Legal/Ethical Issues Article Precis

Transcription

1 Legal/Ethical Issues Article Precis Patrick Peque ID# NDAB702 - DIGITAL MARKETING ASSESSMENT STAGE 3.1 STREAM 2 ROBERT DAVIS Tutor

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION... 1 ARTICLE... 2 SOURCES... 3 PRECIS... 3 WEBSITE ADVERTISEMENT... 4 SOCIAL MEDIA... 4 LEGAL AND ETHICAL ISSUES... 5 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION... 7 BIBLIOGRAPHY... 8

3 INTRODUCTION A successful digital marketing campaign can change opinions and influence the behavior of its viewers. It is essential that this influence be used responsibly in a way that protect consumers and support human rights. It is also a powerful tool to create awareness and provide information of a particular product, services or advocacy. A digital marketing campaign such as advertisements should not deceive or mislead consumers and should observe a standard of social responsibility. Digital marketing campaigns are expected to comply with all laws, regulations, and codes of practice, providing accurate information at a right place, at a right time, and at a right channel. Digital campaigns are bound to certain legal and ethical issues if they do not substantiated their claims by data or available facts or breached to a particular code of ethics. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is an organisation that investigates breaches of advertising standards in New Zealand. It is funded by the advertising and media industries, and has an objective to ensure that advertising is socially responsible and truthful. They are in charge with the Advertising Standards Complaints Board (ASCB), which is the body that hears complaints about ads, and the Advertising Standards Complaints Appeal Board (ASCAB). Internet-based advertising targeting New Zealand consumers is covered under the board and advertiser websites are now the second biggest media category generating complaints in New Zealand. This report discusses the case of Fluoride Free NZ and the complaints made by L. Taylor and M. Atkin to Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) regarding misleading statements, and the legal/ethical aspects of the campaign posted on Fluoride Free NZ website. The Ministry of Health has also commented about the issue regarding the benefits and effects of Community Water Fluoridaton and addressed key issues regarding this matter. The 2009 New Zealand Oral Health Survey showed that on average New Zealand children had 40% less tooth decay when they were living in fluoridated areas compared to non-fluoridated areas. (Ministry of Health, 2010). Experts worldwide agree that water fluoridation is the best way to deliver the benefits of fluoride to the communities. Legal and Ethical Issues 1

4 ARTICLE Fluoride Free NZ website: Article from The New Zealand Herald dated September 25, 2014 Legal and Ethical Issues 2

5 SOURCES Fluoride Free NZ website Papatsoumas, N. (2014, September 25). Anti- fluoride ad 'unjustifiably played on fear'. The New Zealand Herald. PRECIS The advertisement on the Fluoride Free NZ website advertised a seminar on the 26 th of July and showed a picture of a doctor and stated: Informed Doctors and Dentists say: KEEP FLUORIDE OUT. Keep Rotorua s water safe. It s our right to choose. Swallowing Fluoride, is unsafe for babies; doesn t protect teeth and; can cause harm. In September 2014, a complaint was received by Advertising Standards Authority from L. Taylor regarding the advertisement from the website ( that it breaches the rules and standards in the Advertising Code of Ethics. The complainant said that the advert made no differentiation between fact and opinion and view the advertisement was misleading information about the safety of fluoride as well as misleading the viewers into thinking that more dentists and doctors in NZ are against fluoride. The statement implies as being anti-fluoride and disregard other medical and dental professions stance for fluoridation. This is in contrast with the study from the New Zealand Dental Journal to determine dentists views on Community Water Fluoridation (CWF), which shows that 93% of practitioners support water fluoridation in New Zealand. The claims made by Fluoride Free NZ do not follow the accepted statistics and therefore misleading. Few weeks after the complaint was received, The New Zealand Herald published an article pertaining to the issue that the Fluoride Free NZ website unjustifiably played on fear to advertise their anti-fluoridation campaign. This is a breach from Advertising Standard Authority Code of Ethics. The complainant said that the advertisement uses fear to viewers to stop people from using fluorinated products. L. Taylor said that the claims are unsubstantiated and used fear to influence the opinions and actions of others towards achieving a specific end. ASA through the Advertising Standards Complaint Board (ASCB) upheld the complaint and suggested that the advertisement should be removed from the website due to several number of statements that were not substantiated by robust clinical evidence and breaches to advertising code of ethics. Legal and Ethical Issues 3

6 WEBSITE ADVERTISEMENT Below is the ad used by Fluoride Free NZ in their website: SOCIAL MEDIA Fluoride Free NZ uses social media site to further spread their advocacy. Facebook, Twitter, and Blogs about Community Water Fluoridation they were able to convinced several viewers about the undesirable effect of fluoride in drinking water. In October 2012, new guidance issued by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has confirmed that its Advertising Codes of Practice may apply to user-generated content on businesses' social media pages. The guidance highlight the importance of formulating and following a clear social media moderation policy for businesses looking to promote their brands on social media. ASA emphasize that the businesses will need to ensure that content posted by members of the public on their social media pages is not offensive, misleading or otherwise falls foul of the ASA's Codes of Practice. Legal and Ethical Issues 4

7 Fluoride Free NZ Facebook Page LEGAL AND ETHICAL ISSUES The Advertising Standards Complaints Board ruled a number of statements in the advertisements that are not satisfactorily substantiated and were therefore in breach of the Advertising Basic Principles and Code of Ethics (Advertising Standards Authority, 2013). ADVERTISING CODE OF ETHICS Basic Principle 3 No advertisement should be misleading or deceptive or likely to mislead or deceive the consumer. Basic Principle 4: All advertisements should be prepared with a due sense of social responsibility to consumers and to society. Rule 2: Truthful Presentation Advertisements should not contain any statement or visual presentation or create an overall impression which Legal and Ethical Issues 5

8 directly or by implication, omission, ambiguity or exaggerated claim is misleading or deceptive, is likely to deceive or mislead the consumer, makes false and misleading representation, abuses the trust of the consumer or exploits his/her lack of experience or knowledge. (Obvious hyperbole, identifiable as such, is not considered to be misleading). Rule 6: Fear - Advertisements should not exploit the superstitious, nor without justifiable reason, play on fear. Rule 11: Advocacy Advertising - Expression of opinion in advocacy advertising is an essential and desirable part of the functioning of a democratic society. Therefore such opinions may be robust. However, opinion should be clearly distinguishable from factual information. The identity of an advertiser in matters of public interest or political issue should be clear. To view the Advertising Standards Authority decision, kindly scan the QR code below: Legal and Ethical Issues 6

9 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION The issue on water fluoridation arises from political, ethical, moral, and safety concerns. It is true that some countries don t fluoridate their water because some people live in places were water has high enough levels of natural fluoride. Other countries add fluoride to products such as salt and milk. New Zealand's water supplies have low levels of natural fluoride and the amount of fluoride added to water is minimal that is safe for the whole family. The Ministry of Health recommends that the fluoride content in New Zealand drinking-water should be maintained in the range of 0.7 to 1.0mg/L for oral health reasons. (Water New Zealand Code of Practice: Fluoridation of Drinking Water Supplies in New Zealand, 2014). Community Water Fluoridation is effective, safe, and affordable. Its has been proven by several clinical studies. Some of the common myths are fluoridation is a form of mass medicaction, it is a toxin, and can cause illness or disease such as bone cancers, hip fractures, and kidney problems. Hundreds of studies have found that no credible evidence linking fluoridated water to these diseases. The benefits of fluoride outweigh any tiny risk. Water fluoridation has been described as one of the most important public health advances and disease prevention measures of the 20 th century. It safe, it s natural, and it s cost effective. The Fluoride Free NZ started building online communities and take an active effort in banning the fluoridation of their local water supply. Several district councils such as New Plymouth, Tauranga, Whanganui, Rotorua, etc. also stop water fluoridation in an effort to end the use of fluorine in drinking water. Fluoride Free NZ website is still accessible both in website and Facebook page. In the next report (Digital Marketing Assessment 3.2), several digital marketing legal and ethical issues on Community Water Fluoridation (CWF) will be discussed thoroughly. Strategies to ensure that the organization remains on the right side of the matter and the significance of promoting the right and accurate information about community water fluoridation to minimize misleading information and misunderstanding about this critical health measure. Legal and Ethical Issues 7

10 BIBLIOGRAPHY Papatsoumas, N. (2014, September 25). Anti- fluoride ad 'unjustifiably played on fear'. The New Zealand Herald. Ministry of Health. (2010). Our Oral Health: Key findings of 2009 New Zealand Oral Health Survey. Ministry of Health, Wellington. (2014). Water New Zealand Code of Practice: Fluoridation of Drinking Water Supplies in New Zealand. Ministry of Health. Wellington: Water New Zealand. Advertising Standards Authority. (2013). Advertising Code of Practice. Advertising Standards Authority. Legal and Ethical Issues 8