switched ideas, and 17 exhibited language-

borrowing. It is possible that code-mixing occurred more than the other two types of

switches because of reasons such as terms having no equivalent in the native language, or

for economizing purposes. Note however that Baker (2006) was correct in saying that it

is difficult to make distinctions between these three types of switches because “all

languages borrow words or phrases from other languages with which they come into

contact” (p. 110) and thus there exist overlaps; some code-switched and code-mixed

ideas also used “borrowed” words from either English or Filipino, the two languages

present in the ads used in this study. The types of switches and the overlaps that occurred

will be described in detail with the use of examples (in idea units) from the corpus.

Likewise, the purpose of the code-switch will be described:

Code-mixing

(1) Para sa ubo, may gamot na gawa sa chemicals na may possible side effects, at

merong natural.

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In (1) which is an excerpt from the advertisement for Ascof Lagundi cough

medicine, both code-mixing and language borrowing are evident. Note how the sentence

is Filipino-dominant, with only a few words in English inserted. There are actually

equivalent words in Filipino for chemicals, possible, and natural (“kemikal,” “posible,”

and “natural”) but the copywriters probably decided to code-mix for emphasis (the fact

that some other cough medicines are made of chemicals, and the word chemicals itself

may possibly turn off some consumers who regard chemicals as something they would

not want to ingest). The succeeding idea units seems to support this possibility:

(2) Ascof Lagundi, gawa sa one hundred percent Lagundi leaves

(3) clinically proven safe and effective.

In (2) one hundred percent is in English probably for economizing purposes

because it would be too lengthy to say it in Filipino (“isang daang porsyento” or “isang

daang bahagdan”) and perhaps also because the succeeding words are in English.

Likewise, leaves is in English probably for the same reason, despite the fact that there is

an equivalent term in Filipino (“mga dahon”). Note also that in (1), use of the English

phrase side effects is an instance of language borrowing as there is no equivalent term in

Filipino and side effects as a term has already been “adopted” in the Filipino language.

Thus, in the Ascof Lagundi advertisement, both code-mixing and language borrowing are

evident.

(4) Mahirap ang may diabetes.

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(5) Kaya’t habang maaga, eat right, exercise at mag-Ampalaya Plus.

In (4), the use of the term diabetes is evidence of language borrowing because

there is no equivalent term in Filipino and the term has been adopted in the Filipino

language. In (5), eat right and exercise are in English probably for emphasis because

these are the things that are being recommended to the consumer along with using the

advertised product.

Code-mixing may also be done to ease tension and inject humor such as in the

following excerpt from the advertisement for CDO Carne Norte (corned beef):

(6) Dad, pwede na ba kong mag-boyfriend?

(7) Anytime!

(8) May pag-uusapan pa ba sa sarap ng bagong CDO Carne Norte?

(9) Sa sarap palang, tapos na ang usapan!

(10) Eh ako, pwede na ring mag-boyfriend?

In the CDO ad, the first idea unit was uttered by the character playing the

teenage daughter in the family, while the last idea unit was uttered by the character

playing the grandmother. In this case, the word boyfriend was used to inject humor

because it was the same term used by the daughter and the ad wanted to make it seem

incredulous that the grandmother was asking permission to have a boyfriend, too.

Similarly, in the Hapee toothpaste sachet advertisement, humor is injected

by way of code-mixing:

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(11) Dumarami na ang feeling rich.

(12) Kaya salamat sa Hapee sachet, sa presyong limang piso, buy one take one all

year round

(13) mas mayaman ka, fresh breath ka pa!

The ad is referring to a buy one take one promotion of Hapee toothpaste. Feeling

rich is actually a term commonly used by Filipinos (usually in a humorous way) to refer

to people who, precisely, “feel” that they are rich. In this ad, the promo is supposed to

make the consumers feel “rich.” Note also the language borrowing evident in the word

sachet which has no equivalent term in Filipino, and the phrases buy one, take one, all

year round, and fresh breath. “Fresh breath” can actually be translated into Filipino

(“preskong hininga”), but in keeping with the humorous “feeling rich” concept, it is said

in English instead.

Code-switching

Earlier, a code-switch was defined as a sentence in which the first and second

phrases are in two different languages, or in the case of the present data, where an idea

unit in one language is preceded or followed by an idea unit in another language. The

following example demonstrates this:

(14) The stronger your bones are, the more you can do in life.

(15) So get into the Anlene movement.

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(16) Make exercise plus Anlene a daily habit.

(17) Malaya kang gumalaw!

Here, the first three idea units are in English and the code-switch is seen in the last

idea unit, which is in Filipino. “Malaya kang gumalaw” translates to “You are free to

move (around).” The possible purpose of the switch is to express identity or communicate

friendship (note the use of the pronoun “ka” [with the enclitic –ing} which means “you).

Although the ad is in no way a sample of naturally occurring discourse or conversation,

the copywriters who came up with it switched to Filipino for the last idea unit probably

because they wanted the Filipino consumers to be able to “relate” to the ad even though

the dominant language is English. In the following example, however, the switch was

from Filipino to English, but apparently for the same reason:

(18) Baka hindi kaya ng suweldo ko.

(19) Di ko kasi alam kung paano yun eh.

(20) Reluctant to get a loan?

(21) Come to BDO!

(22) You might be surprised at how we find ways to make our loans affordable for

you.

In the advertisement for BDO (Banco de Oro), the switch was made from Filipino

to English when it was the bank’s (or advertiser’s) turn to “talk.” In this case, the purpose

was probably to make the product both accessible and credible in the sense that the

consumer will feel for the characters who were speaking Filipino but also feel

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“welcomed” by the bank despite the fact that the invitation is worded in English. Thus,

the purpose of the switch may also be to express identity and communicate friendship.

In the advertisement that follows (for Bonna Kid milk formula), the code-switch

was probably done to clarify a point and at the same time to express identity:

(23) Bonna Kid with the most number of nucleotides to help strengthen your

child’s immune system.

(24) Batang may laban!

The first idea unit describes in English what the product can do, (i.e. strengthen a

child’s immune system) while the second idea unit basically talks about the same thing,

but in a more casual and “Filipino” way of saying that the child has a strong immune

system. It may also be that “batang may laban” (child with strength) has other meanings

aside from the literal. In Filipino, “may laban” (“having strength” or “with strength”)

pertaining to a person describes the positive attributes courage and confidence.

Language borrowing

Many words used in Philippine television advertisements are actually “borrowed”

words from English but that are actually somehow no longer considered code-switching

due to the fact that they either have no equivalent term in Filipino, or the idea or concept

is much better expressed in English. Take a look at the following excerpt from the

advertisement for Monterey Meats:

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(25) Hi, suki! Kamusta?

(26) Hi! Nag-gi-gym na ko ngayon.

(27) Dapat caldereta, for muscles!

The words gym and muscles are borrowed from the English language since there

are no equivalent terms. Likewise, in the excerpt from the advertisement for New Era

Head and Shoulders shampoo, concepts that are better expressed (or that seem to sound

better) in English are said in English. These can be considered “borrowed” words because

they are already very common in Philippine television advertisements:

(28) Kahit gaano ka-close, kitang kita ang healthy scalp because of New Era

Head and Shoulders.

(29) tinatanggal ang dandruff para ma-renew ang scalp naturally cell by cell kaya

parang bago ulit!

(30) Kaya sa scalp like new, kaya mo nang maging close!

Although there are equivalent terms in Filipino for healthy, scalp, dandruff, close

and like new (“malusog,” “anit,” “balakubak,” “malapit,” and “parang bago”), the

copywriters of this ad chose to switch to English. Their reason for doing so is difficult to

ascertain unless it is theorized that it was done for artistic or creative purposes. It is also

possible that celebrity endorsers had something to do with it. Head and Shoulders

shampoo is endorsed by commercial models with whom upper-class viewers are

supposed to be able to relate to or identify. This however is not consistent because there

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are several ads for Head and Shoulders and all of them are code-switched or have

language borrowings from English, even the ones where local actors such as Angel

Locsin and Richard Gutierrez (whose appeal is usually targeted to the masses) are the

ones endorsing.

The following excerpt from the advertisement for Olay Total Effects

moisturizing cream shows code-mixing, code-switching, and language borrowing:

(31) I go for facial treatments

(32) Syempre to keep my skin younger looking

(33) In fact, there are many treatments to fight skin aging

(34) May lifting, exfoliation, wrinkle-prevention

From (31) to (32), code-switching is evident, as there is a shift from English to

Filipino. This is also evident from (33) to (34). However, (32) and (34) can also be

considered instances of code-mixing as there are Filipino words inserted, syempre (“of

course”) and may (“there is;” “the presence of”). Language borrowing can be seen in

words and phrases such as facial treatments, skin aging, lifting, exfoliation, and wrinkle-

prevention. Aside from having no equivalent (or appropriate) term in the native language,

these terms sound much better when said in English. Note also that this product is

endorsed by Gretchen Barreto, a Filipina actress and socialite. She is viewed by many as

being rich and products that she endorses have connotations of being elegant, luxurious

and expensive. If upper-crust viewers do not perceive her as such, then the appeal of the

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code-switches in this ad is actually for the masses, who may view the product as

something that will make them elegant and luxurious, too.

Similarly, in the ad for Palmolive Naturals Intensive Moisture Shampoo,

celebrity endorser KC Concepcion who is perceived by the masses to be rich, well-

educated and glamorous, uses code-switching:

(35) Girls, you wanna know a fashion secret that I learned in Paris?

(36) It’s all about soft flow.

(37) Maganda siya sa fabric

(38) at maganda rin sa hair ko.

(39) Thanks to Palmolive Naturals Intense Moisture Shampoo.

(40) May formula na enriched with one hundred percent coco cream at milk

protein

(41) that nourishes inside and out

(42) feels like a milk bath for your hair.

(43) Palmolive Naturals. With soft flow, you’ll always shine.

(44) At yan ang laging…in fashion!

In the Palmolive Naturals ad, the purpose of the copywriters for utilizing code-

switches is probably the same ones that the writers of the Olay Total Effects had: to

create an image for the endorser and also for the product. Also, KC Concepcion was

educated at an international school when she was studying in Manila and then she went to

Paris for further education. The code-switch to English thus sounds very natural and the

copywriters probably had that in mind when they wrote the spiel for the commercial.

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Code-switches in different types of products

Table 1. Dominant language according to product type

Product type Total # of ads

# English-dominant ads

# Filipino-dominant ads

English and Filipino equal

Food/beverage 23 11 10 2

Medicine/vitamin 13 1 9 3

Detergent/cleanser 5 0 5 0

Toiletries/cosmetics 13 7 4 2

Public service 1 1 0 0

Banking/finance 1 1 0 0

Alcoholic drink 1 0 1 0

It can be seen in Table 1 that contrary to the results of Thompson’s 2003 study of

language and code-switching in Philippine television advertisements in which it was

found that advertisements for food had Tagalog or Filipino as the dominant language, the

present study’s data yielded food advertisements that had English as the dominant

language. This is probably due to the fact that more and more Filipinos (even the masses)

speak English or at least code-switch from Filipino to English in recent times. This may

be due to more exposure to the English language from media such as the Internet. Since

writers of ads simulate naturally-occurring conversation, this is probably a reflection of

current discourse features.

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Toiletries and cosmetics ads also had English as the dominant language, and this

finding concurs with that of Thompson wherein it was found that ads for toiletries were

predominantly in English. This is probably because toiletries compared to detergents or

medicines are considered “luxury” items, especially the more high-quality ones. As Gao

(2005) noted, the English language is used to connote good quality when used to describe

a product. Likewise, as earlier mentioned, Thompson (2003) observed that English is

used in advertisements to conjure an image of “good fortune.”

Medicines and detergent ads are predominantly in Filipino possibly because these

are not luxury items but are necessities. Thus, there is hardly any need to make the

product seem glamorous or luxurious. Interestingly, the ad for the alcoholic drink,

although a relatively expensive brand is predominantly in Filipino. Perhaps the purpose

of the writers was to make the product more accessible to the consumer and to establish

ties with the audience. Alcoholic beverages are highly saleable items in the Philippines,

among consumers from all socioeconomic classes. Another surprising finding is the fact

that the only ad in the data that is actually a public service announcement is

predominantly in English. However, note that the commercial is actually not for a

product that is local in origin but one that is American (Ronald McDonald House of

Charities). The ad for the bank is understandably predominantly in English because it is

usually the language used for business and commerce.

Summary and conclusions

The present study examined the occurrence of code-switching in bilingual

television advertisements in the Philippines. It was found that code-switched

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advertisements are actually dominant over advertisements in predominantly in English or

predominantly in Filipino. Since a large percentage of the Filipino population own a

television set and is exposed to advertisements for all kinds of products and services,

language in advertisements can certainly be considered “signs of the times” especially

since writers of these ads try to simulate natural conversation. These manifestations of

code-switching should definitely be investigated further especially how it affects

language learning and teaching. Future researchers would also do well to look into the

processes that bilingual copywriters undergo as they come up with these ads.

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References

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