SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY TOWARDS THE CONSUMERS, END USERS, AND

GENERAL PUBLIC

Chapter 19. Deceptive Practices

 What are deceptive practices?

Deceptive practices refers to acts that mislead deliberately or acts that causes one
to believe what is not true, the intention of which is to take unfair advantage of another.
Furthermore, if, in making a contract, a person obtains an unjust advantage
because of the youth, defective mental capacity, or intoxicated condition of the party to
the contract, he/she did a deceptive practice (Boccagna, 2000).
In some cases, it is hard to distinguish deception from providing unintentionally
wrong information. It might be well to remember that being deceptively by strict
definition refers to an action that is planned, calculated, and intentional.

 How is the art of war used in business?

It might be well to mention that some business executives utilize the art of war
concepts of Sun Tzu in strategizing and competing in the business arena. According to
Tzu, warfare is the way of deception; thus, it is best to display incapability to your
enemies even though you are capable. He further states that, when committed to
advocating forces, feign inactivity; when the objectives is nearby, make it appear as if
distant; when far away, create the illusion of being nearby.
Warfare must be viewed as a matter of deception, of constantly creating false
appearances, spreading disinformation, and employing trickery and deceit. (Sawyer,
1994).

 Are there guidelines against deceptive practices?

Today, common guidelines on determining deceptive practices can easily be seen
on the existing laws, statutes, regulations, and codes of the state, an example of which are
the Republic Act 7394 of the Consumer Act of the Philippines and US Consumer Product
Safety Act of 1972.
 Business transaction is any situation in which two or more parties are engaged in
communications, the aim of which is agreement on terms affecting an exchange, or a
distribution of benefits, burdens, roles or responsibilities.
Unethical practices flow from deceit, and they are detrimental both to sound
agreement and good relationship between parties. Business transactions are not one-time
meetings but part of ongoing relationships, and value creating ‘win-win’ activities are
most likely driven by the continuing nature of such business relationship.
Clarity of purpose and honesty, rather than deception, is central to business
transactions, which means that those strategies that seek to maximize social gain would
be better in the long run than deceptive strategies.

 What are the forms and types of deception in business?

People encounter various forms of deceptive practices in business, such as false
advertising and other misrepresentations, deceptive pricing, charging for goods and
services at rats higher than advertised price, bluffing in negotiation and transaction
(Lewicki, 1983).
Deceptive practices are aimed not only at one stakeholder but also at the multiple
stakeholders of business, namely the employees, consumers, competitors, government,
and the general public.
a. Direct or indirect misrepresentation of a product or service by intentionally
distorting some details makes advertising false and deceptive.
b. Another form of deceptive practice is unfair competition, which is a dishonest
or fraudulent rivalry in trade and commerce that usually includes
misrepresentation of one’s product through deceptive packaging, labelling, or
other unjust practices.

 Why are deceptive practices contrary to business ethics?

Deceptive practices directly undermine the integrity of the organization. Business

history is replete with cases involving powerful persons, who corrupted sizeable system
and structures by deceptive practices, thereby undermining the integrity of the
organization.
 Consider ethical management and moral leadership as relevant to business
survival and corporate reputation.
 Chapter 20. Consumer Protection

CONSUMER PROTECTION
- Is a group of laws and organizations designed to ensure the rights of consumers as well as
fair trade, competition and accurate information in the marketplace. The laws are
designed to prevent the businesses that engage in fraud or specified unfair practices from
gaining an advantage over competitors. They may also provide additional protection for
those most vulnerable in society. Consumer protection laws are a form of government
regulation that aim to protect the rights of consumers.
 Is there a customer’s bill of rights?

Customer Bill of Rights

-Created by the Marketing Publications Inc. of United States, which is based in

Washington D.C.
-Published in the Customer Communicator

The customer rights stated in this bill are the following:

1) A customer has the right to courteous treatment by the seller’s representatives at

all times and under all conditions.
2) A customer has the right to the representative’s full time and attention during each
and every transaction.
3) A customer has the right to fast and accurate information about the product or
service or the status of the order.
4) A customer has the right to have his or her expectations met with a product or
service of the quality represented before the purchase.
5) A customer has the right to complain when the product or service does not meet
those expectations and to a prompt remedy when the product or service is indeed
at fault.
6) A customer has the right to expect knowledgeability, resourcefulness, problem
solving, concern, and results from those assigned to his or her account.
7) A customer has the right to expect responsiveness and follow-through in
emergencies and special situations.
8) A customer has the right to the benefits of teamwork in the company he or she
deals with, without buckpassing, fingerpointing, or runarounds.
9) A customer has the right to care, accuracy, and attention to detail in filling his or
her orders for services and/or products.
10) A customer has the right to appreciation on the part of those with whom he or she
does business ̶ appreciation both for the business already given and for the
 business to be given in the future so long as this Customer Bill of Rights
continues to be observed.

Basic Consumer Rights

 Set forth by US President John F. Kennedy in his 1962 message to Congress on

consumerism
 It consists of the following:
1) Right to safety- Ensures safety of consumers against injuries caused by the
products when the products are purchased.
2) Right to be informed- This right states that businesses should always provide
consumers with sufficient information to make informed product choices. Product
information provided by a business should always be complete and truthful.
3) Right to choose- The right to free choice among products states that consumers
will have a variety of options provided by different companies from which to
choose.
4) Right to be heard- This right ensures the opportunity to the consumers to voice
complaints and concerns about a product in order to have the issue handled
efficiently and responsively.

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES RESPONSIBLE FOR CONSUMER WELFARE AND

PROTECTION

REPUBLIC ACT NO. 7394

THE CONSUMER ACT OF THE PHILIPPINES

ARTICLE 6. Implementing Agencies. — The provisions of this Article and its implementing
rules and regulations shall be enforced by:

(a) the Department of Health with respect to food, drugs, cosmetics, devices and substances;
(b) the Department of Agriculture with respect to products related to agriculture, and;
(c) the Department of Trade and Industry with respect to other consumer products not
specified above.

ARTICLE 148. National Consumer Affairs Council. — To improve the management,

coordination and effectiveness of consumer programs, a National Consumer Affairs Council is
hereby created, hereinafter referred to as the “Council”.

ARTICLE 149. Composition. — The Council shall be composed of representatives from the
following government agencies and non-government agencies:
 (a) Department of Trade and Industry;
(b) Department of Education, Culture and Sports;
(c) Department of Health;
(d) Department of Agriculture;
(e) four (4) representatives from consumer organizations of nationwide base to be chosen by
the President from among the nominees submitted by the various consumer groups in the
Philippines;
(f) two (2) representatives from business/industry sector to be chosen by the President from
among the nominees submitted by the various business organizations.

ARTICLE 153. Powers and Functions. — The Council shall have the following powers and
functions:

(a) to rationalize and coordinate the functions of the agencies charged with consumer
programs and enforcement of consumer related laws to the end that an effective,
coordinated and integrated system of consumer protection, research and implementation
and enforcement of such laws shall be achieved;
(b) to recommend new policies and legislation or amendments to existing ones;
(c) to monitor and evaluate implementation of consumer programs and projects and to take
appropriate steps to ensure that concerned agencies take appropriate steps to comply with
the established priorities, standards and guidelines;
(d) to seek the assistance of government instrumentalities in the form of augmenting the
need for personnel, facilities and other resources;
(e) to undertake a continuing education and information campaign to provide the consumer
with, among others:

1) facts about consumer products and services;

2) consumer rights and the mechanism for redress available to him;
3) information on new concepts and developments on consumer protection; and
4) general knowledge and awareness necessary for a critical and better judgment on
consumption;
5) such other matters of importance to the consumer’s general well-being.

 Is trust an ethical requirement?

Trust, always unsigned and undocumented, is required in any business transaction. The
legal requirement is always visible to the eyes (as demanded by law), whereas the ethical
requirement remains invisible and is kept in conscience.
 The fulfillment of the social responsibility requirement completes the legal requirement.
One way of being wrong in business is to violate the legal requirements of a contract.
Investor’s confidence is not only pegged on competency but also on trust.

Example: An individual has cash of ₱500,000.00 that he wants to invest in a business. He chose
to form a partnership with his best friend because he trusts that the latter’s abilities, skills and
experiences in business will make their business, along with his investment, grow and be
successful.

 What is the moral lesson we get from the movie Class Action?

The 1991 blockbuster film Class Action, starring Gene Hackman and Mary Elizabeth
Mastrantonio as father and daughter tandem of lawyers, can be an interesting point of departure.
One crucial segment of the story is when the CEO of the car manufacturer Argo admitted that it
is far cheaper to circumvent the law, cheat, and win a court case by paying attorneys than to
retrieve the defective electrical circuit from the 120,000 units of the 1985 car model Meridian.
The mechanical defect has subsequently resulted to physical injury and death of some clients
who bought it without being told of the factory deficiency.

Example:

https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/12/01/15/mitsubishi-denies-montero-sport-defective-unsafe

https://www.rappler.com/nation/120930-dti-officials-cases-montero-sport-sua

 What did Ralph Nader say?

It is good business sense when you know how to protect consumers from their own
ignorance and indiscretion. It is an honorable and decent act not to take advantage of their
weaknesses. This is the message of Ralph Nader (1959), an advocate for consumer protection in
the United States, when he reminded business in 1950s:

“Innumerable precedents show that the consumer must be protected at times from his
own indiscretion and vanity.”

He included in his message the safety measures and standards that some products like
drugs, meat, railroad and other interstate carriers and motor vehicles must undergo before their
release in the market.

Example: https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/404830

http://manilastandard.net/news/metro/191049/-xmas-lights-spark-makati-fire-.html
  What are the essential rights of consumers?

Consumer protection means the efforts of government, public-interest organizations,

individuals and businesses to establish, protect and enforce the rights of people who buy
products such as food or services such as healthcare and insurance.

THE RIGHT TO SAFETY

No responsible government or business wants a poisoned or maimed population.

Therefore, it is only logical that all products and services offered for sale should not pose undue
risk of physical harm to consumers or their families. Products that cause injuries include impure
food, defectively-manufactured automobiles and tires, drugs that have harmful side effects, and
unsafe appliances.

Department of Trade and Industry is an agency who is responsible for ensuring the safety of
most products in the philippines that tasked to :

 protect the public from unreasonable risk of injury caused by consumer products
 assist consumers in comparing the safety of various items
 develop uniform safety standards
 promote research about the causes and prevention of product-related deaths, illnesses,
and injuries.

Food and Drug Administration is an agency who is responsible that all processed foods, drugs,
medical devices and cosmetics are safe and properly labeled. Also, manufacturers have the
responsibility to ensure that their products are both of high quality and at the same time safe.

 What is the consumer’s right to be informed?

Consumers need sufficient information in order to choose wisely among the competing
products and services available. Marketplace contains different complex products and
advertising is usually not informative enough for consumer purposes. Therefore, consumers
often lack the information required to compare the quality of products and services, to determine
their true cost, or to be assured of their suitability or safety.

 What is the consumer’s right to choose?

 Competition is the best regulator of the marketplace. When many companies are selling a
product, the effort of each to attract more customers keeps prices at the lowest level. When a
market is not competitive, sellers can set the price as high as they wish, up to the level where
consumers simply will not buy the product.

 What is the consumer’s right to be heard?

Those who have been cheated, screwed or who have bought a product or service that does
not perform properly have the right to seek a refund, replacement of the product, or other
remedy. But at times, they can't claim the right to be heard because the manufacturers or makers
will not cooperate in resolving the complaint. For this reason, the only recourse is to settle things
in the legal way.

National and local governments have established offices or agencies to help protect
consumers or to resolve disputes between consumers and businesses. The communications media
like newspaper, television and radio often aid consumers through services such as "action lines".

OTHER RIGHTS OF CONSUMERS

Right to Basic Needs

Every consumer has access to basic goods and services necessary for survival, such as food,
water, energy, clothing, shelter, health-care, education and sanitation. Goods and services must
meet the standard of quality promised such that there is value for money in the purchase.

Right to Seek Redressal

Customer has the right to voice out any complaints and deserve compensation for any
misrepresentation and unsatisfactory public and private services, the unfair practices of the seller,
including the right to adequate legal representation.
Right to Consumer Education

Customers should be adequately educated about the basic customer rights they enjoy. The
consumers should gain acquisition of the skills they require to make informed consumer in the
marketplace.
Right to Healthy Environment

Businesses have the responsibility to formulate policies in the production and regulation of
goods and services that are hazardous to the natural environment. The consumers have the right
to live in a healthy, pollution-free environment which will enhance the quality of their lives and
their generations.
https://ceecare.com/publications/view/8-basic-rights-of-the-consumer/e0fe29dc-0a1e-4779-ab7e-
d13484b018f1

 What is the business social responsibility before transaction?

It is impossible to discover the risks that attend the use of a product before consumer buys and used it

Scenario:

Thousands of people have already used product with component of asbestos. A scientific study
correlates the incidence of cancer and exposure to asbestos.

Most urgent social responsibility: Covers two areas of production and information before doing any
business

 PRODUCTION
o It is the duty if the manufacturers not only to guarantee the customers satisfaction but
also to take precautionary measures to make sure that the customers are not harmed by
the products they sell

-Ensures right to safety

PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES

- Applied to the design, choice of tested materials, manufacturing process, quality control of the product

-Stops necessary to ensure the product leaving their factory is 100 percent accurate, undamaged, Safe and
sound and at least confirm with generally accepted standards

INFORMATION

- The company makes only those promotional literature or advertisement that not contain any deceptive
description, claims or illustration

- Price and purchase terms should made clear and completely indicated

- Making the consumers well informed

- Ensures fundamental right of consumers to be informed

Remember: Company must be sure it produces and sells only those product and services that are not
harmful to health, safety and growth of the consumers.

 What is the business social responsibility during transaction?

4 DUTIES TO CONSUMERS
  PRIMARY DUTY:

1.) The social duty to comply with the terms of the sales / sales contract.

-Manufacturers and their representatives must live up to the expressed claims they make about their
products and services.

-Business is duty bound to courteously deal and trade with cuatomers at all times and under all
conditions.

*Customer Satisfaction- Buying public can claim the full attention of business during each and every
transaction.

 SECONDARY DUTIES:

2.) The social duty to fully disclose the nature of a product or service

-It involves "transparency" of the business

-It is part of the company's social responsibility to explain and demonstrate accurately and completely the
product or service offered.

-Price, credit Price, terms of payment, return rights, after-sale service and delivery must be disclosed.

-Labels must disclose the nature of a particular product and service.

3.) The social duty to avoid misrepresentation

-It is the company's social responsibility not to intentionally deceive the consumers.

-They should refrain from using any misleading, deceptive or unfair sales practices.

4.) The social responsibility to avoid coercion and undue influence

*COERCION- The practice of persuading someone to do something by using force and threats.

*UNDUE INFLUENCE- Influence by which a person is induced to act otherwise than by their own free
will or without adequate attention to the consequences.

-Business should not take advantage at the emotional state of the buying public.

- Buyers should be allowed to think twice or maybe thrice.

-Business should let customers exercise their right to choose and choose intelligently.

-It is part of corporate citizenship not to abuse the clients' trust.

  What is the business social responsibility after transaction?

-Business is still obligated to have an efficient feedback system in order to resolve complaints and to
compensate if needed.

 FEEDBACK SYSTEM
-It is preferred by almost every consumer that the maker is clear and specific in terms of warranty, details
and limitation of after-sales service.

- Companies can provide feedback system to address customers' complaints and do corrective actions

- A business " Performance Indicator"

 RESOLVING COMPLAINTS

-Every company has no choice but to patiently listen to all complaints regarding its product amd services.

-This can be in the form of hotlines and brigade of customer service operators to resolve complaints.

 COMPENSATORY JUSTICE

-Business is also obligated to assume the social responsibility when injuries happen due to defects in the
products.

-Consumer protection must be comprehensible in this context.

Chapter 21. Ethics in Advertising and Marketing

 ADVERTISING ETHICS

ETHICS - moral principles that govern a person's behavior or how the activity is conducted.

-right or wrong -good or bad

ADVERTISING - a mode of communication between a seller and a buyer Thus, ADVERTISING

ETHICS means a set of well defined principles which govern the ways of communication taking
 place between the buyer and the seller. "What is right or good in the conduct of the advertising
function? It is concerned with questions of what ought to be done, not just with what legally must be
done" -Cunningham (1999)

 COMMERCIAL ADVERTISING

-is a span of television programming produced and paid by an organization. It conveys a message,
aimed to market product or service.

-non-personal communication

-main purpose is to inform, persuade and influence the people to buy their products and services

-can encounter via television, social media sites like Facebook, Youtube, etc., cinema, radio,
billboards, newspaper, etc.

 ELEMENTS OF COMMERCIAL ADVERTISING

-nonpersonal communication and promotion -publicly addressed to mass audience -paid for by
some identified sponsor, usually by business organizations

-purpose is to unfluence the behavior of the buying public

-deliverd through a paid medium -communication is established through such media as

newspapers, radio, cinema, television, bimps, sports or fashion event, billboards, direct mail,
electronic catalogue, or via internet

 What is persuasive advertising?

Persuasive advertising aims to create a need for the product or service. It is directed to feelings
and the unconscious motivations of the customers, tends to be emotional. Advertisers refer this kind
of advertising as the “hard shell” or “subliminal ads”. This type of advertising seeks to bypass the
reflective and intelligent powers of the customers.

 How do we know whether the ad’s intention is to inform?

To briefly discuss the answer, there is an example of a competition in the mid-1980s

where Wendy’s distinguished itself in tv commercials during the so-called burger war with
McDonald’s and Burger King. The company won several awards for its “Where’s the beef?”
campaign, which helped Wendy’s register the highest consumer awareness levels in advertising
history up until that time, and easily raise its market share in the fastfood industry to about 10 percent
in 1985.
Commercial advertising used by Wendy’s and its competitors and other industries, has been
described as a form of “information” and the advertiser as “one who supplies the information”. When
you hear the question “Where’s the beef?” the implication is that the principal function of advertising
is to provide more intelligent info to the consuming public.
 Do ads usually carry substantial information?

When you switch on the TV you would discover that more than half of all TV commercials do
not contain vital information whatsoever about the advertised product. Commercials do no usually
incorporate much substantial information about the product on sale for the reason that their first
function is not really to inform, but rather to persuade, create a need among the consumers, make
them believe that the product is the means to satisfy that need. In general, the basic function is to
persuade more than to inform, such that whatever information commercial ads happen to convey is
secondary to this function.

 What are the ethical practices in persuasive advertising?

Ethics in advertising means a set of well-defined principles which governs the ways of
communication taking place between the seller and the buyer.

People in general believe that advertising stimulates socioeconomic growth. They insist that
persuasive commercials are amoral, and nothing is unethical about them. But, there are also people
who think that advertising borders the unethical and socially irresponsible and can become a form of
economic sabotage.

As we have said earlier, "hard sell" or persuasive advertising appeals more to the emotions,
that it pushes the consumers to be more impulsive when buying. "Advertising not only moves
products but changes attitudes and habits, creates appetites, stimulates needs, and affects the lives of
entire societies" - Hechanova, former Secretary of Finance (cited in Maximiano, 2001)

8 Principles and Practices for Advertising

Principle 1 – Advertising, public relations, marketing communications, news, and editorial all
share a common objective of truth and high ethical standards in serving the public.

Principle 2 – Advertising, public relations, and all marketing communications professionals have
an obligation to exercise the highest personal ethics in the creation and dissemination of commercial
information to consumers.

Principle 3 – Advertisers should clearly distinguish advertising, public relations and corporate
communications from news and editorial content and entertainment, both online and offline. As we
continue to blur the line between commercial communications and editorial content, consumers are
increasingly being misled and treated unethically. To avoid consumer confusion and mistrust, the
industry must strive to clearly separate paid advertising from actual news

Principle 4 – Advertisers should clearly disclose all material conditions, such as payment or
receipt of a free product, affecting endorsements in social and traditional channels, as well as the
identity of endorsers, all in the interest of full disclosure and transparency. The popularity of social
media and word-of-mouth marketing raises questions about the credibility of content. Advertisers
 must be transparent about whether bloggers are expressing their own opinions or are being
compensated by a brand. There must also be full disclosure regarding the authenticity of comments
on Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms

Principle 5 – Advertisers should treat consumers fairly based on the nature of the audience to
whom the ads are directed and the nature of the product or service advertised. Extra care must be used
when advertising to children and other vulnerable audiences to avoid misleading or mistreating them.
Advertisers should also use discretion based on the nature of the product or service, especially alcohol
and prescription drugs.

Principle 6 – Advertisers should never compromise consumers’ personal privacy in marketing

communications, and their choices as to whether to participate in providing their information should
be transparent and easily made. As marketers develop increasingly advanced means of online
behavioral targeting, consumers worry about their privacy.

Principle 7 – Advertisers should follow federal, state and local advertising laws, and cooperate
with industry self-regulatory programs for the resolution of advertising practices. The Federal Trade
Commission, Better Business Bureau and Food & Drug Administration are just a few of the
regulatory bodies that advertisers can look to for guidance regarding ethical practices.

Principle 8 – Advertisers and their agencies, and online and offline media, should discuss
privately potential ethical concerns, and members of the team creating ads should be given permission
to express internally their ethical concerns.

 Is it unethical to play upon the human weaknesses and vulnerabilities?

They base their arguments on several instances when persuasive advertising becomes
unethical and business disregards corporate responsibility towards society. When, for instance, it
encourages women, usually housewives, to be less reflective and more impulsive in buying specific
brand of basic necessities like food and clothing, or when commercials play upon our hidden
weaknesses and frailties such as our anxieties, aggressive feelings, dread of nonconformity and
infantile hang-overs in order to sell products.

"Philippine advertising may be producing adverse effect by misdirecting national resources

required for production into unnecessary consumption or, by creating a preference for foreign brands,
may be developing foreign instead of local industries and enterprises to the detriment of Filipino
entrepreneurs, when it could be playing a more positive and constructive role as an educational
vehicle for promoting farm management, banking habits, investment in government bonds, and so
forth" (SixtoRoxas, 2001)

 When do infomercials become untruthful?

An infomercial is a form of advertisement which is aimed at educating the customer about a

product or a series of products via television in the form of a program. Infomercial typically lasts
longer than a regular advertisement and thus is more detailed.
 The fundamental truth often be violated in a number of hidden and subtle ways (Pontifical
Council for Social Communications, 1997). (1) is through false statements or misleading
exaggerations and (2) Indirect misrepresentation of a product or service by intentionally distorting
some details is a defilement of the truth making an informative and a deceptive advertising. Needless
to say, CSR and corporate citizenship are on the side of truth and fairness.

https://www.warc.com/newsandopinion/news/how_emotional_and_informational_ads_perform_i
n_print/41303

https://www.thedrum.com/news/2018/10/31/android-toddler-apps-rapped-over-distracting-and-
persuasive-ads

https://www.mdgadvertising.com/marketing-insights/eight-principles-of-advertising-ethics/

 ARE THERE HALF TRUTHS?

- There are no half-truths and no gray areas. If information is not true, it is false, hence false
advertising is dishonesty, plain lying or cheating, and social irresponsible. Advertising is indeed a
form of informative communication and it can either be as truthful or deceptive as any other forms of
communication.

 WHAT ARE INSTANCES WHEN INFOMERCIALS BECOM SOCIALLY

IRRESPONSIBLE?

- Advertisers should know that their ads must be readily perceptible as commercial
announcements. It is socially responsible to create any misimpression that their print commercials are
news, editorial items, or public service announcements.

- All contenders claim that they are "No.1" with respect to their products and services. The claim
being No. 1 must be objectively verifiable and be substantiated. Substantiation for a "No. 1" sales
claim must confirm that the claimant is leasing in both (1) physical units sold and (2) in the resulting
peso volume on an accumulative basis, and the claim shall cover at least the immediately preceding
12-month period.

 USING LOOK-ALIKE MODEL MAY BE DECEIVING. WHY?

- Testimonial claims can only be genuine and truthful, and should be categorically stated as the
personal experience or opinion of the endorser. There was a case of former US First Lady Jacqueline
Onassis who sued Christian Dior for violating her privacy and reprimanded Dior for dishonesty and
untruthfulness after showing a model looking like Ms. Onassis using its product. Justice Greenfield
has ruled: "No one has an inherent constitutional right to pass himself off for what he is not."

 Are obscene and disparaging ads morally acceptable?

 There is no doubt that advertisements play a pertinent role in the success of a product
and it requires social responsibility, but it is undeniable that there’s a substantial percentageof
businesses that do not adhere to any kind of social accountability. Obscene and disparaging
advertisements are seriously considered as unethical and a deficiency in social responsibility of
some unscrupulous businesses.

Obscene ads are defective kind of advertising that are offensive by the accepted standard
of decency and morality, these includes profanity, obscenity and vulgarity. Indecent exposure of
the human body shall not be allowed. Some exposure of the human body may be allowed in
advertisements when it is relevant to the product or service being advertised, the situation being
portrayed or the audience being addressed. However, suggestive portrayals shall not be allowed.
Advertisements should not depict or exploit persons as sex objects and should not carry any
sexual double entendres.

Disparaging ads are advertisements that are used to directly or indirectly criticize or any
individual or group on the basis of gender, social class, religion, race or
nationality.Advertisements should not directly or indirectly disparage, ridicule or unfairly attack
competitors or non-competitors, competing or non-competing products or services, including
distinguishing features of their advertising campaigns such as specific layout, copy, slogan,
visual presentation, music/jingle or sound effects.

 Is it ethical to declare that smoking and drinking are essential to social acceptance?

It is deceitful to say that smoking and drinking is essential to social acceptance, that
drinking or smoking symbolizes adulthood or refraining from these is a sign of weakness. It is
not rare to see this sort of irresponsibility on ads. It should also be acknowledged that young
people (under legal age) are inevitably exposed to these advertisements even if cigarette and
liquor industry does not condone promotion of their products to them

Advertising Board of the Philippines (AdBoard) - Code of Ethics in Advertising

Section13. Alcoholic Beverages

1. Advertisements should not state that drinking is essential to social success or acceptance that
drinking is a genuine symbol of masculinity or that refraining from drinking is a sign of
weakness.

2. Advertisements for alcoholic beverages should not depict the act of drinking such as the liquid
entering the mouth and/or being swallowed, explicitly or implicitly.

3. Advertisements should not feature or promote excessive drinking.

4. Advertisements should not claim that drinking brings about therapeutic, sedative, tranquilizing
or stimulating effects or that drinking enhances sexual prowess or appeal.

5. Advertisements for local beverages may not be aimed at or directed to minors as the target
audience. Specifically models and talents who are minors and those who portray authority
figures or roles meant to appeal specifically to minors (e.g., folk or comic book heroes,
war/national heroes, law enforcers) may not appear in such advertisements.

6. Advertisements should not in any manner represent or imply that drinking and driving are
safe compatible activities.

7. Alcoholic beverage advertisements should carry the device “DRINK MODERATELY”

8. “Drink moderately” in all television advertisements should be shown/flashed in a separate

frame with no other copy or visual at the end of a material.

Section 14. Cigarettes And Tobacco Products

1. Advertisements should not suggest that smoking is essential to social success or acceptance,
that smoking is a genuine symbol of adulthood or that refraining from smoking is a sign of
weakness.

2. Advertisements shall not claim directly or indirectly that smoking is necessary for work and
relaxation.

3. Cigarette and tobacco product advertisements should not depict the act of puffing, inhaling or
exhaling smoke or having a lit cigarette in the mouth. Radio advertisements shall not depict, by
use of sound effects, the pleasure and attraction of smoking.

4. Cigarette/Tobacco advertisements should not feature or promote excessive smoking. Neither

shall advertisements seek to encourage non-smokers to smoke, or exaggerate the attraction of
smokers or otherwise seek to persuade people to start smoking.

5. Advertisements should not suggest that smoking bring about therapeutic, sedative,
tranquilizing or stimulating effects or that smoking enhances sex appeal. Advertisements shall
not claim directly or indirectly any health advantage of one cigarette brand over other brands.

6. All cigarette advertisements should carry, at the end, the statement, “GOVERNMENT
WARNING: CIGARETTE SMOKING IS DANGEROUS TO YOUR HEALTH

7. Advertisements for cigarettes and tobacco products will not be aimed at or directed to minors
as the target audience.
8. Advertisements shall not exploit the youth younger than 18 years of age who are especially
vulnerable, whether on account of their youth or immaturity, or as a result of any physical,
mental or social handicap in any form of cigarette advertising.

9. Models and talents who are minors or appear to be minors and those who portray authority
figures or roles meant to appeal especially to minors (e.g., folk or comic book heroes,
war/national heroes, law enforcers) will not appear in such advertisements.

10. No advertisements on cigarettes shall appear in any children’s programs, or in children’s

magazines, or publications directed specifically to children and minors.

11. Cigarette advertising in television should not be aired in programs whose audiences are
predominantly below eighteen (18) years of age.

 How does unethical advertising assault human dignity?

Unethical advertising can violate human dignity through content and its impact to the
audience. This kind of advertising appeals to lust, vanity, envy, and greed. It seeks to
misrepresent or distort message that is being transmitted to fit their agenda through unacceptable
imagery and by the use of subversive techniques that manipulate and exploit human weakness.

 When did the biggest advertising profit happen in history?

Persian Gulf Warwas a heavily televised war, when US television networks began
covering it in 1991; they preempted normal programming and ran very few commercials. Some
advertisers halted advertising during the crisis. Networks lost millions of dollars in advertising
revenues.

It was Cable News Network (CNN) which gained the most popularity for their coverage,
because they did not do what the majority of networks were doing. They were able to raise its
30-second spot rates from about $4000 to $20000 and indeed its wartime coverage is often cited
as one of the landmark events in the development of the network.

 What is good advertising according to PANA?

According to Philippine Institute of National Advertisers (PANA), good advertising

recognizes both economic and social responsibility, it practices public confidence in advertising
goods and services, and the belief that interests of consumers should be the primary concern of
advertisers. Good advertising aims to inform the consumers and help them buy intelligently by
telling the truth, conforming to the law and to the generally accepted standard of morality and
decency.Good advertising does not allow any activity which involves the exploitation of the
goodwill attached to any firm and disparagement of competition is discouraged.

PANA has formulated "A Statement of Advertising Principles" in the form of a Code of Ethics,
which runs as follows:

GOOD ADVERTISING recognizes both its economic and social responsibility to help reduce
distribution costs and to serve the public interest.

GOOD ADVERTISING depends for its success on public confidence. Hence, it cannot permit
those practices that tend to impair such confidence.

GOOD ADVERTISING aims to inform the consumer and help him buy intelligently.

GOOD ADVERTISING tells the truth. It is accurate, honest and trustworthy. It avoids
exaggerations, misstatement of facts, as well as possible deception through implication or
omission.

GOOD ADVERTISING conforms not only to the law but to the generally accepted standards of
good taste and decency and to the moral and aesthetic sentiments of the country. It avoids any
practice or statement which may be offensive to the public as a whole or to any particular group,
class or race.

GOOD ADVERTISING seeks public acceptance on the basis of positive and constructive
statements made on the merits of the product or service advertised, rather than by disparagement
of competition.

GOOD ADVERTISING does not allow any activity which involves the exploitation of the
goodwill attached to any other firm, product or service. It does not imitate or simulate
trademarks, firm names, packages, labels, and such advertising devices as illustrations and copy,
layouts or slogans.

GOOD ADVERTISING helps to uphold the dignity of the individual and contributes to the
building of a civilized society.

http://jmbm.blogspot.com/2015/01/human-dignity-in-advertising-not.html

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__manual.pdf
Group 2
 SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
TOWARDS THE CONSUMERS, END
USERS, AND GENERAL PUBLIC

Hate, Carl Jhervin M.

Dionido, Louell Loy E.

Reyes, Rey Vincent

Aurelio, Rhythm

Javier, Zamantha

Tagle, Reggie

Tamayo, Marife

Solivio, Janine E.

Victoriano, Reoselyn