Title of the Project

“MORALITY IN ADVERTISING”

Subject: Business Ethics

Submitted by

Name of the Student: Precely Paul

MMM – Semester - VI Roll No. 76

Morality In Advertising

INTRODUCTION

Morality in Advertising

‘We make you want, what you don’t need’. Advertising has moved from the unique selling

proposition to the emotional selling proposition.

Of all the major perspectives by which people construe the world, advertising is at once

among the most influential and the least examined.

Advertising saturates our social life. We participate daily in deciphering advertising images

and messages. Yet, because advertisements are so pervasive and our reading of them so

routine, we tend to take for granted the deep social assumptions embedded in advertisements.

We do not ordinarily recognise advertising as a sphere of ideology.

Advertising can be very simple — a local, even neighborhood phenomenon — or it can be

very complex, involving sophisticated research and multimedia campaigns that span the

globe.

Not only are many different media and techniques employed in advertising; advertising itself

is of several different kinds: commercial advertising for products and services; public service

advertising on behalf of various institutions, programs, and causes; and — a phenomenon of

growing importance today — political advertising in the interests of parties and candidates.

Making allowance for the differences among the different kinds and methods of advertising,

we intend what follows to be applicable to them all.

Advertisers are selective about the values and attitudes to be fostered and encouraged,

promoting some while ignoring others. This selectivity gives the lie to the notion that

advertising does no more than reflect the surrounding culture. For example, the absence from

advertising of certain racial and ethnic groups in some multi-racial or multi-ethnic societies

can help to create problems of image and identity, especially among those neglected, and the

almost inevitable impression in commercial advertising that an abundance of possessions

leads to happiness and fulfillment can be both misleading and frustrating.

Advertising also has an indirect but powerful impact on society through its influence on

media. Many publications and broadcasting operations depend on advertising revenue for

survival. This often is true of religious media as well as commercial media. For their part,

advertisers naturally seek to reach audiences; and the media, striving to deliver audiences to

advertisers, must shape their content so to attract audiences of the size and demographic

composition sought. This economic dependency of media and the power it confers upon

advertisers carries with it serious responsibilities for both.

Today, in every category products and brands concentrate on marketing, promotion and

advertising of itself. The absolute persuasion on the consumers to purchase the product

immaterial of its consumption criteria is sidelined concentrating more on extending the sales

and the net profitability of the company. Our reason for addressing these matters is simple. In

today's society, advertising has a profound impact on how people understand life, the world

and themselves, especially in regard to their values and their ways of choosing and behaving.

Benefits Of Advertising

Advertising is the most important tool in the marketing of products and services. Companies

all over the world universally accepted this fact. The expenses on advertising are considered

to be a profitable investment that reaps profits both in the long and short run. Businesses that

keep on advertising regardless of rise or fall in the economic times get a competitive

advantage over those that cut their ad budgets. There are many benefits of advertising which

include:

1. Information to the customer.

Advertisement about new products keeps the customer informed about the new developments

in the industry. They help to provide them information regarding the newly launched

products.

2. Takes care of customers.

Advertising takes care of customers. It helps in holding on to the loyal customer, decreasing

the number of lost customers and enlisting new customers. Thus the overall effect of

advertising is increase in the number of customers that will gradually become loyal to the

product.

3. Improves the sale of product.

Advertising facilitates a noticeable increase in the sale of the product. It thus helps reduces

per unit cost of the product and help the businesses to earn profits.

4. Alters the attitudes of people.

An effectual advertisement results in a swift change in the attitudes and habits of the people.

5. Direct communication.

In earlier days customers believed on the opinions of retailers, when making the purchases of

products. With the rapid spread of media and advertising to every nook and corner of the

world, people have become aware of the various products that are available in the same

category and the freebees and benefits of purchasing them. So the companies or

manufacturers are able to communicate their message directly to the customers.

6. Increase employment.

Advertising is a complicated task and a lot of people are involved in the making of an

advertisement. Research team, design team and many other people are required to make and

deliver it. So, advertisements generate employment for a lot of people.

7. Economic progress.

Advertising increases sales, employment and profits. The overall effect of all this is economic

progress for the nation, or more broadly for the world as a whole. Business owners often

don’t realize that one of the benefits of advertising is making potential customers feel more

confident in a business they see advertised. It gives them the sense that the business is

professional, stable and reputable.

8. Religious and moral benefits.

Social and religious institutions use advertising for communicating their messages like

messages of patriotism, faith, compassion tolerance, and charity toward needy, messages

related to health and education. These educate people and guide better behavior.

9. Political Benefits

Political advertising can make a contribution to democracy analogous to its contribution to

economic well being in a market system guided by moral norms. As free and responsible

media in a democratic system help to counteract tendencies toward the monopolization of

power on the part of oligarchies and special interests, so political advertising can make its

contribution by informing people about the ideas and policy proposals of parties and

candidates, including new candidates not previously known to the public.

Summary on The Benefits of Advertising

Economic: useful tool for sustaining honest and ethically responsible competition by

informing people of the availability of rationally desirable new products and services

and improvements in existing ones

Political: helps counteract tendencies toward the monopolization of power by

informing people of the ideas and policy proposals of parties and candidates

Cultural: can exert a positive influence on decisions about media content; contribute

the betterment of society by uplifting and inspiring people and motivating them to act

in ways that benefit themselves and others. Importance of witty, tasteful and

entertaining advertising, even to the point of becoming art.1

Moral and Religious: communicate messages of faith, patriotism, tolerance,

compassion and neighborly service, charity, health, education

Disadvantages of Advertising

There is nothing intrinsically good or intrinsically evil about advertising. It is a tool, an

instrument: it can be used well, and it can be used badly. If it can have, and sometimes does

have, beneficial results such as those just described, it also can, and often does, have a

negative, harmful impact on individuals and society.

If harmful or utterly useless goods are touted to the public, if false assertions are made about

goods for sale, if less than admirable human tendencies are exploited, those responsible for

such advertising harm society and forfeit their good name and credibility. More than this,

unremitting pressure to buy articles of luxury can arouse false wants that hurt both

individuals and families by making them ignore what they really need. And those forms of

advertising which, without shame, exploit the sexual instincts simply to make money or

which seek to penetrate into the subconscious recesses of the mind in a way that threatens the

freedom of the individual.

1. Costly Functions

The strong objection and arguments against the advertising is that it is a costly function. It is

generally criticized that the cost of advertising to too high and that such high cost is covered

by the selling price of the advertising goods. Advertisement is considered as an indirect cost

which is added in the distribution expenses. When expenses are to be increased, the selling

price of the products will also be enhanced. It is true factor because large advertisers spend

thousand of Rupees for advertising in a week. In one study it is found that advertising cost

exceeded 6% of sales. It means that consumers will have to pay higher prices of the

advertised products. But if the goods were not advertised the cost of advertisement cannot

become burden on the consumer. Thus the unbalanced advertising may cause certain goods to

cost the consumers more than they should. So it is regarded as an economic waste.

2. Misleading claims

Some advertisers cleverly create a misleading impressions of their goods. They present a very

rosy picture of their products, before the consumers with the object of increasing their sales.

3. Encourage monopoly

Advertisement restricts the competition among the products. Big industrialists and

manufacturers may exercise their monopolistic control over the market with the help of

advertisement technique which is always against the public interest.

4. High prices

It is undoubtedly true that effective advertising increase the sales volume. This increased sale

will require more products. Thus the large scale production brings down the cost of goods per

unit due to economies in various sectors which reduces the consumes selling prices. But the

producers do not lower the prices and the burden of advertising remains on the shoulders of

consumers.

5. Disconnection of business

Small firms cannot properly advertise their products due to limited resources. But on the

other side entire market is controlled over by great advertisers. It becomes impossible for

small firms to continue their business in the business field so small firms disappear form the

market.

6. Influences purchasing power

Advertising goods are generally available in the market at high prices which influence the

purchasing power of the consumers. So some people use foul means to increase their income

for the purpose of meeting their necessities of life. Thus unnecessary advertising creates the

corruption in the society.

7. Misuse of advertising

Some beautiful switch lights hoardings, posters and moving pictures are fixed generally in

front of some important road for places which have been harmed by the misuse of

advertising. Glaring red neon lights have actually been hazards at certain cross roads.

8. Creating unrequited desire

Another objection is that advertising influences the mind of public. It creates the desire and

taste for new products which are not actually necessities of life and income of consumers will

not let them enjoy. Advertising may thus be regarded as the cause of unrequited desire which

may result in unhappiness.

9. Promotion of social evil

Some firms present immoral program and features and crime stories in Television and Radio

for advertising their products which have a very bad influence upon new generation. So

advertising results in creating social evils in the society and wasting of economy.

10. Buying problems

There are numerous similar types of products which are advertised in the market. But

producers lay great emphasis on minor differences in the formula or technique of advertised

goods. For example there are many brands of advertised Shaving Creams which perform the

same function. But is has become impossible for the average buyer to judge with any

certainly the quality of the hundreds of articles he buys.

Miscellaneous objection

(a) Inferior quality of goods are introduced in the market to deceive the consumers.

(b) The new firm having limited resources cannot compete with a already established big

firms, with the help of advertising.

(c) A large firm can divert demand from one product to another with the help of

advertisement.

(d) Consumer's choice is greatly injured by the advertisement.

(e) As advertising is a comparatively new art so certain media of advertisement is ineffective

and inefficient than it could be.

Summary on The Harms of Advertising

Economic: misrepresent and without relevant facts; subvert the media by pressure not

to treat of questions that are embarrassing and inconvenient; tout harmful or useless

goods; move people based on non-rational decisions; become a tool of

"consumerism"; particularly harmful in economically less developed countries.

Political: costs of advertising can limit political competition to wealthy candidates or

to those willing to compromise their integrity; distorts the views and records of

opponents

Cultural: corrupt culture and cultural values by contradicting sound traditional values;

can create superficiality, tawdriness, and moral squalor; ignore educational and social

needs of certain segments of the audience; contributes to stereotyping of particular

groups

Moral and religious harms: deliberate appeals to motives of envy, status seeking, and

lust creates vulgar and morally degrading advertising; treat of religion in obnoxious

and offensive manners; can promote morally suspect or perverse products and

practices

Moral & Ethical Principles of Advertising

Principles especially relevant to Advertising

The media of social communications have two options, and only two. Either they help human

persons to grow in their understanding and practice of what is true and good, or they are

destructive forces in conflict with human well being. That is entirely true of advertising.

Against this background, then, we point to this fundamental principle for people engaged in

advertising: advertisers — that is, those who commission, prepare or disseminate advertising

— are morally responsible for what they seek to move people to do; and this is a

responsibility also shared by publishers, broadcasting executives, and others in the

communications world, as well as by those who give commercial or political endorsements,

to the extent that they are involved in the advertising process. If an instance of advertising

seeks to move people to choose and act rationally in morally good ways that are of true

benefit to themselves and others, persons involved in it do what is morally good; if it seeks to

move people to do evil deeds that are self-destructive and destructive of authentic

community, they do evil. This applies also to the means and the techniques of advertising: it

is morally wrong to use manipulative, exploitative, corrupt and corrupting methods of

persuasion and motivation. In this regard, we note special problems associated with so-called

indirect advertising that attempts to move people to act in certain ways —for example,

purchase particular products — without their being fully aware that they are being swayed.

The techniques involved here include showing certain products or forms of behavior in

superficially glamorous settings associated with superficially glamorous people; in extreme

cases, it may even involve the use of subliminal messages. Within this very general

framework, we can identify several moral principles that are particularly relevant to

advertising.

Three Specific Moral Principles

RESPECT TRUTHFULNESS (deception objection)

Never directly intend to deceive

Never use simply untrue advertising

Do not distort the truth by implying things that are not so or withholding

relevant facts

"Puffery" is acceptable where it is consonant with recognized and accepted

rhetorical and symbolic practice.

RESPECT THE DIGNITY OF EACH HUMAN PERSON (attacks autonomy

objection)

Do not exploit our "lower inclinations" to compromise our capacity to reflect

or decide either through its content or through its impact: using appeals to lust,

vanity, envy and greed, and other human weakness.

Give special care to the weak and vulnerable: children, young people, the

elderly, the poor, and the culturally disadvantaged

RESPECT SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES (promotes consumption, empties

communication, objections)

Example: Concern for the ecology—advertising should not favor a lavish

lifestyle which wastes resources and despoils the environment

Example: Advertising should not reduce human progress to acquiring material

goods and cultivating a lavish lifestyle

The three principles which are particularly relevant to advertising are given in an explanatory

form:

1. Truthfulness in Advertising

Even today, some advertising is simply and deliberately untrue. Generally speaking, though,

the problem of truth in advertising is somewhat more subtle: it is not that advertising says

what is overtly false, but that it can distort the truth by implying things that are not so or

withholding relevant facts. It is said that, on both the individual and social levels, truth and

freedom are inseparable; without truth as the basis, starting point and criterion of

discernment, judgment, choice and action, there can be no authentic exercise of freedom. The

advertisements should The Advertisers and the promoters should insist that the content of

communication be "true and — within the limits set by justice and charity — complete"; the

content should, moreover, be communicated "honestly and properly."To be sure, advertising,

like other forms of expression, has its own conventions and forms of stylization, and these

must be taken into account when discussing truthfulness. People take for granted some

rhetorical and symbolic exaggeration in advertising; within the limits of recognized and

accepted practice, this can be allowable. But it is a fundamental principle that advertising

may not deliberately seek to deceive, whether it does that by what it says, by what it implies,

or by what it fails to say. "The proper exercise of the right to information demands that the

content of what is communicated be true and, within the limits set by justice and charity,

complete. ... Included here is the obligation to avoid any manipulation of truth for any

reason."

2. The Dignity of the Human Person

There is an "imperative requirement" that advertising, "respect the human person, his right

duty to make a responsible choice, his interior freedom; all these goods would be violated if

man's lower inclinations were to be exploited, or his capacity to reflect and decide

compromised."These abuses are not merely hypothetical possibilities but realities in much

advertising today. Advertising can violate the dignity of the human person both through its

content — what is advertised, the manner in which it is advertised — and through the impact

it seeks to make upon its audience. Things such as appeals to lust, vanity, envy and greed, and

of techniques that manipulate and exploit human weakness and in such circumstances,

advertisements readily become "vehicles of a deformed outlook on life, on the family, on

religion and on morality — an outlook that does not respect the true dignity and destiny of

the human person."This problem is especially acute where particularly vulnerable groups or

classes of persons are concerned: children and young people, the elderly, the poor, the

culturally disadvantaged. Much advertising directed at children apparently tries to exploit

their credulity and suggestibility, in the hope that they will put pressure on their parents to

buy products of no real benefit to them. Advertising like this offends against the dignity and

rights of both children and parents; it intrudes upon the parent-child relationship and seeks to

manipulate it to its own base ends. Also, some of the comparatively little advertising directed

specifically to the elderly or culturally disadvantaged seems designed to play upon their fears

so as to persuade them to allocate some of their limited resources to goods or services of

dubious value.

3. Advertising and Social Responsibility 

Social responsibility is such a broad concept that we can note here only a few of the many

issues and concerns relevant under this title on the question of advertising. The ecological

issue is one. Advertising that fosters a lavish lifestyle which wastes resources and despoils the

environment offends against important ecological concerns. In his desire to have and to

enjoy rather than to be and grow, man consumes the resources of the earth and his own life in

an excessive and disordered way. ... Man thinks that he can make arbitrary use of the earth,

subjecting it without restraint to his will, as though it did not have its own requisites and a

prior God-given purpose, which man can indeed develop but must not betray. As this

suggests, something more fundamental is at issue here: authentic and integral human

development. Advertising that reduces human progress to acquiring material goods and

cultivating a lavish life style expresses a false, destructive vision of the human person

harmful to individuals and society alike. When people fail to practice a rigorous respect for

the moral, cultural and spiritual requirements, based on the dignity of the person and on the

proper identity of each community, beginning with the family and religious societies, then

even material abundance and the conveniences that technology makes available will prove

unsatisfying and in the end contemptible. Advertisers, like people engaged in other forms of

social communication, have a serious duty to express and foster an authentic vision of human

development in its material, cultural and spiritual dimensions. Communication that meets this

standard is, among other things, a true expression of solidarity. Indeed, the two things —

communication and solidarity — are inseparable, because, as the solidarity is a consequence

of genuine and right communication and the free circulation of ideas that further knowledge

and respect for others.

General

Principles of the moral order must be applied to the domain of media

Human freedom has a purpose: making an authentic moral response. All

attempts to inform and persuade must respect the purposes of human freedom

if they are to be moral.

Morally good advertising therefore is that advertising that seeks to move

people to choose and act rationally in morally good ways; morally evil

advertising seeks to move people to do evil deeds that are self-destructive and

destructive of authentic community

Means and techniques of advertising must also be considered: manipulative,

exploitative, corrupt and corrupting methods of persuasion and motivation

Advertising & Attention, But at What Cost?

Belvedere Vodka has introduced a new provocative print and television campaign to compete

against Grey Goose in the luxury vodka market. “The brand is donning fishnets, getting

spanked in public and otherwise behaving lewdly in an attempt to stand out in the

increasingly crowded luxury vodka category.” Ethical advertising should include Taste and

Decency and counseled that the client and agency should proactively consider the

ethical consequences of advertising that could be considered offensive by the brands

customers. Apparently in this case client and agency agreed on the shocking portrayal of

women to attack competitor Grey Goose’s “uptown” image. Paul Ashworth, Moet’s senior

VP – Belvedere, said of the new $20 million campaign, “We want to be sexy, and we want to

be provocative.” Ewen Cameron, Berlin Cameron executive creative director, said the

campaign is meant to make consumers take sides: “Brands need to say, ‘are you with us or

with them?

But did they consider the ethical consequences of a campaign that may offend woman vodka

drinkers? Women constitute 49percent of the luxury vodka market. Clearly they were aware

of the negative implications. From the same AdAge.com article:“According to Mr. Ashworth,

several cable networks refused to run the original spot. Outtakes—including several shots

using the bottle as an explicitly sexual prop—will be featured on a new Website set to launch

in early December.”Perhaps the Spirits category is different from other brand marketing.

Arthur Shapiro, a veteran spirits industry consultant, opines “One way to stand out at a

crowded party is to put a lampshade on your head. It doesn’t necessarily make a good

impression, but it does make one.”This is an assumption that is often heard in the industry:

“It’s good to get the customer’s attention even if it makes them mad.”But how can we

conclude that a potential customer angered by advertising will purchase the brand? I believe

that women searching for an upscale vodka would be more attracted to a brand connecting to

them through ethical advertising. This seems to have been proven by Dove’s very successful

Campaign for Real Beauty, which was still risky in its depiction of women but was also

developed with them in mind. Advertising, like human beings, lives where Reason meets

Desire. Years ago, The Coca-Cola Company invented a better product. No consumer product

had ever been so thoroughly tested with so many consumers. This new Coke was probably

much better. But consumers not only didn't buy it, they demonstrated against it. Because a lot

of what they loved about "real" Coke, was not inside the bottle. It was the idea of Coke and

their experiences with it and how those experiences were connected to so much of what we

imagine life should be like. Advertising isn't just about the things we buy. It's about how we

feel about things, including ourselves. That's what makes it interesting.

1. Cause-related marketing

Speaking of feelings, 80% of Americans say they feel better about companies that are aligned

with social issues. Two thirds of say they would be inclined to switch to a brand that we

identify with a good cause. It's why American Express put on the Tribeca Film Festival in

lower Manhattan to help bring people back to the area after September 11th. Wal-Mart

focuses on community efforts of their associates and stores. General Mills' "Spoonfuls of

Hope" campaign features Lance Armstrong promoting cancer research. Johnson & Johnson -

always at the top of polls as a socially responsible company -- has been running a campaign

to help promote nursing as a career.

Does the extra business and good will these companies stand to gain compromise the good

that the causes do? What are the ethics of enlightened self-interest? Not long ago a major

advertiser donated a quarter-million dollars in food aid to Bosnians in the wake of the war

there. By all accounts, the aid did a lot of good. Later, the company spent over a million

dollars to advertise their good deed to American audiences. What decision would you have

made?

2. Tobacco Advertising

Ronald Reagan once appeared in ads touting the health benefits of a cigarette brand. Times

have changed. Now the space in which tobacco can be promoted in any form is growing more

restricted every day. And tobacco isn't the only legal - and potentially lethal- product that

poses ethical, not to mention public policy questions for us. Ad agencies and individual

advertising people make their own decisions about categories like tobacco and guns. Many

say, "No, thanks" to working on certain businesses. But would you turn down the Kraft

Macaroni and Cheese assignment because another division of the same corporation makes

Marlboros? That's a tougher question.

3. Alcohol 

There are hundreds of beer commercials on the air, but not one of them shows somebody

actually drinking the beer. Does that make them more ethical? And although there's the same

amount of the same chemical in a can of Bud and a shot of Jack Daniels, you don't see hard

liquor advertised on television. In the case of alcohol, advertisers themselves have made these

"ethical" choices. But do they make rational sense? The Mothers Against Drunk Driving

(MADD) probably don't make the same distinction between beer and bourbon that advertisers

do. Incidentally, advertising people working for free because they believe in the cause create

MADD's ads. Ad folk like to work pro bono for nonprofits and good causes. Public service

campaigns, including anti-smoking messages, got over $1.5 billion dollars in free media last

year. Altogether, they'd be the fifth largest advertiser.

The ethical issue isn't the alcohol in the product, it's the brand name on the bottle (Smirnoff

Ice). When I say the word "Smirnoff", what do you think of? - you're not alone. A rival

company says this commercial is misleading you because there's no vodka in Smirnoff Ice.

It's a malt beverage. Does the name "Smirnoff" mean "vodka" or is it just a name? Many of

you are in the target audience. Are you being fooled here? And if you thought Smirnoff Ice

contained vodka, did you also think it contained ice? You don't have to take time from your

studies to decide this case. As we speak, it's being examined by the ATF (Federal Bureau of

Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms).

4. Condoms

I assume these are not unfamiliar to you. Should they be advertised? Most networks won't

accept condom ads because they might offend certain audiences. Even where condom ads are

okay, there are ethical choices to make about what kind of product demonstration is

appropriate. And in what context? One example of context is that people in condom ads

usually wear wedding rings. Because even though the biggest market probably lies outside

the Marital Bed, the truth about where all those condoms are really going raises some touchy

issues. If you were the Creative Director on the Trojans account, is that an ethical issue?

Do you show the real truth and take the consequences?

5. Children

Society imposes context on advertising ethics all the time -especially in advertising that

involves children. Here's a commercial for children's shampoo. On behalf of Society, can you

see what's wrong with this message?

The problem isn't something in the spot - it's what's missing. There is no adult supervision

shown around the swimming pool. The Children's Advertising Review Unit (CARU) of the

Better Business Bureau (BBB), which also monitors kid's programming, requires that adults

be shown supervising children when products or activities could be risky. So L'Oreal changed

the commercial to model good parental behaviour. Score one for Society. Another

commercial for Aim toothpaste showed a child who went to the bathroom in a museum to

brush her teeth. Good hygiene or not, it had to be taken off the air when teachers complained

that they'd never, ever, let a child leave the group unattended.

Advertisers spend most of their waking hours trying to anticipate what their audiences will

want and how they'll react. They try their best, but sometimes miss.

6. Pharmaceutical advertising

Information is ethically neutral. In an academic setting like this, we welcome more

information because the marketplace of ideas enables individuals to form their own judgment

- which brings us to advertising about prescription drugs. Not long ago, only a doctor could

tell you about a new medicine. You probably never heard of it before you walked in; you

didn't know if it was the only one in the world or one of dozens that did pretty much the same

thing. Now advertisers spend millions of dollars telling you about their medicines.

Advertising puts more information in people's hands. Studies show that drug ads raise

awareness of some conditions so more people seek treatment. And they know more about

their options before seeing the doctor. That's good, right?

But of course the drug companies don't advertise their cheapest products. They promote the

big moneymakers. There's more information out there, but it comes with a heavy dose of

Point-of-View. Sometimes there are two points of view in the same commercial. The FDA

requires that, if you promote the benefits of your medicine, you must also reveal any

significant risks or side effects. So we have them to thank for the now legendary disclaimer

for a weight-loss drug. The medicine worked miracles, but the company was also obliged to

mention its unpleasant side effects, with the result that the drug turned into a national joke!

7. Product placement

What are the ethics of advertising that doesn't look like advertising? In a movie chase scene,

the hero and the bad guy are going to need some kind of car to drive. In the theatre we have

no way of knowing whether the director chose those cars because they fulfilled his artistic

vision - or because the car manufacturer made a deal with the producer. The car people get

exciting exposure for their brand and she saves a nice piece of change on her production

budget. Audiences like realism in movies. Made-up brands break the spell because they're

obvious fakes. But the difference between something that's just a prop and something that's a

product promotion is getting murkier all the time, on TV shows as well as movies.

This kind of "product placement" happens in real life, too. If you go out to a club tonight, you

might see some particularly good-looking young people using a new kind of cell phone. It

lets them shoot pictures of people to their friends across the room:"Here's a cute guy - want to

come and meet him?" Fun stuff like that. If you're curious, maybe they've taken your picture

and they'll be happy to show you the phone and let you try it. The phone is very cool. And the

people are what advertisers call "aspirational" because they're way cooler than you are. They

are people you want to be. They are also actors and this is a gig for them. Their job is creating

the impression that using this phone is The Next Trend. If you ask them directly if they are

actors, they won't lie. But if you don't ask, they won't tell. This is there verse of the Volvo

story. Volvo's demonstration was rigged, no question, but what viewers saw on TV was the

truth. With this cell phone, the demonstration is the absolute truth, but the scenein the club is

pure theater.

(Note: This new "guerrilla" marketing campaign for Sony Ericsson has received a great deal

of negative publicity already for being deceptive in its approach.)

8. Subliminal Advertising

There is one more thing in discussion. If you believe subliminal advertising exists, you don't

anymore because I embedded a convincing subliminal denial in this talk. In case you missed

it, subliminal advertising is one of those "urban legends." Try this experiment. Take a

photograph of a glass of ice water or the beverage of your choice and make a fake ad out of

it. Then invite people in your Psychology department to find the subliminal messages in your

ad. They won't disappoint you. If a bunch of students can create subliminal messages,

imagine what the pros at Madison can do.

Indian Society and Morality in Advertising

Indian society is nowadays grappling with the issue of moral policing of advertisements. As

the government seeks to maintain public morality and social progress through forced

intervention and banning commercials perceived to be injurious to societal discipline, the

nation continues to debate on the efficacy of such authoritarian diktat.

For a fast growing economy like India with a huge consumer base, the advertising business

actually provides the necessary stimulus for market growth by generating product demand. In

fact this billion-dollar industry leaves a lasting impression on the nation’s diverse culture and

political system apart from manipulating economic activity.

Having emerged from a tightly controlled socialistic model of market system, India is yet to

adapt to this promotional tool offering diversity in choice and often linked to capitalism for

its competitiveness.

Perhaps this hangover remains the fountainhead of the controversial administrative decision

to monitor advertising standards vigorously while simultaneously enforcing the modification

of raunchy television commercials of reputed brands.

Despite Advertising Standards Council of India’s (ASCI) denial of government unilateralism,

many believe that the state is actually trying to position itself as a scrutinizer of business

ethics in the garb of regulation. This school of thought has even trashed the concept of using

social morality as a guide to evolve an appropriate regulatory standard in consonance with

Indian principles.

Instead, their prescription emphasizes on accepting consumption behavior as the defining

factor in regulating market communiques. If an obscene commercial fails to abet consumer

purchase, the manufacture will be forced to withdraw it.

Since society is still struggling to create a moral statute for binding humanity, impeding the

creativity of industry professionals on ethical grounds is completely irrational, opines the

liberal school. However not everybody in India is ready to condone cheeky gestures through

suggestive advertisements.

The orthodox view of cheap and sensational promotions being the catalyst for societal

degeneration is gaining popular acceptance. Even ASCI is propagating the concept of self-

regulation within the industry in consonance with their tag line “regulate yourself or someone

else will”.

They are encouraging youths to voice their opinion on questionable campaigns through the

organization’s social networking account.

“The social networking platform is just one more tool used by ASCI to spread awareness of

self regulation and ethics in advertising”, Secretary General Alan Collaco pointed out to this

journalist. That the effort is bearing fruit can be gauged from the 722 complaints received

against 187 advertisements by mid 2011 as compared to the 200 registered cases during the

same period last year.

ASCI's consumer complaints council has upheld grievances against 34 errant advertisers

between November 2010 and February 2011. With a more than 80 percent success rate ―

one of the highest worldwide, the regulatory body is determined to put in a semblance of

discipline by drawing the line of decency somewhere.

The challenge would be to look for an alternative that reinforces the codes of conduct without

stifling creativity. It is indeed difficult to single out promotional storylines from overall mass

media programs for blasphemous content especially when the modern day audience seems to

indulge titillation passively.

Reputed Indian ad film makers believe that it would be unfair to single out commercials

when other media can show obscenity. However, some of them are indeed pushing the stake

a bit too much, taking refuge in the alibi of an advertisements being nothing more than a

mirror image of the degrading attitude and values of our surrounding environment. 

Condoning such gross misconduct might at the end of the day encourage a lampooning

culture that violates civility. There is also an ethical aspect attached to this communication

field. Advertising should at the least attempt to shape the reality it reflects instead of

glorifying the exceptions for commercial gain.

We must not gloss over the fact that this platform does have the capability to influence a

market-driven economy in adopting socially responsive norms that ultimately benefit human

development. Surely, the pervasive character of this medium can also be exploited in shaping

the attitude of today’s conflict-ridden society positively.

After all the conscience of an advertising professional remains the indispensable guarantor of

upholding moral order. Since advertising has always sought to transgress all barriers in its bid

to sell a brand, it remains to be seen whether the government ends up enforcing the limits of

acceptability on creative artists whatever the commercial consequences might be. 

Case Studies

Case study on P & G - Pantene

PANTENE - The Evolving Approach to a Global Brand

In 1990, Procter & Gamble (P&G) made the decision to launch their small premium Pantene

Shampoo brand around the world. P&G's decision was not based on pure whimsy; it was

based on strategic market research conducted globally for this premium-priced two-in-one

shampoo/conditioner. Research results, compiled from markets around the world, led P&G to

hypothesize that health positioning might provide the basis for a new worldwide hair care

franchise. Why? The research indicated that:

o Women believed the ideal standard for hair is "healthy".

o Women considered their own hair damaged.

o Women believed that shine signaled health.

o Pro-vitamin formulation provided real support for claims.

Advertising was developed around the health positioning and was launched globally. The

advertising was customized at the local level with the tag line, "Hair So Healthy It Shines."

The challenges to advertise Pantene in local markets (country to country) were numerous.

First of all, after identifying that "Hair So Healthy It Shines" would be the central strategic

product benefit that would be meaningful around the world, P&G had to determine how best

to express this benefit in local markets. Next, the product's benefit and reason-why (to

purchase) had to be communicated and visualized in arresting ways. There were four lead

countries in the 1990 launch. Each communicated a different piece of the strategy and

execution elements, as follows:

o United States: a TV campaign was developed using an authoritative spokeswoman

and showing the transformation of the model's hair.

o Taiwan: dramatized the end-result - - the shine (a very powerful end benefit in this

part of the world).

o France: dramatized the vitamin capsule ingredient story.

o United Kingdom: demonstrated product efficacy via the hair root demonstration.

While local differences were necessary (talent, ethnic standards of beauty, hair type, legal

claims), the global format held true virtually everywhere. The second commercial is a

montage with quick-cuts of executions from European and Asian countries.

Results

By 1994, less than four years following its launch in 55 countries, Pantene was the #1 hair

care brand around the world. Two years later it was still leading in 78 countries and by 1998,

it was the leading shampoo in 90 countries with worldwide sales of well over $1 billion,

thanks to a carefully researched creative strategy and the persuasive power of advertising.

By the end of the '90s, Pantene needed to be reinvigorated to keep its lead in an increasingly

competitive environment in stores around the world. As a result, P&G re-launched the

Pantene brand around the world, focusing on a global strategy, with local executions due to

marketplace conditions and competitive activity from country to country. Pantene

experienced nearly 10% growth globally that year via a new end-benefit product line-up

touting: "Achieve the look you want with new customized collections" (Smooth, Volume,

Curls, Colour), with local advertising executions meeting local needs depending on the

country.

In 2003, P&G launched a line of Pantene products designed specifically for African

American women. While Pantene had experienced sustained success worldwide, P&G faced

many obstacles in introducing its Pantene Relaxed and Natural brand. Issues of credibility,

brand loyalty, and distribution presented serious marketing challenges in reaching the target

consumer group. P&G found that African American women preferred to buy products made

by African American owned companies and by companies that gave back to the African

American community. They generally distrust general market products and tend to purchase

haircare products in beauty supply shops (56%) rather than food and drug stores where

Pantene is sold. Additionally, Pantene Relaxed and Natural would not be found in the ethnic

haircare aisle.

The ad campaign for Relaxed and Natural was highly targeted and ran on cable and network

TV (80%) as well as in print media (20%). Despite the formidable challenges stated above,

P&G saw substantial results. After one year on the market, the number of first trials increased

five times and the number of repeat purchases increased by 320%. Revenue from sales was

almost double P&G's initial objectives, and after seven months on the market, Pantene's

Relaxed and Natural product became the #1 brand in the African American haircare market.

The strategic marketing efforts of P&G proved to be a highly successful and profitable

endeavour.

The Pantene brand -- in total -- represents the most successful global launch in beauty care

history. Today, Pantene remains the number one hair care brand around the world and the

third most profitable brand for P&G.

Case Study on HUL – Axe Deodarant

Background

Unilever was faced with a huge marketing and advertising challenge when the company

decided to introduce their deodorant bodyspray, AXE, into the U.S. market in August 2002.

AXE had held the coveted position of #1 grooming brand overseas. A men's deodorant

bodyspray, AXE was different in form/application and use from U.S. men's deodorants.

The Antiperspirant/Deodorant market in the United States is stick-based, whereas

antiperspirant/deodorants sold overseas are generally aerosol. In addition, U.S. consumers are

not emotionally involved with their antiperspirant/deodorants. Overseas, AXE emphasizes

humor and the emotional and social benefits of smelling good that allow the brand's

advertising to be among the most admired.

To introduce AXE to American men, Unilever had three major challenges to overcome: 1)

convince American men to try AXE; 2) educate American consumers about how to use it;

and 3) create an effective way to introduce the product and break through the clutter.

Plan to overcome challenges about product use among U.S. males:

o Communicate the social and emotional benefits of using a fragrance:

- Smell good and get the girl!

o Excite consumers about an historically unexciting antiperspirant/deodorant category.

o Adapt consumer behaviour to deodorant bodysprays (aerosol product).

o Educate new consumer usage of body sprays - - all over the body.

In-depth, pre-launch research in the U.S. among the target (men 18-24) showed that product

education was key to increasing purchase motivation. The strategy was excite and educate!

Unilever's AXE marketing team wanted consumers to be excited about something new; to

see, hear, and interact with AXE everywhere.

An all-inclusive national launch was planned. Two sets of ads were created: the first ad used

a mannequin, which educated consumers about product usage. The second ad used humor by

showing the emotional and social benefit of smelling good - - and impressing girls.

With the target in mind, AXE used non-traditional channels to build excitement for

consumers. Consumers saw AXE everywhere - - in movie theatres, bars, on Web sites, in-

store TVs, radio and on television. A huge sampling program accompanied the launch in

movie theatres and on college campuses. In-store activities increased interaction with

consumers. AXE Angels (models in AXE t-shirts) traveled by bus (the "casting coach") in

search of "The Next AXE Guy". The AXE craze was ignited with thousands of young men

on college campuses, in stores and on the streets. They wanted to be part of "the AXE effect"

and get the girl.

Results

o The launch was a success. AXE rocketed into the U.S. market, starting strong and

never looking back. By Dec 2004, Axe had reached an 8.4% dollar share ($154MM

million; 2004 YTD, through October) of the antiperspirant/deodorant market. AXE

leads the newly created deodorant bodyspray category with an 85+% dollar share. In

Q3 2004, Axe was the #1 male anti-perspirant/deodorant with a 10+% dollar share.

o Research conducted since launch indicates that AXE's brand awareness and trial have

continued to grow substantially. Its TV ad awareness scores were well above the

average for new product launches.

o Since launch, the AXE Web site was visited by over 7 million consumers and enjoyed

increased consumer referrals.

o Online involvement, intensive viral ads plus chat room activity had consumers talking

about AXE - - their favorite fragrances, the AXE effect, their experiences in the

mating game. For instance, dozens of bloggers were intrigued by the Pitman anti-

perpsirant deodorant print campaign, chose to write about it, and referred over

100,000 consumers to the Axe website to play the game and try to get a keychain.

o The AXE Mannequin became a product icon. Articles in Star magazine and the New

York Post, for instance, showed "Quinn" hanging with celebrities, such as Jessica

Simpson and Nick Lachey at Outkast's post-Grammy party. Quinn was also the

celebrity photographer on Playboy.com.

o AXE communication has won many awards, including a gold Effie award,

Brandweek's Guerrilla Marketer of the Year, a Cannes Cyber Silver Lion and two

print silver ones, and numerous promotional and PR recognition.

o Since its launch in August 2002, AXE has been joined by five similar new products in

the men's deodorant category.

Case Study on Tobacco

Advertising and Morality: Challenges of Tobacco

Advertising

Images of sleek, young bodies; stylishly furnished apartments, flashy cars, all in anexquisite

ambiance illuminate the page on which the words "be gold" loom large. But appearing in a

small box in the right-hand corner of the page is the warning: "The Federal Ministry of

Health warns that smokers are liable to die young “Every year 350,000 people die from

tobacco-related illnesses. Smoking is directly responsible for 85% of all deaths from lung

cancer. Smoking is chief among avoidable causes of death in our society. Not only are

cigarettes one of the most lethal products around, but also one of the most addictive.

According to a recent report from the UN Food & Agriculture Organization(FAO), the

nicotine contained in cigarettes is as addictive as heroin and cocaine. Yet, this lethal product

which contains a very powerful addictive drug can be legally bought and sold. And, along

with soap and margarine, it is promoted through advertisements in the popular media. The

Advertising Practitioners’ Council of Nigeria (APCON) banned its members from advertising

tobacco products in the Nigerian media with effect from December 31 2004. In Britain the

Tobacco Advertising and Promotions Act (2003) outlawed tobacco advertisements in

newspapers, magazines, and on billboards. In several other countries cigarette ads have been

banned from the TV screen and radio waves, but recent figures show that the tobacco

industry continues to spend over $2 billion every year promoting cigarettes through other

means, such as magazines, newspapers and billboards. Here in Nigeria, there is currently a

bill at the National Assembly which seeks to forbid all cigarette advertising in magazines and

newspapers. The tobacco industry and its advertisers have attacked the proposal as violating

fundamental moral rights. Does society have aright to ban the advertising of cigarettes?

Advertising techniques range in complexity from the publishing of simple, straightforward

notices in the classified advertisement columns of newspapers to the concerted use of

newspapers, magazines, television, radio, direct mail, and other communications media in the

course of a single advertising campaign. From its unsophisticated beginnings in ancient

times, advertising has burgeoned into a worldwide industry. In the United States alone in the

late 1980s, approximately $120 billion was spent in a single year on advertising to influence

the purchase of commodities and services, Total expenditure in Britain in 1995 was nearly

£10 billion, (History of Advertising Trust, 2006).

In Nigeria the advertising industry is a multi-billion naira one. Multi-nationals like Cadbury,

Procter & Gamble, Nestle, Coca Cola, MTN, commit billions of naira annually to

advertisement (Kadima, 2006). The commercial advertising industry comprises the media,

advertisers (sponsors) and advertising agencies. The agencies plan, create and place

commercial messages in the media. They buy broadcast air time and newspaper space to

advertise tobacco and other products. The advertising industry provides thousands of jobs and

helps the economy run. The influence of advertising is tremendous, dictating tastes and

consumption patterns. Advertising contributes enormously in driving tobacco sales but at the

same time it gets many addicted to the often deadly habit of smoking. What is smoking and

why is it a dangerous habit?

Smoking is the act of inhaling the fumes from a burning substance, usually tobacco. The

adverse effects of tobacco smoking totally outnumber those of other atmospheric pollutants.

In the European Union, diseases attributable to smoking accounts for approximately 15 per

cent of all deaths. Tobacco smoking has consistently been referred to “as the single most

important preventable cause of premature death “Smoking can be divided into two categories:

active (actively smoking oneself) andpassive (inhaling smoke because of proximity to a

smoker). Cigarette smoking is the prime, but not the only, culprit; pipe and cigar smoking,

while less hazardous than cigarette smoking, are not without risk. Smokeless tobacco

(chewing tobacco, tobacco pouches, and snuff dipping) has now emerged as a major cause of

oral disease and death from oral cancer. The average 20-a-day smoker is estimated to inhale

tobacco smoke about 70,000 times a year. It is therefore not surprising that, with such abuse,

a number of diseases, many of them fatal, are associated with smoking. Theseinclude cancer

(particularly of the lungs, larynx, oral cavity, pharynx, esophagus, pancreas, cervix, kidney,

and bladder); coronary artery disease; cerebrovascular disease (strokes, intracerebral

hemorrhages); and COAD (chronic obstructive airways disease, comprising chronic

bronchitis and emphysema). According to the Australian Drug Foundation, the effects of

smoking will vary from person to person and depend on such things as:

a person's susceptibility to chemicals in tobacco smoke;

the number of cigarettes smoked per day;

the age when the person began smoking; and

the number of years of smoking.

Immediate effects

Smoking one cigarette immediately raises a person's blood pressure and heart

rate and decreases the blood flow to body extremities such as the fingers and

toes.

Brain and the nervous system activity is stimulated for a short time and then

reduced.

A smoker may also experience dizziness, nausea, watery eyes and acid in the

stomach.

Appetite, taste and smell are weakened.

Other effects of cigarette smoking

Smokers typically experience shortness of breath, persistent coughs, reduced

fitness, yellow stains on fingers and teeth and decreased sense of taste and

smell.

Smokers have more colds and flu than non-smokers and find it harder to

recover from minor illnesses.

Smoking can cause impotence in men, while women who smoke are less fertile

than non-smokers.

People who smoke tend to have facial wrinkles appearing much earlier and, in

general, look older than non-smokers of the same age.

Smokers have an increased risk of developing:

respiratory infections such as pneumonia and chronic bronchitis;

emphysema (a progressive and potentially fatal lung disease);

heart attack and coronary disease;

cancer of the lung, throat, mouth, bladder, kidney, pancreas, cervix, stomach;

stomach ulcer

Tobacco Advertising; To Be or Not to Be?

We have gone at length to examine smoking because an understanding of the nature of

smoking will lead to a clearer perspective on the issue of morality in tobacco advertisement.

We will now consider the arguments in the question of morality in tobacco advertisement.

What in the first instance is morality? Morality has its root from moral. Oxford Advanced

Learner’s Dictionary of English defines moral as a concept that is concerned with the

principles of right and wrong behaviour which are based on an individual’s judgement of

what is right or wrong, good or bad, not on legal rights or duties. Morality is then an off shoot

of moral which expresses the degree to which something is right or wrong, good or bad. The

concept we are discussing morality here then is essentially the degree to which advertising is

considered “right” or “wrong”, “good” or “bad”. Not from the legal point of view but from

the standpoint of good or bad effects it has on humanity. Anti-smoking activists argue that

everyone has a basic right to freedom of expression, but only insofar as no harm comes to

others as a result. When freedom of expression results in harm to others, society is morally

obligated to restrict this freedom, cigarette advertising, one form of free speech, causes grave

harm. It is a truism that as cigarette ads increase, so too does smoking. And, smoking now

accounts for at least 350,000 tobacco-related deaths each year, (Andre & Velasquez 2006:1).

The costs of smoking to society as a whole are also staggering. According to a recent US

government report, cigarette smoking is responsible for an estimated

$23 billion in health care costs annually and over $30 billion in lost productivity, (Gately,

2002:2). Society is morally obligated to ban the promotion of a product linked to so much

suffering and devastation and that places such a drain on society's resources. Those opposed

to the promotion of cigarettes also argue that society has a duty to protect the right of

individuals not to be deceived or manipulated. No advertising is more deceptive than that

used to sell cigarettes. Images of independence are used to sell a product that creates

profound dependence. Images of health and vitality are used to sell a product that causes

disease and suffering. Images of life are used to sell a product that causes death. What irony!

Critics argue that cigarette advertisements also rely almost exclusively on psychological

manipulation. Alluring images of

power, prestige, glamour, success,vitality and sex appeal are held before the public's eye,

creating a positiveassociation between "the good life" and smoking. Such ads bypass

conscious reasoning. They unconsciously arouse in a person a powerful desire that is not

rationally weighed against one's own best interests. Society's obligation to ban such deceptive

and manipulative practices becomes all the more compelling when such practices are used to

prey on minors. And young people are, in fact, the target of the tobacco industry's advertising

campaigns. To maintain sales, the tobacco industry must recruit more young people every

year to replace those who die and those who quit smoking. So it's to the young that the

industry directs its pitch, appealing to their lifestyles and aspirations. Close-ups of muscular

men and slender, sexy women promise the shy teenager popularity and sex appeal. Shots of

cowboys, mountain climbers, and aerobic dancers promise adventure or athletic prowess.

Society has a moral duty to ban such brainwashing of unwilling, unsuspecting consumers into

taking up a habit that will eventually kill them, or so critics claim. Opposing restrictions on

cigarette ads are those who agree that society has a right to restrict freedom of expression

when the exercise of this freedom causes harm to others. But, they argue, while cigarettes

themselves may be harmful, cigarette advertising is not. First, contrary to the critics' claims,

ads for cigarettes do not cause people to smoke, just as ads for soap don't cause people to

bathe. People take up smoking for a variety of reasons. For teenagers, it's often peer pressure

or imitating adults that factor in as the principal reason. At most, cigarette ads function to

persuade people who already smoke to switch brands.

Second, the charge that cigarette ads intentionally deceive consumers is unjustified. The

images portrayed in cigarette ads are realistic ones. There are, in fact, soccer stars tennis

players and aerobic dancers who smoke. Furthermore, how can cigarette ads be accused of

hiding the truth with the Federal Ministry of Health’s warning prominently stamped across

each and every ad? Nor can cigarette ads be banned on the grounds that they manipulate

consumers. The tobacco industry's advertising ploys are no different from any other industry's

techniques to promote its products. Consumers are well acquainted with the rules of the game

in advertising. People should be expected to take care of themselves whether they are reading

an ad for cigarettes or passing by an enticing display in a department store. Those opposed to

banning cigarette ads also point out that respect for individual freedom demands that

consumer preferences and choices be respected. Society has no right to impose its preferences

on its members by limiting their exposure to products that are legally bought and sold. While

society may act as a critic of consumer choice, it has no right, and certainly no duty, to limit

that choice, and banning cigarettes ads would do just that.

Tobacco supporters also claim that banning cigarette ads would deliver few benefits, while

producing great harm. There is no evidence that banning cigarette ads would stop people

from smoking. In five countries where cigarette ads have been banned, per capita

consumption of cigarettes has risen, not decreased, Breen (1995:22). Finally, they claim that,

while tobacco advertising bans would fail to deliver the benefits its supporters hope for; the

reduction of smoking, they would, without a doubt, produce great harm. First, banning

cigarettes ads would deprive consumers of valuable information. Such ads relay important

information on the tar and nicotine content of cigarettes which some smokers use in their

decisions to switch brands. Second, any further encroachment on the freedom to advertise

cigarettes would place all freedom of expression and freedom of individual choice in serious

jeopardy. If society declares a ban on ads for cigarettes, which may be harmful, but which are

legal to purchase and use, what will prevent it from banning the promotion of countless other

products known to be harmful in some way? Will ads for butter and fast foods be banned

because they contain large amounts of cholesterol? Such practices cannot be tolerated in a

country like Nigeria that prides itself on freedom. We have attempted juxtaposition, though

not exhaustive, of the different shades of opinions about morality and advertisement.

Advertising is a complex concept and like most media of social communications has two

options. Either they help human persons to grow in their understanding and practice of what

is true and good, or they are destructive forces in conflict with human well beings. Against

this background, then, we point to this fundamental principle for people engaged in

advertising: advertisers — that is, those who commission, prepare or disseminate advertising

— are morally responsible for what they seek to move people to do; and this is a

responsibility also shared by publishers, broadcasting executives, and others in the

communications world, as well as by those who give commercial or political endorsements,

to the extent that they are involved in the advertising process. If an instance of advertising

seeks to move people to choose and act rationally in morally good ways that are of true

benefit to themselves and others, persons involved in it do what is morally good; if it seeks to

move people to do evil deeds that are self-destructive and destructive of authentic

community, they do evil. This applies also to the means and the techniques of advertising: it

is morally wrong to use manipulative, exploitative, corrupt and corrupting methods of

persuasion and motivation. In this regard, we note special problems associated with so-called

indirect advertising that attempts to move people to act in certain ways — forexample,

purchase particular products — without their being fully aware that they are being swayed.

The techniques involved here include showing certain products or forms of behaviour in

superficially glamorous settings associated with superficially glamorous people; in extreme

cases, it may even involve the use of subliminal

messages.

Results

We have looked at the background to the question of morality in advertising; this has meant a

cursory overview of advertising, smoking, and tobacco advertising. This paper has opened

our eyes to the quandary that is tobacco advertisement and we will say that deciding whether

society should pass a sentence on selling smoke willrequire us to choose between an

obligation to do all we can to prevent harm and suffering, and the value we place on freedom

of expression and freedom of choice, and this is not an easy choice to make. We believe

advertising can, and often does, play a constructive role in economic growth, in the exchange

of information and ideas, and in the fostering of solidarity among individuals and groups. Yet

it also can do, and often does, grave harm to individuals and to the common good. In light of

these, therefore, we call upon advertising professionals and upon all those involved in the

process of commissioning and disseminating advertising to eliminate its socially harmful

aspects and observe high ethical standards in regard to truthfulness, human dignity and social

responsibility. In this way, they will make a special and significant contribution to human

progress and to the common good.

Conclusion & Recommendations

Whichever creative approach an advertiser chooses to use, a bond must be formed with its

consumers. The advertising that creates this bond must change or maintain an attitude, build a

brand's image and persuade consumers to buy. Of course, it is the marketer's responsibility to

provide consumers with products of the highest quality so that a continued relationship is

maintained. These case studies demonstrate how effectively advertising persuades

consumers, either by making a case for changing their attitude about a social condition/cause,

or by giving consumers a reason to take action and purchase a product or service.

The question raise is whether it is possible to be an ethical and moral advertiser — in the true

sense of 'morality', and not merely in the minimalist, legal sense of respecting the rules that

govern play in the business arena, such as honesty and fairness. The reflection on what ethics

demands makes the hurdles impossibly high. The stark truth is that manufacturers and

advertisers are as much controlled by the fickle consumer as in control. Rules can be set

down concerning what is factually truthful, decent and fair. It is not the advertiser's job to

make people better than they are, or want better things than they want. That is the work for

politicians and preachers, or, possibly, philosophers. A defence of advertising against

unjustified demands is bound to be less spectacular than an attack. However, don't forget the

point of all this. It is to defend ethics against pressures that would weaken or dilute its

requirements in order to fit in with a so-called 'business ethic'. Ultimately, we are all

members of the moral world, whatever games we choose to play, whatever other worlds we

may inhabit. No-one escapes ethics and morality.

Many women and men professionally engaged in advertising do have sensitive consciences,

high ethical standards and a strong sense of responsibility. But even for them external

pressures — from the clients who commission their work as well as from the competitive

internal dynamics of their profession — can create powerful inducements to unethical

behavior. That underlines the need for external structures and systems to support and

encourage responsible practice in advertising and to discourage the irresponsible.

Voluntary ethical codes are one such source of support. These already exist in a number of

places. Welcome as they are, though, they are only as effective as the willingness of

advertisers to comply strictly with them.

We emphasize the importance of public involvement. Representatives of the public should

participate in the formulation, application and periodic updating of ethical codes. The public

representatives should include ethicists and religious people, as well as representatives of

consumer groups. Individuals do well to organize themselves into such groups in order to

protect their interests in relation to commercial interests.

Public authorities also have a role to play. On the one hand, government should not seek to

control and dictate policy to the advertising industry, any more than to other sectors of the

communications media. On the other hand, the regulation of advertising content and practice,

already existing in many places, can and should extend beyond banning false advertising,

narrowly defined.

The media of news and information should make it a point to keep the public informed about

the world of advertising. Considering advertising's social impact, it is appropriate that media

regularly review and critique the performance of advertisers, just as they do other groups

whose activities have a significant influence on society.

Moreover, for the reasons and in the ways sketched here, we believe advertising can, and

often does, play a constructive role in economic growth, in the exchange of information and

ideas, and in the fostering of solidarity among individuals and groups. Yet it also can do, and

often does, grave harm to individuals.