Media Ethics - Case Study

Like my last blog I will be looking into a case study about an ethical issue that arouse. Unlike last post this case will not be about journalistic ethics, but rather the ethics of advertising and marketing. I will be referring to the code of ethics for advertisers and marketers to explain just how this particular cases followed or did not follow the ethics, and whether or the codes were helpful in evaluating the ethical considerations of the cases study.

I have chosen to use a case study about an advertising campaign launched by Dove back in 2005. Dove is a soap and beauty product company that has a mainly female market and that's who they targeted during this campaign. Dove chose to take a different angle with this campaign and they drew considerable media attention for doing so. Unlike most campaigns targeting women, Dove decided not to use typical skinny and seductive models but rather they decided to use "real women" with "real beauty" that they felt more women would relate to. These women ranged in sizes from 6 to 14 and all had different body types. No of them were of typical model stature. These women were presented in a no frills fashion and were of all different races, shapes and size. One ad featured an older women with text next to her picture saying "wrinkled or wonderful".  Another ad had a "larger-than-average" woman smiling with a caption saying "overweight or outstanding."

When looking at the code of ethics for advertisements there are a few things that were helpful and supported this campaign. One bullet point in the code states that advertisers will not create content that contains testimonials that do not reflect the real opinion of the individuals involved. Dove ran this campaign after they conducted a series of market research in ten different countries. Based off the 3,200 women involved in this study, Dove discovered that women barely consider themselves as attractive and sexy as typical models present themselves. The research showed that only 2 percent of the women interviewed describe themselves as beautiful, 5 percent as pretty and 9 percent thought of themselves as attractive. Dove conducted this research in an effort to find out the true beliefs of women. What they discovered is that not many women have the same sort of confidence in which these models strike in every pose. By launching this campaign they were following that piece of the code by demonstrating the true opinions in which they discovered through their research. Although these were not direct testimonials, it was content made based off the thoughts and beliefs of the women who were studied.

So you'd think Dove did a good job right? They didn't just use sexy attractive models to try and make women feel less about themselves and aspire to be like the models. So, they should be relating to almost every women and making them feel comfortable right? Well there were some people who would disagree. "Some people felt that the ads were just a ploy for Dove to make money by trying to boost a woman's confidence, while at the same time catering to her insecurities" (Marchese). The code of ethics is not helpful in evaluating this side of the case because nowhere does it say you can't do something because there is a possibility that it may be taken the wrong way. One piece of the code states "We recognize that there are areas that are subject to honestly different interpretations and judgment. Nevertheless, we agree not to recommend to an advertiser, and to discourage the use of advertising that is in poor or questionable taste or that is deliberately irritating through aural or visual content or presentation." I don't believe that this campaign was in poor taste even if deep down the tactic was to tap into women's insecurities. Which ever way you look at advertisements for women, whether it is a sexy long legged women or a regular non conventional model, there is a door open for women to feel insecure. Women may want to aspire to be like the model or they may realize they look like the non conventional model and that may make them feel insecure. Dove was doing their best to relate to women in hopes to form a bond with their women market and show them Dove's products are for all types of women, and that everyone should look at themselves in a positive manner.

Two ethical perspectives that could help supplement this code of ethics could be Rationality vs Emotion, and TARES. The rationality vs emotions perspective could be helpful because the advertisers could consider which way they wanted to formulated their message. They could try to give consumers a rational reason to buy the product or try and tap into the consumers emotions. This Dove campaign was an attempt to reach consumers on an emotional level. TARES comes from the Patterson and Wilkins readings and they state that TARES is a test of ethical persuasion. TARES stands for

T- Are the ads truthful
A - Is the claim authentic
R - Does the ad treat the receiver with respect
E - Is there equity between the sender and receiver
S- Is the ad socially responsible

Using the TARES model is a good way for advertisers to go over their material and see if they are following some important ethical aspects. In my opinion this Dove campaign would pass the TARES test. I think another perspective that could help the advertising code of ethics is pluralism. I think if advertisers consider multiple competing values and not just a profit gain they could come up with effective campaigns that not only increase profit but also enhance consumers views of the brand.