Political Advertising and the Erosion of Consumer Trust

Back in the last century I worked at agency Davidson Pearce handling the Conservative party account This was preSaatchi and before the infamous 1978 quotLabour Isn39t Workingquot poster that transformed political advertisingMaurice and Charles Saatchi and the late Tim Bell modernized political marketing not only through more aggressive advertising but also by coaching politicians in how to communicate effectively Margaret Thatcher famously took lessons in lowering her voice to give the impression of gravitasBefore Saatchi ampamp Saatchi political parties didn39t engage fully with ad agencies We were a necessary evil that they put up with because quotthe other side was doing it so I suppose we should tooquotParty political broadcasts comprised a politician talking behind a desk amp8212 before someone worked out that these things were basically free fiveminute commercials and should be treated as suchIt was accepted that all ads stopped a week or two before an election presumably to allow the electorate to get over all the excitement before placing their vote The political ad scene was driven by gentlemanly behavior and was boring as hell How things have changedPolitical advertising is not subject to the same rules and selfregulation as quotnormalquot campaigns For those who are unaware of the UK39s situation normal ads are subject to the rules laid out in our Code of Advertising Practice CAP and are regulated by the Advertising Standards Authority ASABoth bodies are paid for by a levy on all campaigns and are thus free to the taxpayerThe benefits of selfregulation are that it allows for flexibility as habits and norms change and for a speedy resolution of any disputes aside from avoiding clogging up the courts and doing away with expensive legal costsAds for political parties or groups as opposed to government ads which are regulated are different Here39s why from the ASAquotPolitical ads amp8230 usually inspire contention and debate While we understand the calls for political ads to be subject to the same standards of truthfulness and decency that all UK advertisers have to abide by there are several reasons why we don39t regulate themamp8230 Regulating traditional advertising is very different from regulating material that forms part of the democratic process It would be inappropriate amp8230 for us to intervene in that processquotBut times change and over the past few years particularly since the calling of the Referendum on EU membership there have been ample examples of misleading ads that have led to the subject of regulation being raisedThese examples are not exclusive to one side of the Brexit debate over the other but as passions have run high ads and other communications have been put out that are either blatantly untrue or have been designed to misleadIt might seem cynical to suggest that those responsible for these communications have taken advantage of the lack of regulation to lie with impunity amp8212 but that39s exactly what has happenedMisleading political campaigns damage our industry by eroding consumer trust After all few individuals outside the ad business know that these campaigns are not regulatedIt39s time this changed not only to ensure that voters are made aware of the facts as opposed to partisan lies but also to ensure that ads are recognized as such by making it clear who39s paying for themThis is essential none more so than on social media where it is not even immediately obvious what39s an ad and what isn39tThe nonpartisan campaign group The Coalition for Reform in Political Advertising is arguing for change It would be great if readers of this blog could support their efforts amp8212 their ambitions are good for all of usClick the social buttons to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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Political Advertising and the Erosion of Consumer Trust

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Brian Jacobs

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Political Advertising and the Erosion of Consumer Trust

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