Some Ethical Problems of Modern Advertising

The present thesis is intended to be a modest introduction to selected ethical problems of modern American advertising, and of consumer advertising in particular. It is in no sense either a complete or a definitive treatment of the ethics of advertising. In the first place, the ethical problems of advertising are at once too numerous and too complex to be treated in a single work. In the second place, the subject is, as we shall see, too undeveloped to permit of anything but a preliminary attempt to clarify problems and to develop some of the principles necessary for their solution. Consequently, this thesis is largely exploratory, that is, an attempt to stake out certain areas and to locate them with reference to the norms of sound ethics. We have chosen to study the ethical problems of American advertising for three reasons. First, advertising has had its greatest development in that country. Secondly, the literature bearing on the ethical and social implications of advertising, though not particularly abundant, gives more attention to the American problems than to those of other nations. Thirdly, the present work is intended to be a guide for those members of the American advertising profession who encouraged this undertaking.