ETHICAL DILEMMA
Sally works as an intern for a local advertising agency during her summer break from art school. She was working on a campaign for a weight loss drug that promises to control one’s metabolism and help you lose weight. Her role involved doing research on the product and the competition, and reporting the findings to the team.
As work continued on the campaign, Sally became concerned with the tactics the agency was implementing to help sell the weight loss drug to consumers. The agency was positioning the drug as one that would “help you lose 10 pounds in a week”. Due to her research role, Sally knew there was no evidence that this drug, or any drug for that matter, could make anyone lose 10 lbs. in a week.
Having studied ethics in school, she knew that one of the American Advertising Federation’s guidelines was “truth”: “advertising shall tell the truth, reveal significant facts, the omission of which would mislead the public”. Sally did not want to be associated with a campaign that would mislead consumers.
Sally brought up the AAF guidelines to her team, of which they were not concerned about stretching the truth. It was more important to them to make the client happy and keep the business.
QUESTION
How could self-regulation have been useful in such a situation?
Sally works as an intern for a local advertising agency during her summer break from art school. She was working on a campaign for a weight loss drug that promises to control one’s metabolism and help you lose weight. Her role involved doing research on the product and the competition, and reporting the findings to the team.
As work continued on the campaign, Sally became concerned with the tactics the agency was implementing to help sell the weight loss drug to consumers. The agency was positioning the drug as one that would “help you lose 10 pounds in a week”. Due to her research role, Sally knew there was no evidence that this drug, or any drug for that matter, could make anyone lose 10 lbs. in a week.
Having studied ethics in school, she knew that one of the American Advertising Federation’s guidelines was “truth”: “advertising shall tell the truth, reveal significant facts, the omission of which would mislead the public”. Sally did not want to be associated with a campaign that would mislead consumers.
Sally brought up the AAF guidelines to her team, of which they were not concerned about stretching the truth. It was more important to them to make the client happy and keep the business.
QUESTION
How could self-regulation have been useful in such a situation?
Sally could have quit, and if she was really passionate about it she could ahve contacted the AAF
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if this scenario would have bothered me...as Correne posted elsewhere- no harm/ no foul
ReplyDeleteAriel, discuss the situation in terms of self-regulation. Should Sally's agency have had someone regulating the creative?
ReplyDeleteShouldn't it have been self regulated by the company if not the team? They didn't seem too interested in ethics- at least not with this campaign
ReplyDeleteThe company should already know that this is a major violation of ethics and could cost them their business reputation. self regulation should be implemented by the weight loss company during the research process in determining weather or not to release factual information.
ReplyDeleteThat's the question at hand. Not all agencies regulate their creative. Some will push the envelope until stopped by AAF or other legislative groups.
ReplyDeleteIn your opinion, are there any reasons or rationalizations that support the agency’s behavior of intentionally misleading consumers?
but is it completely untrue? whether or not the drug would help shed 10 lbs in a week doesn't matter to the company- its the image right? well all these weight loss drugs have it in small writing: results vary by diet and exercise
ReplyDeleteThe company can puch whatever they want and still be protected by the small print
ReplyDeletepush*
ReplyDeletePeople in the group and those running it must make a decision upon discovering the researcher's findings. Company short term success or ethical business conduct.
ReplyDeleteAriel, the issue at hand is that this agency is intentionally misleading consumers with a false claim.
ReplyDeleteIt may be unethical but they are still protected. As for regulating the creative- surely the company knows where it's liabilities are
ReplyDeleteAccording to AAF, advertising cannot intentionally mislead consumers. This is where the agency's knowledge of standards would come into play.
ReplyDeleteWhat role do clients have in helping to regulate their agency’s creative?
Research findings must always present the accurate information regardless of the small print that may make the product less appealing.
ReplyDeleteThe claim is false for the consumers who aren't exercising enough....thats what I'd say if I were on their legal team.... I'm just kidding
ReplyDeletesorry tha i'm late. internet is being fickle today.
ReplyDeleteI'm just saying they can stretch their views any way they want. And under certain exercise and diet plans it is possible- if not entirely healthy- to lose 10 lbs in a week
ReplyDeleteGlad you could join us Frankie. Any input on the discussion at hand?
ReplyDeleteClients could recheck the research to see if the findings seem accurate or close inline with what they had anticipated with what they know about the product. If they advertise with bad research ultimately they will have consequences.
ReplyDeleteWhat role do clients have in helping to regulate their agency’s creative?
ReplyDeleteGood point, Correne.
ReplyDeleteAnyone else?
A smart client would ensure that the reasearch is factual, or a smart consumer will make them regret the false claims later
ReplyDeletecustomers dont like being duped
ReplyDeletegrr!!! i wrote a whole paragraph and it was erased!!!
ReplyDeleteto put it short, regulation is needed to provide fact in what is being sold. however, bending the truth in wording could be used as a 'possible' outcome, not necessarily an actual outcome.
if the company pushes till AAF attacks, the product would have already hit the market and the feedback on the product would be there and wouldn't they just have to pull the product then reorganize and have the ability to resell it again? or is that line perminently shut down?
Good point as well, Ariel. Clients have just as much responsiblity in ensuring accurate, truthful information as do the adv. agencies.
ReplyDeleteNow that we have our Ethics caps on, let's move onto the "lecture" part of the session.
There are 3 core concepts of advertising ethics. The first is responsibility:
Advertisers have a responsibility to comply with the law, help their agencies make a profit, serve the client well, etc
What are some other examples of Responsibility agencies have? How could ethics come into play?
ReplyDeletethe clients information is what is used towards the advertising. nothing is added that doesn't need to be added or has any relation to it. doesn't the client have the final say in whether that type of ad gets put into production? i couldn't imagine the client being clueless till the last minute
ReplyDeleteAgencies also have the responsibility of not lets say "attack" a competitor- it would be regarded as distasteful
ReplyDeleteYou are correct Frankie.
ReplyDeleteWe have a new question at hand re: responsibility. Any thoughts?
They have a responsibility to provide accurate information to the best of their knowledge.
ReplyDeleteThey must keep in mind their viewers when displaying provocative content.
They have to take discretion when advertising to children and elderly people.
it would be unethical for advertisements to insult consumers- not to mention flat out dumb
ReplyDeleteit would also be irresponsible for them to look down on their competitors instead of looking at them as equals
ReplyDeletea good example would be the promotional aspect in advertising. the ad itself is suppose to gain attention as well as produce action within a person to go get that product. in the promotion, the advertising company has to stay in the facts of what the product can do or should do which inturn will be appealing to seletive individuals which affects profit and so on and so forth.
ReplyDeleteYou are both correct, Ariel and Correne. However, Ariel, bad creative is just what it is - bad creative. There are no ethical violations with bad creative!
ReplyDeleteThe other two core concepts of ethics are:
Accountability: Advertisers must be accountable to the agency for which they work, but to suppliers and vendors and to the general public
Intention: Advertisers must always be thinking of the intention/purpose of the advertising but of the advertising’s consequences as well
For Ex: Joe Camel became more recognizable to children than Mickey Mouse.
What is the difference between ethical and unethical advertising?
ReplyDeletejoe camel is a good start. like u said- he became more recognizealbe to kids than mickey mouse. Ronald McDonald was alost more recognizeable then Jesus
ReplyDeleteSo then, Ariel, what is the difference between ethical and unethical advertising?
ReplyDeleteremember those truth commercials? one of them had a purple creature that was kind of fluffy- a tobacco giant wanted to promote it for cigarettes but no adults were interested in it- kids on the other hand....that was unethical and totally designed
ReplyDeletenothing can be promised or advertised as fact if there is nothing to back it up. that is the key because they have to have the data to back it up and if it goes into review, they have to have the documentation that says "this research back this up" and "those statisics supports it even more" etc etc
ReplyDeleteEthical advertising takes viewers, discretion, and accuracy into consideration before money or success. unethical advertising does not.
ReplyDeletewell in that case- it was unethical for the tobacco giant to advertise to adults in full knowledge that their pormotions would attract children
ReplyDeleteRight, Correne.
ReplyDeleteEthical advertising will provide accurate, truthful information; help consumers make good choices; enable consumers to make their voices heard through public media.
Unethical advertising will not.
Definitely.
ReplyDeleteDo all unethical ads break the law? Or do most simply push the envelope until stopped by AAF?
ReplyDeleteadvertising to those that cannot make wise decisions in unethical- yet some would see it as good business...
ReplyDeleteif tehy're stopped by the AAF then aren't they illegal anyway?
ReplyDeleteor is there a fine line that draws on legal and illegal/ moral and immoral?
ReplyDeleteMost just push the envelope as far as possible to ensure the highest success of the campaign. Going over the line can often be too risky and result in ugly lawsuits.
ReplyDeleteNot necessarily. The AAF, and other groups like them, will stop creative if it offends, misleads, makes false comparisons between products, etc.
ReplyDeletenicely put correne
ReplyDeleteethical advertising is one that is has truth and does not create a no harm done senario. even a smoking ad has enthical potentional in it with its warning label saying that smoking causes cancer and birth defects.
ReplyDeleteunethical advertising would be leaving the consumer out of the loop or attacking its competitor in way that is out of resonable allowance. ex. quiznos in a commercial used a subway look a like called "wrongway" to show what they have to offer over their competitor. they didn't use names just imagery and we knew where they were coming from. was that unethical to belittle their company by stating fact? maybe
but with the thousands of laws out there couldn't it be feasible that a few if not 1 are broken when irresponsible ads are broadcast?
ReplyDeleteRight. Most unethical ads simply push the envelope until the public complains or legislative groups, like AAF, see a violation, i.e. the ad makes false comparisons between products.
ReplyDeletei've never seen that commercial. but those fast food giants do that to eachother all the time
ReplyDeleteLet's put our History caps on for a moment...
ReplyDeleteWhat is the First Amendment?
Freedom of SPEECH!
ReplyDeletefreedom of speech
ReplyDeletei think it depends on who it offends or how it is advertised for the AAF to have a say in the matter, though they have a say in all advertising matters.
ReplyDeletefor example, there was a billboard i saw of an Egg day dreaming of what it'll want to be when it grows up which was a egg muffin thing at mcdonalds. not tasteful, a bit humorous, but to vegans it is offensive. that just goes to show you can't please everyone.
Right - freedom of speech. The actual law reads:
ReplyDeleteUS Congress cannot make laws that prohibit free exercise of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, right to peaceably assemble
The Supreme Court refers to advertising as “commercial speech”, setting it apart from journalism, politics, religion, etc.
ReplyDeleteSo, what is “commercial speech”?
i dont know if its unethical for competitors to attack eachother so long as they dont belittle the other and lie to the consumer. they will of course defend themselves by the other's claims and obviously see their own product as being superior
ReplyDeleteagreed haha
ReplyDeleteSpeaking out with the larger ability to sway the masses. Commercial speech has tighter regulations because they have the power of mass influence.
ReplyDeleteAny ideas on what "commercial speech" is?
ReplyDeletenot to mention mass offending!
ReplyDeletefree speech can only be impeded by offence
ReplyDeletemy son just woke up and wants to know what im doing
ReplyDelete"Commercial Speech" is using media to sell products/services and buying space to print editorial messages.
ReplyDeleteWith regards to ethics, the Supreme Court will offer First Amendment protection to lawful, truthful advertising.
It will not always protect unethical, untruthful advertising.
is that the same as breaking the law?
ReplyDeleteYou were given a handout the first week of class entitled “Sampling of Major Laws that Affect Advertising”.
ReplyDeletePlease read that handout to see how the law has shaped how we can and what we can legally advertise.
is that the voice in a commercial or when they talk about what a product may do etc but must be selective in not talking about its competitors in a bad name calling fiasco?
ReplyDeletei'll have to find that. i lost all the papers i had from the first week
ReplyDeleteYour textbook talks a lot about self-regulation versus legislative regulation.
ReplyDeleteLet's talk about legislative regulation...
Advertising is controlled and regulated through federal, state and local laws that are enforced by various government agencies.
Can you name some of the agencies that regulate advertising?
FCC
ReplyDeleteFrankie, I'm unclear as to what you are asking. Can you elaborate?
ReplyDeletewhat about products or services not promoted through advertising company's but self promotion like a family owned business etc. are they still protected or is it one of those things you have to register yourself inorder to get this protection.
ReplyDeletewhat about word of mouth?
ReplyDeleteAAF and FCC
ReplyDeleteThat's a very good question, Frankie. I'll have to look into it.
ReplyDeleteWord of mouth cannot be regulated. We are talking about laws and rulings and regulations that have to do with creative in print, broadcast and online.
ReplyDeleteYou have a handout that lists all of the regulating agencies that oversee advertising.
ReplyDeleteWhy are these regulating agencies important?
to keep agencies from advertising false information and bad language that would offend
ReplyDeletei was refering to the commercial speech and just stabbing my opinion of what it is to me. though i was totally off, i thought it had to do with narrative speech or the testimonal speaker of what the product has done for them etc.
ReplyDeleteThey come in where self regulation fails. They stand for the offended or misled consumer.
ReplyDeleteRight, anyone else?
ReplyDeleteCorrect, Correne.
ReplyDeleteThese legislative bodies are the voice of the consumer.
So, what happens when agencies do not comply with the standards set by these regulating agencies?
fines?
ReplyDeleteThey face legal consequences and bad reputations.
ReplyDeleteYou are both right. Agencies/corporations are fined and/or have their creative removed.
ReplyDeleteregulations gives people a more structured working environment and code. the basic what you can and cannot do shall be followed and the advertising aspect can be more narrowed down and focused in what can be promoted and what cannot.
ReplyDeletethey are important so that offense or to extremeness of a commercial or type of ads will not arise. well, places outside of the U.S. like europe have their own thing going on so they have exceptions to their rules of advertising, but each country to their own i suppose
Good discussion today.
ReplyDeleteAny questions on anything discussed today?
nope - Victoria I resent you the PDF you requested
ReplyDeleteFrankie, most countries have some type of legislative body overseeing advertising. And countries are more strict than others. For example, Canada is more strict in what can/cannot be advertised than the U.S.
ReplyDeletei'm all good here. thanks for the lesson. see you on thursday!!!
ReplyDeletethat presentation i was assigned, its for the blog right?
ReplyDeleteHOMEWORK REMINDER FOR THURSDAY'S ETHICS CLASS:
ReplyDelete- Read Chapter 2 for Thursday, Feb. 5th
- Article Journaling answers for Wednesday, Feb. 4th at 12pm (see Domino's/Subway article and questions)
- Read Case Study 2A & 2B answers in your textbook for Thursday, Feb. 5th
Ariel, let's talk over email re: that presentation for research.
ReplyDeleteyea but France is much more liberal
ReplyDelete