50/50: How Some Advertisers Only Meet Ethics Halfway

Jess Deyo

jd922016@ohio.edu


Advertising is often described as a hassle, but in reality, if it's a good advertisement, it will not only help the producer but it will also satisfy the consumer. Advertising is valuable and in my opinion, we need it just like we need the daily news. Without it, we wouldn't know what’s around us. However, we do not need the lies that can come with it.



Today, it is almost impossible to get on social media and not see celebrities holding some type of miracle product that they swear by. Driving down the freeway, we see tons of advertisements plastered on boards 30 feet in the air that tell us why we should take the next exit. Food boxes scream “all natural” and “no artificial flavors” to urge us to pick it up and try it.


I remember growing up and seeing tons of advertisements for toys and fake makeup that would only cost me $19.95 plus shipping and handling, and thinking, “I have to have that.” But as I got older, and my parents never gave in, I started to realize that these advertisements were for products that were flimsy and had tons of problems. This is when I stopped trusting advertising.



I could go on and on about other examples of deceptive advertising in my own life, like acne-solution makeup filled with products that are known to cause acne, but I know that everyone reading has fallen victim to false advertising at one point or another.

Photo Courtesy of Nairobi Business Monthly

Before I add on, I want to make it clear that I under no circumstances believe that all advertisers are liars. Just like any other career, I believe there are great employees and there are employees that make poor choices. However, for something as vast as advertising, a profession that demands attention, it seems that the poor choices seem to be outweighing the good. According to this article from Gallup, advertising was one of the least trusted careers in 2017, above only members of congress, car salespeople and lobbyists.


After reviewing the ethics codes of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and the American Advertising Federation (AFA), I was not surprised to see that there was a well-composed list of principles that advertisers should be following, because I know that rules are broken all the time. I was, however, shocked to see that in the PRSA and AFF code there was a clearly stated policy to not be anything short of totally honest, and there seemed to be no loophole.


In my own opinion, if there is one thing that many advertisers have not proven to be excel in, it is honesty. Just look at these examples from the Entrepreneur, which prove that deceptiveness has been a problem for decades. I searched for a way around the clear principles surrounding honesty, but there was no way around it that could justify being anything less than truthful.


Today, I fear that advertisers fall in traps similar to those of reporters and other time-sensitive professions that value an agenda or numbers over the effect on the people they are reaching. While it is only fact that people are struggling to believe advertisers, I believe this is something very easily reversible. If the product cannot sell without the false detail slapped on the front of the product, it may not belong on the shelves. Instead of sticking to the agenda, stick to the principle of honesty.


In both codes, there is also an emphasis placed on disclosing endorsement or sponsorship deals when people are promoting a product. This means that a celebrity on social media is required to tell us whether or not they agreed to do an ad with the company or if they are simply advertising it because they love it. In a world full of social media gurus, I feel like it is important to stay true to the rules for the type of advertising people are most likely to interact with. I believe advertisers are doing a great job of sticking to disclosure.


Logging on to Instagram, I see my role models in videos promoting a product they say they believe in, and they never fail to include that the company is endorsing them or paying them to promote the product. For example, Kylie Jenner promoting Sugar Bear hair. I look forward to seeing these products when they are advertised by icons, but I am more likely to purchase the product if the person is honest about why they are showing it off. Good advertising and good reviews from people we look up to is truly appealing, and that starts with disclosing that type of information.



Advertising falls short of my expectations when it comes to following ethics related to honesty, but overall, I still would argue on behalf of advertising being a necessity for all the good that it does. After all, when it comes to the truth, many careers also have much improvement to make.