Advertising Task

ADVERTISING : ETHICS AND ISSUES

Advertising : Ethics and Issues

Introduction

Advertising is an essential tool of the capitalist system . It is widely considered as the vehicle that carries the market and the second most important interface between consumer and market , the first being the market itself . The entire structure of modern economy and free market depends upon advertising , which is the medium where a manufacturer communicates directly to consumers . In this capacity , advertisement has drawn active attention of economists , legal experts , communication analyst , psychologists , and sociologist on the ethical , economical

legal and moral issues involved with advertisement . Some of the important of these issues are discussed here

Advertising : Major ethical considerations

It is universally acknowledged that among all the fields of business practices , marketing has raised maximum controversy and legal and moral challenges . Advertising , as the right arm of marketing , is therefore closely studied and analyzed for its effect on determining consumer behavior (Baker , 1999

As a medium , advertisement has the same impact as any other medium of mass communication , such as books , magazines , television , films and radio , while its relevance and effects are more deep-set due to the economic considerations acting behind it (O 'Shanghnessy and O 'Shanghnessy , 2003 . The presence of economic motives has brought advertising under intense ethical and moral scrutiny , and it has been widely criticized as a tool that deceives , cheats and misleads people sweeping aside all ethical considerations purely for economical and financial gains . The main charges against advertisement are presenting misleading and partial information , creating requirements for products when there is no need for them , persuading people to buy unnecessary things , promoting consumerism , manipulating our behavior and capitalizing on our psychological and emotional vulnerabilities to sell products and using children , young female models , and sex to attract consumers and engage their attention , raising objections on questionable ethical standards and dubious practices used by advertisers . These practices have eroded people 's confidence in the reliability of advertisements

As such , the ethical standards that are encouraged to be embedded in advertising to make it a creditable and responsible medium are

Recognizing advertisement 's impact in determining social and individual behavior and adopting a more responsible attitude

Corporations have a direct responsibility to society , as they are dependent upon people for their functioning as well as profits . Hence they must be conscious towards their positive contribution in political economical and social health of people

Truth should not be tampered with for the sake of profit , and consumers should not be cheated by false statements and promises

Advertisement and range of consumer choices

Despite the criticism and charges leveled against advertisement , its seminal importance can not be ignored in presenting consumers with widest possible range of choices and options . Essentially advertisement is information on market , and more information directly expands the range of choices available for the customer . At times advertising is criticized for promoting only few selected brands who push the smaller brands to the margin , thereby creating monopoly in the market (Tuerck 1978 . However , as pointed by O 'Shanghnessy and O 'Shanghnessy (2003 the use of persuasion may orient the opinion of users in favor of a particular brand or product , however , advertising per se , does not limit the choices of brands to select at any stage . The best example of this effect is offered on internet where advertisements help consumers to identify thousands of brands for each product , and its solely on their discretion to judge and purchase the brand that appeals them most

Advertising and economic growth

The economy is dependent upon growth and success of business and business is dependent upon advertising for its growth and success hence establishing a direct correlation between advertisement and economic growth . Advertising creates brand values for various sectors of business , it circulates information on the range of applications and products , and helps to increase consumer 's knowledge on the choices uses and utilities of the products they see and seek . Increasing advertisement normally drives up demands for product , leading to greater consumer consumption , which in turn leads to greater production in manufacturing segment , along with providing opportunities for a host of other industries like banking , insurance , transportation and information-technology to derive business and profits out from the cycle . Thus it advertising helps to initiate an entire range of business activities that lead to economic growth and development (Tuerck , 1978

Reference

Persuasion in Advertising . Contributors : John O 'Shanghnessy - author Nicholas Jackson O 'Shaughnessy - author . Publisher : Routledge . Place of Publication : New York . Publication Year : 2003

Five Baselines for Justification in Persuasion . Contributors : Sherry Baker - author . Journal Title : Journal of Mass Media Ethics . Volume : 14 Issue : 2 . Publication Year : 1999

Issues in Advertising : The Economics of Persuasion . Contributors : David G . Tuerck - editor . Publisher : American Enterprise Institute . Place of Publication : Washington , DC . Publication Year : 1978

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