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Belch: Advertising and
Promotion, Sixth Edition
VII. Special Topics and
Perspectives
Critics of these stealth marketing techniques say
they are tinkering with our minds. The executive
director of the Center for Digital Democracy has
called the phenomenon the “brand washing of
America.” Many advertising industry executives are
worried that it could all too easily backfire, making
consumers even more wary. Keith Reinhard, chairman
of DDB Worldwide, has spoken out against the
covert techniques, noting: “I’m against any form of
deception. In the end, its bad business.” Consumer
advocate Ralph Nader has accused marketers of creating
“prime-time infomercials” with no line
between entertainment and ads. He notes, “What
these people on Madison Avenue don’t understand
is, consumers will reach a saturation point. They’ll
reach a point where they just tip over and go,
‘Yuck.’”
While many marketers realize that they may be
alienating consumers with all of these stealth techniques,
they argue that they really have no choice.
That’s because the old approach of relying on 30second
TV spots and other forms of mass-media
advertising is becoming less effective. They note that
digital video recorders such as TiVo will soon become
as common as VCRs and give TV viewers the ability
to banish commercials. Some media experts argue
that commercial-supported free TV is an endangered
species and marketers have to find new ways to
reach consumers with their messages. Thus, like it or
not, consumers are probably going to see more and
more unexpected, and undercover, messages.
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22. Evaluating the Social,
Ethical, & Economic
Aspects of Advtising &
Promotion
© The McGraw−Hill
Companies, 2003
Many advertising experts argue that “branded
content” is the wave of the future, and there is a
growing clamor to reinvent advertising and other
forms of marketing communications to be something
more akin to entertainment. However,
advertising and marketing watchdog groups such
as Commercial Alert note that the memories of the
movies and TV shows Hollywood is making today
are being corrupted by commercialization that has
mushroomed beyond mere product placement to
include script doctoring and related sins. Gary
Ruskin, executive director of Commercial Alert,
argues that artistic concerns take a back seat when
advertising is integrated into films and TV shows.
He has also expressed concern over the effect
“advertainment” will have on children who cannot
identify or properly process the barrage of
advertising messages directed at them, particularly
when they are embedded in movies and TV
shows.
Many argue that the Brave New World of advertainment
and branded content will be exciting and
cool. However, critics argue that people would like
to have some places in their lives where they are
free from ads and efforts to sell them something.
Unfortunately, these places are becoming more
difficult to find.
Sources: Daniel Eisenberg, “It’s an Ad, Ad, Ad, World,” Time,
Sept. 2, 2002, pp. 38–41; Jennifer Davies, “Where Do Films Start,
Ads Stop?” San Diego Union Tribune, Aug. 8, 2002, pp. C1, 3;
Michael McCarthy, “Ads Are Here, There, Everywhere,” USA
Today, June 19, 2001, pp. 1, 2B.
If I were to name the deadliest subversive force within capitalism, the single greatest source
of its waning morality—I would without hesitation name advertising. How else should one
identify a force that debases language, drains thought, and undoes dignity? 1
The primary focus of this text has been on the role of advertising and other promotional
variables as marketing activities used to convey information to, and influence
the behavior of, consumers. We have been concerned with examining the advertising
and promotion function in the context of a business and marketing environment and
from a perspective that assumes these activities are appropriate. However, as you can
see in this quote from economist Robert Heilbroner, not everyone shares this viewpoint.
Advertising and promotion are the most visible of all business activities and
are prone to scrutiny by those who are concerned about the methods marketers use to
sell their products and services.
Proponents of advertising argue that it is the lifeblood of business—it provides
consumers with information about products and services and encourages them to