I picked a Reebok advertisement of the internet as a violation
of persuasive ethics. The ad reads cheat on your girlfriend, not on your
workout. I believe this ad is offensive to woman, almost in a demeaning sense.
It’s stating that it’s except-able for men to treat women like the dirt they
walk on. This ad is definitely directed
towards men, but more specifically men that are physically active and workout
with their brand. To me this ad is expressing men as a more powerful human than
a woman. I also believe this ad is expressing to men that it’s except-able for
them to be dirty and sneak around with women. Now don’t get me wrong, I
understand why they made the ad and what their true intentions might have been
but ethically speaking I do not believe this ad is properly displayed the way
they thought it would be. This ad makes Reebok look as if they are approving
men to cheat on their significant other. The ad is advertising a brand
obviously about being active but the route they took could be frowned upon. In
the textbook on Page 56 under the Ethical Standards for Commercial Advertising it
talks about advertisers not agreeing on any one set of ethical standards. They
also talk about Harold Williams and his saying about what is legal may not be
ethical or honest but it’s legal. This
ad may have been one hundred percent legal to publish and associate through the
Reebok brand but I do not believe this ad is ethical or honest for the reason’s
stated. Later on in the book under the
same subtitle the textbook talks about associations avoiding statements,
suggestions, or pictures offensive to public decency or to minority segments of
the population. This ad is defiantly something Reebok should have looked at,
laughed at, and thrown out in the board room. I believe Reebok could have
advertised there brand much differently and associated themselves with a
different type of ethical perspective. I did some further research and I found
out that Reebok apologized to the public about the ad that was put out stating
they took the ads done as soon as they were aware of them, Reebok also
including an apology about the message, stating that Reebok did not support
cheating. Coming from a Public Relations view point this company is not going
about their business properly. The slogan on the ad was unethical, their
apology was very dishonest. Reebok lost a lot of respect due to this, and now
that I am aware of this ad it makes me double think my clothing standards and
what research I should be doing on certain companies. Making the right choice
is not a hard thing to do, we are taught this when we are children. We learn
the difference between right and wrong, Companies need to start thinking with
their heads and remembering what their mother and father would want them to do.
Be honest, and ethical.
Link to ad: https://www.google.com/search?q=reebok+cheat+on+your+girlfriend&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=yrsuUuGoCLO84APAtYHYDw&sqi=2&ved=0CEwQsAQ&biw=1366&bih=665#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=__2FsNhwnGU_WM%3A%3Bt4em-xF9wZjAmM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fblogs.ubc.ca%252Ftroyholmes%252Ffiles%252F2013%252F01%252Fcheat.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fblogs.ubc.ca%252Ftroyholmes%252F2013%252F01%252F21%252Freebok-and-its-big-mistake%252F%3B468%3B512
