Rhetoric, Inc.: Ford's Filmmaking and the Rise of Corporatism

In 1914, the Ford Motor Company established its Motion Picture Laboratory to educate its workforce and promote its products. By 1961, Ford films had reached sixty-four million people, influencing American labor, corporate style, production practices, road building, suburbanization, and consumer culture. Timothy Johnson's book, Rhetoric, Inc., explores the persuasive rhetoric of Ford films and their impact on the modern American corporation.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 240 pages
Publication date: 17 May 2022
Publisher: Pennsylvania State University Press

In 1914, the Ford Motor Company established its Motion Picture Laboratory, an in-house operation dedicated to producing motion pictures for the purpose of educating its workforce and promoting its products. Just six years later, Ford films had made their way into schools, newsreels, travelogues, and even feature films across the country. By 1961, it is estimated that the company's movies had reached an audience of sixty-four million people. This comprehensive study explores the growth and prominence of Fords corporate film program in corporate America. Drawing on nearly three hundred hours of material produced between 1914 and 1954, Timothy Johnson chronicles the history of Fords filmmaking campaign and analyzes selected films, visual and narrative techniques, and genres. He demonstrates how what began as a narrow educational initiative evolved into a global marketing strategy that presented a vision not only of Ford but of American life more broadly. Through his analysis, Johnson uncovers a powerful rhetoric that Ford employed to influence American labor, corporate style, production practices, road building, suburbanization, and consumer culture. The company's early and sustained success inspired other corporations to adopt similar programs.

Persuasive and meticulously researched, Rhetoric, Inc. documents the significant role that imagery and messaging played in shaping the modern American corporation. It also provides a revealing glimpse into the cultural shift towards the economy as a source of entertainment, value, and meaning.

Weight: 340g
Dimension: 229 x 152 x 17 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780271087917