Social

Responsibility
ASA Schools and Colleges resources No. 3

ASA Schools and Colleges resources No.3

Social Responsibility
Welcome to the ASA Schools and Colleges Resources: Social Responsibility
Here you will learn how and why advertisements are controlled in the UK to make
sure that they are socially responsible.
You will find examples of advertisements the Advertising Standards Authority has
received complaints about and the decisions the ASA reached about them.

In boxes like this one, you will find

activities written by an educational writer
to use in class or to stimulate research.

To make the best use of these resources use them in conjunction with the
ASA website, specifically our Annual Report, the CAP Code, Issues,
Research, Statistics and Guided Tours.
If you have any feedback on these resources e-mail us at
enquiries@asa.org.uk

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Introduction
The advertising codes requires all marketing communications to be prepared with
a sense of responsibility to consumers and society. Most marketing
communications are. It’s never in an advertiser’s interest to be socially irresponsible
as they have a stake in the wellbeing of society as much as anyone else. However
the list below gives an idea of ways in which ads can be socially irresponsible:
•The use of shocking images that could cause undue fear and distress
•The depiction of scenes that could encourage people to behave in an irresponsible
or unsafe way
•The advertising of products, or their consumption, in ways that can be harmful to
health
•Advertising to children that could make them feel inferior, encourage them to pester
their parents, or result in their physical, mental or moral harm. (See the section on
Children and Advertising).

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What the rules say

A number of the rules in the advertising codes are designed to maintain

standards of social responsibility, the main principles are:

•Ads should not cause serious or widespread offence.

•Ads should not cause undue harm or distress
•Ads should contain nothing that might provoke anti-social or violent
behaviour
•Ads should contain nothing that is likely to result in the physical, mental or
moral harm of children.

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Activity
Look in a newspaper or magazine and see if you can find any advertisements
that show a situation or scene that could be dangerous if it were copied.
Decide if the message of the ad justified the image. Does the ad encourage
readers to copy the action? Does it make the depicted scene look cool or
desirable? Or does it warn against or put you off what’s being shown?

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“Copycat kids”
A lot of research has been undertaken into the so-called ‘copy cat’ syndrome
whereby young or immature people copy potentially dangerous behaviour
without considering the consequences to themselves and / or others. The
ASA’s own report on this is to be found on the ASA website at
http://www.asa.org.uk/asa/news/news/2005/Are+copycat+ads+always+bad.ht
m. It has a number of recent illustrative examples.
It links to an even more comprehensive piece of work conducted by the
Independent Television Commission (ITC), the former television watchdog.
This could be useful to students undertaking research into the area of children
and television’s effects. You can go straight to it on
http://www.asa.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/D15BCA5A-F34D-4E6D-8540-
F4D7140A1C01/0/copycat_kids.pdf.
Read the report and summarise its key findings in no more than 5 points.
How far do you support this piece of research? What arguments might you
make against it?

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Moral Panics
Copycat syndrome is one of a long line of what Media Studies now identifies
as Moral Panics. This refers to the way in which the media allegedly amplify
the perceived threat to society’s values of a contemporary social
phenomenon that appears to be out of control. Past examples include early
film, rock and roll and so-called “Video Nasties”. The role of the media in
focussing on these issues allegedly leads to an exaggeration in their
importance and potential effect. Read the essay Moral Panics at the website
below for more detail on this important area of Media Studies.

http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Students/mtw9403.html

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“Rule breaking”
For a minority, breaking society’s rules represents a kind of freedom, maturity,
self-affirmation and a moving away from the restrictions of childhood. It is
easy to see why rule breaking has been associated with cars and speed in an
attempt to suggest a more adventurous and macho experience. What other
products have you seen using this idea of machismo, independence and
excitement that might lead to socially irresponsible behaviour?

Activity
Trawl through some magazines, especially men’s magazine’s, and find
examples of “rule breaking” advertisements. Choose three and analyse the
way they make their appeal to the potential buyer. You might want to use this
as the starting point for a piece of individual research.

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Reebok and 50 Cent
Reebok is a global sports retailing brand. Its competitors are Nike and
Adidas. Like those companies, Reebok use the endorsement of young
aspirational media personalities to promote their clothing. One campaign
using the hip hop start 50 Cent caused controversy for appearing to endorse
gun culture. During the period when wearing ‘hoodies’ (hooded tops) was
briefly brought to notoriety in UK shopping malls and gun culture amongst the
young continued to be seen as a problem, Reebok launched a campaign in
which 50 Cent’s rap refers to a notorious drive-by shooting where he was shot
9 times but survived.

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The mise-en-scene of the advertisement is dark and threatening, with
connotations of violence and threat. The sequence is overlaid with a soundtrack
of audio clips, music, police sirens and voices talking about being ‘gunned down’
and ‘taken to Jamaica hospital’. This has been seen by some as a glamorisation
of violence at a time when gun crime presents a serious problem in inner cities in
the UK. It is a very sensitive and important social and political issue.

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Reebok and 50 Cent

The article at the link below from the Guardian website entitled “Reebok told
50 Cent advert glorifies guns” will fill in the details of what happened to this
advertisement.

http://media.guardian.co.uk/site/story/0,141731486124,00.html

Discussion and debate

What are your views about using serious social and political issues to sell
products? What effect might such advertising have on (a) the targeted
consumer, (b) the Brand image and (c) society?

Read the ASA ruling on this advertisement in the Adjudications section of the
website. Do you agree with the withdrawal of the advertisement. The ruling
can be found at:
http://www.asa.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/ABDE91FE-4E42-4937-8DB1-
749F3C4BFF38/0/Broadcast_report_18_May_05.pdf

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Reebok and 50 Cent

Activity
Stage a debate between representatives of the three groups mentioned
above plus the ASA and write up your conclusions.

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Motoring advertisements can give rise to complaints if they use speed claims
as the vehicle’s main selling point. With pressure on the industry to act
responsibly from various quarters, it is particularly important that car
manufacturers produce responsible advertising. The Code stipulates that the
predominant message of motoring ads should not be speed and the ASA is
alert to concerns in this area.

This national press advertisement was judged to have breached the Code
that states that speed should not be the predominant message of
advertisements.

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 This advertisement for car stereo speakers
states:
“Maybe you like your music to be relaxing.
Or maybe you like to shatter greenhouses
and set off car alarms.
“How you listen to your tunes is a personal
thing. Unless you choose to listen through
the Sony Xplod P5 series of amps/subs.
Because let’s face it, with 1000W you’re not
going to be the only one hearing it”.
The ASA told the advertisers to stop using
the advertisement because it condoned, and
was likely to encourage, anti-social
behaviour.

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Activity
What do you understand by the term social responsibility?
List some examples of how companies can act responsibly. Make another list of
how companies can act irresponsibly.
The ASA thought the the ad in the previous slide was socially irresponsible
because it condoned anti-social behaviour.
What do you understand by the term anti-social behaviour?
Do you think the complainant was justified in making the complaint?
In what ways can socially irresponsible advertising damage an advertisers’
business?

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 The ASA upheld complaints that the
headline of this mailing “THIS IS AN
URGENT PRODUCT RECALL!”
could cause undue fear and
distress, as the mailing was not for
a genuine product recall. The fact
that the mailing was from a gas
company added to the fear and
distress.

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Wanadoo forced to scrap ad

A TV commercial for the Internet Service Provider, Wanadoo, featured a group

of teenagers in a scrap yard that was full of wrecked and smashed cars. To the
soundtrack of rock music, the children ran through the scrap yard dancing,
laughing, shouting and splashing about in muddy puddles. The final shot, seen
through the smashed windscreen of one of the cars, showed a girl and boy
French kissing on the back seat. The Broadcast Advertising Clearance Centre,
which checks ads before they are broadcast, gave the ad an ex-kids restriction,
meaning it should not be shown around programmes made for children. The
ASA, however, decided that the ad’s potential to cause harm warranted its
withdrawal. It considered that the commercial irresponsibly portrayed the
teenagers running and messing about in and between rows of stacked cars
without concern and gave no sense of the possible dangers of such behaviour.

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Keeping the ad away from children

The ASA’s rationale for rejecting the timing restriction placed on the ad by the
BACC is interesting. The ASA considered that, although the advertisement
might have been targeted at 16 to 34 year olds, the timing restriction was
inadequate for keeping the material away from children aged 9 and over. The
commercial gave the impression that a car scrap yard was a fun place to
play. Older children would be more likely to be out with a group of friends,
without adult supervision and interested in exploring. Because of the likely
appeal to children, the commercial posed a serious and realistic risk of harm.

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Nissan online ad too X-treme for ASA

The Internet continues to grow as an advertising medium trusted and used by

consumers and advertisers. The CAP Code, which applies to non-broadcast
ads, sales promotions and direct marketing, helps to secure consumer
confidence in the ads that appear in paid-for space on UK websites. The
application of the Code by the ASA led to the withdrawal of two Internet ads for
Nissan cars. Both ads were set in a kitchen. One showed a man putting a
spoonful of instant coffee in his mouth before taking a kettle from a cooker and
raising it to his mouth. The other showed a man taking an iron, lying on the
floor and then lowering the iron towards his chest. Those ads led to
complaints that the ads were irresponsible because they could encourage
emulation among children. The advertisers said the ads were not intended to
be taken seriously and were targeted at adults aged 35 to 55. The ASA,
however, considered that the ads were featured on websites that were likely to
be seen by children and decided that they were irresponsible, because they
could encourage emulation by children.

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1.

2.

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Charities

Charities often use graphic and shocking images to attract attention to their causes.
In particular, charities will show hard-hitting images, often of real life situations to
“wake people up” to things they might not see in their everyday lives. Once people
are aware of these things, it is hoped that they take action to stop them happening
again. The Code permits the use of shock tactics where the subject matter
justifies the use of such an approach. As with any advertisement, the ASA takes
account of the choice of medium and the audience in assessing whether an
approach is likely to cause undue offence, especially where children may find the
images distressing.

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An organisation well known for such
campaigns is the NSPCC. Although
the ASA received a complaint that
this mailing was distressing as it
looked like a genuine cry for help, the
ASA considered that in the context
for a mailing asking for charitable
donations the approach was
acceptable.

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Events

The public’s sensitivities to the advertising of specific products change over

time. In 1987, a lone gunman went on the rampage through the English
market town of Hungerford, shooting dead 15 people and wounding 14
others, before turning the gun on himself. After this tragic event, the
advertising of guns and other weapons came under public and Government
scrutiny. As a result of this concern, the ASA conducted research that found
that, out of more than a quarter of a million ads scanned, 281 revealed some
level of problem. As a result of the public’s and the Home Office’s concern the
Code was amended to include new rules on violence and anti-social
behaviour.

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 The ASA received complaints that this
reader offer, for air guns, in The Daily
Sport newspaper was irresponsible.
Upholding the complaints, the Authority
considered that, in conjunction with
claims such as "sprays ammo in a
rapid burst" and "fires an amazing 300
rounds of ammo", the names and
images of the guns glamorised the use
of offensive weapons and trivialised a
serious social problem.
The ASA was also concerned that the
advertisers did not go far enough to
prevent children applying for the offer.

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Catastrophic events can swiftly change people’s sensitivities
– After the atrocities of September 11th many airlines pulled their
advertisements from publication to avoid causing undue distress.

The strapline for this ad for the

documentary TV channel
Discovery states “Terrorism has
changed the way we view the
world”. The ASA did not uphold
complaints it received about this
ad, however, considering that it
captured the essence of the
serious content of the
documentary on global terrorism
being advertised.

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An ex-member of the British
Army who received this text
message at the end of
September 2001 objected that
the wording “Please report to
your local army recruitment
centre immediately for your 2nd
tour of duty” could cause undue
fear and distress. The ASA
agreed that, at first glance, the
text message could distress
recipients.

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Shock tactics

Advertisers sometimes go out to shock people with the content of their ads; if
done with consideration it can be effective at getting a message across. If
done without thought, ads that use shock tactics can cause undue fear and
distress.

Why advertisers use shock tactics –

•To attract attention

•To challenge perceptions / opinions
•To provoke thought and action

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Shock Tactics

There are a number of charities in the UK who have focussed on the potential
harm that smoking causes. In recent years some of them have
commissioned very tough advertising campaigns to alert the public to the
consequences of smoking. They have used shocking images to shake
smokers into changing their minds. For example, the British Heart
Foundation has recently produced a nationwide campaign that alerts smokers
to the fatty deposits that are produced by cigarettes that eventually clog up
the heart and may lead to disease and death. The BHF said it was “declaring
war on smoking but not on smokers”.

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Shock Tactics

What do you think of the advertisement? How is it constructed to be effective

on smokers? Think about how the ad is addressing readers and the context
in which the “cigarette” appears.

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Debate
•Is it ethical to use shock tactics to attract attention to a product?
•Are shock tactics justified if the advertisement purports to be in the
consumer’s interest and is trying to avert a social problem?
•Should charities use the same techniques as commercial advertisers?
•Does the use of digitally manipulated images affect the truthfulness of what
is represented and is this justified?
Look carefully at the advertisements on the next two slides to use as
examples in you answer.

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This Accurist ad
distressed sufferers of
eating disorders, their
families and friends.

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 A press ad to tell people what
it’s like to have heart disease
and encourage them to take
preventative action caused
complaints that children might
emulate the image and put
plastic bags over their heads.

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This section of the Schools and Colleges tour raises the debate, often rehearsed in
the media, about freedom and control. Where do you draw the line between
personal choice and social responsibility? Should consumers be allowed to make
up their own minds about what they buy, or should other, socially concerned,
bodies protect us from potentially harmful products? Alcohol advertising is a useful
case study to investigate this important debate.
Debate
Should advertisers have the freedom to promote their products if they are legally on
sale, even if abuse of them may damage your health? Or, do you believe that in a
modern welfare state there should be social controls on products that may cause
harm to the consumer? Go back to the first session of this tour, Controlling
Advertising, to rehearse some of the arguments on this issue and the role of the
ASA.

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Activities
1. Scan any lifestyle magazine and analyse the ways in which
advertisements attach desirable images to their products. A good
example might be men’s perfume / fragrance advertisements.
How are they being advertised to men in recent publications?
What do they suggest about masculinity in the 2000’s for
example? Try to find some older advertisements for aftershave to
compare them with.
2. What have you bought recently that has been inspired by the
image in an advertisement? Be honest! Try to identify how the
image makes the product appealing.

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‘The Facts’ & the Image
Advertising works to make a product or service appealing by creating an
attractive image that offers the consumer the suggestion of additional lifestyle
benefits – success, confidence, attractiveness, glamour, friendship, freedom
from stress, etc.
The officially published facts about smoking, however, are that it damages
health and costs the NHS millions of pounds a year in caring for those
affected. (Log on to www.dh.gov.uk/tobacco to find out more). So for a long
time it was considered wrong to use attractive images to advertise cigarettes
and in 2003 cigarette advertising was finally banned.

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Brands
The study of brands involves looking at how meanings are associated with
products in their marketing. Branding, whether of soap or national charities,
may seem a simple enough process. An advertiser pays to reproduce their
trademark, and associate meanings with it, such as the universality of Coke,
the genuineness of Levi’s.
The earliest advertisements attracted attention by repeating the name or
associating it with some striking visual image. Later a few brands dominated
the market, and as they were seen as more and more alike, advertisements
began to use associations with a life the consumer might desire.
Thus associated meanings have become increasingly complex and subtle,
and have been translated into new media, but the basic process is particularly
interesting because it links particular texts – the ads – to larger systems of
meanings, such as what it means to be young (Pepsi), or healthy (BUPA), or
a good parent (Persil), or a Briton (Brooke Bond Tea).

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 Guidance Self Respect

The traditional sources of Young people growing up need to

guidance are losing influence
over young people – church,
school, parents. Young
people are offered guidance
from the media
assert themselves, often doing
dangerous or undesirable things, to
achieve respect and recognition.
Brands offer another safer way to
find self respect.

Identity Democracy

Lots of choice. Brands offer a sense of

Brands offer belonging that is
security and
identity. A quick
BRANDS achievable. You don’t
have to come from the
way of displaying right family, or have the
who you are. right education

Transparency
Young people are very
aware. They cannot be
fooled. Brands must
work for them.
Entertainment
87% of young people interviewed in a survey
said entertainment was the most important
thing in their lives. Use of TV and Internet is
widespread. Advertising offers a form of
entertainment

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Activity
1.What does this suggest about brand appeal and young people’s sense of self?
Do you agree?
2.What are your favourite brands? What do they represent for you?
3.How do alcohol brands target young people?
4.What does the alcohol industry say about young people and drinking – visit the
Portman Group website to find out www.portman-group.org.uk. Visit the
Department of Health website www.dh.gov.uk and find out about the
government’s views on the issues surrounding young people and drinking.
Research Activity
Think about sports shoes or trainers, for example. How do they brand their
images to appeal to young people? Do the same rules apply?

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Alcohol and advertising
There are very strict rules about what alcohol advertising can and cannot
show. This has forced advertisers to adopt different ways of representing
their products in order to protect consumers from the possible harm
overindulgence may cause. The sections of the advertising codes relating to
alcohol are included in this section of the tour. Some pressure groups have
argued for a ban on alcohol advertising like that imposed on cigarettes. What
evidence is there to support their view? What are your views about it?

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Alcohol consumption
Alcohol contributes to 22,000 deaths a year, lands 150,000 people in hospital
through illness and accidents, and is implicated in 1.2 million violent incidents,
according to an interim report from a government strategy unit.
Log on to http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,3604,1045975,00.html
to read more on these statistics. See if you can find out who is drinking and
what they are drinking. What is surprising about the answer?
Debate
Log on to
http://media.guardian.co.uk/advertising/story/0,7492,990148,00.html to read
the article ‘Doctors want ban on drink adverts’ from 23 July 2003

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Alcohol

As was the case with cigarette

advertising, the code of advertising for
alcoholic drinks is based on rules
agreed by the industry itself. In 1975
the Code for alcoholic drinks was
strengthened and an immediate
change was apparent. Suddenly, ads
that implied sexual success from
drinking alcohol, like the one opposite,
or an unhealthy dependence on
alcohol, were outlawed.

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The rules for alcoholic drinks advertising have been made stricter in light of recent
concern over binge drinking.
The new television advertising rules are tougher in four main areas:
•the implication that drinking alcohol is essential to the success of a
social occasion
•the extent to which sex may be linked with alcohol
•the extent to which alcohol advertising may appeal to people under 18
years of age, particularly by preventing links to "youth culture"
•they require alcohol to be handled and served responsibly
New rules for the advertising of alcohol in non-broadcast advertisements include:
•a requirement to show alcohol being handled and served responsibly
•people shown drinking should not behave in an adolescent or juvenile
way and alcohol ads should not reflect the culture of people under 18
•links must not be made between alcohol and seduction, sexual activity
or sexual success

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 Ads like this one for an alcopop have
been banned, not only because they
show people acting in an
irresponsible way after a night out,
but also because the models do not
look as if they were over 25 years old
– a clear breach of the Code.

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Activity
Design an advertisement for a non-alcoholic drink aimed at 18-25 year olds
to be sold in bars and pubs.
Try to get across the following messages:
The drink is alcohol free
It doesn’t stop you having a good time
There’s no hangover the next day
You’re always in control
How does your advertisement appeal to the target audience? What in your
ad is going to make potential customers switch from alcoholic drinks to your
drink. Remember to give your product a name that reminds the audience of
the benefits associated with the drink.

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For more information on the work of the ASA download and view the other
sessions in our Schools and Colleges resources.

You may also like to visit the following websites:

The Advertising Standards Authority – www.asa.org.uk

The Committee of Advertising Practice – www.cap.org.uk
The Advertising Association – www.adassoc.org.uk
Media Smart – www.mediasmart.org.uk
The Portman Group - www.portman-group.org.uk

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