ABSTRACT
Advertising provides the commercial foundation supporting most media, and, therefore, makes up a considerable portion of media content. Of all media professions, it is perhaps advertising whose integrity is most frequently called into question. Surveys of public opinion consistently find advertising near the bottom of professions in terms of honesty and trustworthiness. A vigorous discussion of advertising’s ethical responsibilities has never been so important. As an “advocacy profession,” advertising is contractually obligated to be an advocate of the client, working to advance the client’s ends. Advertising must balance the “surveillance” and monetization of personal data required to “be effective and efficient” in the media ecosystem with privacy and security needs of consumers. Finally, the heart of the matter in advertising ethics is the necessity to self-consciously adopt a pattern of ethical sensitivity. Moral issues should be recognized, discussed internally, that is, inside the agency as well as externally, with clients and potential clients.
