Advertising: Encyclopedia II - Advertising - Social impact

Advertising - Social impact

Advertising - Regulation
Main article: Advertising regulation
There have been increasing efforts to protect the public interest by regulating
the content and the reach of advertising. Some examples are the ban on televisio
n tobacco advertising imposed in many countries, and the total ban on advertisin
g to children under twelve imposed by the Swedish government in 1991. Though tha
t regulation continues in effect for broadcasts originating within the country,
it has been weakened by the European Court of Justice, which has found that Swed
en was obliged to accept whatever programming was targeted at it from neighbouri
ng countries or via satellite.
In Europe and elsewhere there is a vigorous debate on whether and how much adver
tising to children should be regulated. This debate was exacerbated by a report
released by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation in February 2004 which suggest
ed that food advertising targeting children was an important factor in the epide
mic of childhood obesity raging across the United States.
In many countries - namely New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, and many European
contries- the advertising industry operates a system of self-regulation. Adverti
sers, advertising agencies and the media agree on a code of advertising standard
s that they attempt to uphold. The general aim of such codes is to ensure that a
ny advertising is 'legal, decent, honest and truthful'. Some self-regulatory org
anisations are funded by the industry, but remain independent, with the intent o
f upholding the standards or codes (like the ASA in the UK).
Advertising - Critiques of the medium
As advertising and marketing efforts become increasingly ubiquitous in modern We
stern societies, the industry has come under criticism of groups such as AdBuste
rs via culture jamming which criticizes the media and consumerism using advertis
ing's own techniques. The industry is accused of being one of the engines poweri
ng a convoluted economic mass production system which promotes consumption. Some
advertising campaigns have also been criticized as inadvertently or even intent
ionally promoting sexism, racism, and ageism. Such criticisms have raised questi
ons about whether this medium is creating or reflecting cultural trends. At very
least, advertising often reinforces stereotypes by drawing on recognizable "typ
es" in order to tell stories in a single image or 30 second time frame. Recogniz
ing the social impact of advertising, MediaWatch, a non-profit women's organizat
ion, works to educate consumers about how they can register their concerns with
advertisers and regulators. It has developed educational materials for use in sc
hools. The award-winning book, Made You Look - How Advertising Works and Why You
Should Know , by former MediaWatch president Shari Graydon, provides context fo
r these issues for young readers.
Public interest groups and free thinkers are increasingly suggesting that access
to the mental space targeted by advertisers should be taxed, in that at the pre
sent moment that space is being freely taken advantage of by advertisers with no
compensation paid to the members of the public who are thus being intruded upon
. This kind of tax would be a Pigovian tax in that it would act to reduce what i
s now increasingly seen as a public nuisance. Efforts to that end are gathering
momentum, with Arkansas and Maine considering bills to implement such taxation.
Florida enacted such a tax in 1987 but was forced to repeal it after six months,
as a result of a concerted effort by national commercial interests, which withd
rew planned conventions, causing major losses to the tourism industry, and cance
lled advertising, causing a loss of 12 million dollars to the broadcast industry
alone.
Advertising - Public perception of the medium
Over the years, the public perception of advertising has become very negative. I
t is seen as a medium that inherently promotes a lie, based on the purpose of th
e advertisement - to encourage the target audience to submit to a cause or a bel
ief, and act on it to the advertising party's benefit and consequently the targe
t's disadvantage. They are either perceived as directly lying (stating opinions
or untruths directly as facts), lying by omission (usually terms or conditions u
nfavorable to the customer
) or portraying a product or service in a light that does not reflect reality. I
t is this increased awareness of the intention of advertising, as well as advert
ising regulations that have increased the challenges that marketers face.