Questionable Ethics

http://business.time.com/2012/07/05/what-were-they-thinking-10-ads-that-sparked-controversy/slide/lung-cancer-alliance/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The first example of unethical advertising, is a PSA made by the Lung Cancer Alliance. The message of the ads was supposed to be that no one deserved to die of lung cancer, whether they smoked or not, but the message was lost. The ads read things like "Hipsters deserve to die", and "cat lovers deserve to die," so obviously people that fit into these categories and others were highly offended. These advertisements are unethical because they are blatantly stating that these innocent people deserve to die, which is obviously never a good thing to say, especially on a public platform like national advertising.

http://www.adpunch.org/sisley-fashion-junkie.html

The advertisement above is for Sisley clothing. I find this ad unethical because it seems to glamorize drug use. The ad shows two stylish girls, and calls them junkies. It illustrates them being addicted to clothing and fashion, but the reference to drugs is unethical. Most people agree that drug use is something not to be joked about, making this ad unethical.

http://www.stayawake.tv/Tag/advertising

The advertisement above for Belvedere Vodka is clearly unethical because it makes a joking reference to rape. Although the ad may night come right out and make an obvious joke, it's not hard to figure out what they are referring to. What makes this advertisement so unethical is that rape is a serious crime, not to be taken lightly. I'm sure most people agree it is not something to be joked about, especially in a large advertising campaign.