Wilson Bryan Key (January 31, 1925 – October 8, 2008) was an American writer. He was the author of several books about subliminal messages and subliminal advertising.

Career

Key obtained his doctorate in communications from the

University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private research university in Denver, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1864, it has an enrollment of approximately 5,700 undergraduate students and 7,200 graduate students. It is classified among "R1: D ...

and taught journalism for a short period of time at the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO; branded as Western University) is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thame ...

. He was a colleague and friend of

Marshall McLuhan Herbert Marshall McLuhan (, ; July 21, 1911 – December 31, 1980) was a Canadian philosopher whose work is among the cornerstones of the study of media studies, media theory. Raised in Winnipeg, McLuhan studied at the University of Manitoba a ...

. A US court case in 1990 accused the English Heavy Metal Band Judas Priest of causing suicide through subliminal messaging. Key advised the plaintiffs lawyer to hire Bill Nickloff, an audio engineer, to find the subliminal messaging. The judge found that the defendant was not responsible for the deaths.

Death

Key died following complications resulting from surgery. He is interred at the Northern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Fernley, Nevada.

Criticism

His results and conclusions have been challenged, in books including the following: * * Reprinted in ''Encounters with the Paranormal: Science, Knowledge, and Belief'', edited by Kendrick Frazier, Prometheus Books, 1998, 253–263. * Reprinted in ''Encounters with the Paranormal: Science, Knowledge, and Belief'', edited by Kendrick Frazier, Prometheus Books, 1998, 240–252.

Bibliography

* ''Subliminal Seduction: Are You Being Sexually Aroused By This Picture?'' a.k.a. ''Ad Media's Manipulation of a Not So Innocent America'' (1974). Introduction by

. Prentice-Hall, Inc. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: . * ''Media Sexploitation'' (1976). Prentice-Hall, Inc. * ''The Clam-Plate Orgy: And Other Subliminal Techniques for Manipulating Your Behavior'' (1980). Signet. ** reissued as ''Subliminal Ad-Ventures in Erotic Art'' (1992). Branden Books. * ''The Age of Manipulation: The Con in Confidence, The Sin in Sincere'' (1989). H. Holt.

References

External links

''The Straight Dope'': "Are subliminal messages secretly embedded in advertisements?" (1987)

Interview with Wilson Bryan Key
Source Material for ''Brainwash: The Secret History of Mind Control'' (by phone, March 27, 2005) {{DEFAULTSORT:Key, Wilson Bryan 1925 births 2008 deaths People from Richmond, California Mind control theorists Academic staff of the University of Western Ontario University of Denver alumni 20th-century American non-fiction writers American male non-fiction writers 20th-century American male writers