ABSTRACT
Every profession is governed both by laws and by ethics. Ethical considerations often are incorporated in the professional codes of conduct propounded by various industry associations. The profession of advertising is also affected by many laws but, more specifically, by the Consumer Protection Act and the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act. The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), a self-regulatory body of the advertising industry, has an elaborate professional code that the ad agencies are expected to follow. Under pressure and public outcry, ASCI has added issues like due diligence on the part of celebrity endorsement, advisory on fairness cream ads, and influencer regulation in its code in recent times, which will be discussed in the chapter. Before that, let us look at the issue in the larger perspective of how and whether advertising and ethics must go together.
