A study tested an information processing model that incorporates the concepts of episodic and semantic memory. The model was designed to provide for the concurrent study of three advertising and communication variables: product involvement, message appeal, and distraction in viewing conditions. Among the five hypotheses being tested were that positive emotional message appeals increase memory for and result in more positive evaluations of television commercials and that distraction will decrease memory and will negatively affect evaluation of television commercials. Subjects, 48 college juniors and seniors enrolled in an introductory advertising class, were administered a pretest to determine product involvement. In addition, subjects viewed commercials they had not previously seen and completed both a pretest and a posttest to evaluate message appeal. Finally, subjects viewed half of the commercials with no distractions and half of the commercials with distractions to gauge the effects of distractions on viewers. Results indicated that product involvement enhanced memory and evaluation of commercial messages, that positive emotional message appeals enhance evaluation, and that distraction harms both memory and evaluation. (DF)