This thesis analyzed the securitization of COVID-19 in Norway as a negotiation of meaning between the public and Norway’s prime minister. By employing framing analysis and a sociological approach to securitization, this thesis breaks with the binary view of ‘audience acceptance’ in securitization theory’s original framework. Instead, it argues for the relevance of understanding securitization in the context of COVID-19 as an intersubjective process between securitizing actor and audience. While scholars have tended to overlook the audience’s role in securitization processes, this thesis analyzed both the securitizing actor’s and the audience’s perspective. This made it possible to reveal competing views regarding threat perception and emergency measures.  The thesis contributed to the theoretical debate on the audience by highlighting the special ingrained role the public has been assigned in this particular securitization context. The nuanced analysis of audience acceptance showed that despite a general resonance regarding the threat perception, it revealed important tensions regarding the measures and the audience’s participatory role in the process. This questions whether COVID-19 in Norway can be considered to have been ‘successfully securitized’.

Traditional advertising has decreased while product placement in, for example, movies has increased. This has led to a problem, which is that viewers can perceive product placement as something negative. Product placement enhances viewers’ ability to recognize brands and products after watching a movie, while the placements can be congruent or incongruent. This study examines how brand recognition is produced and how congruence of a placement can affect audience acceptance. In response to this, a case study was conducted with embedded units consisting of three focus groups where the authors proceeded from a semi-structured interview guide. The study’s result was that five factors; irritation, familiarity, lack of excitement, unnecessary and iconic can impact how brand recognition is generated, based on the results of the focus groups. The study also resulted in placements that are congruent to the audience are accepted, while non-accepting placements are incongruent. A placement’s congruence is affected by the factors; expectancy and relevancy, perceived fit and individual judgements, and plot connection. / Traditionell reklam har minskat medan produktplacering i exempelvis filmer har ökat. Detta har lett till ett problem, vilket är att tittarna kan uppfatta produktplaceringen som något negativt. Produktplacering kan leda till att tittarna känner igen märken och produkter efter att det har sett en film och deras placeringar kan vara passande eller opassande. Den här studien undersöker hur varumärkesigenkänning uppstår och hur en placerings överensstämmelse kan påverka tittarnas accepterande. För att svara på detta gjordes en fallstudie med inbäddade enheter som bestod av tre fokusgrupper där författarna utgick från en semistrukturerad intervjuguide. Studiens resultat var att fem faktorer; irritation, bekantskap, brist på spänning, onödighet och ikoniskt påverkade hur varumärkesigenkänning uppstår baserat på resultatet från fokusgrupperna. Studien resulterade även i att de placeringar tittarna fann passande till filmen är accepterade, medan placeringar som inte är accepterande är opassande. En placerings överensstämmelse påverkas av faktorerna; förväntning och relevans, uppfattad lämplighet och individuella bedömningar och huruvida en placering är kopplad till handlingen.