Despite the dominant role that advertising plays in today’ s society, people disagree as to whether advertising is effective as it is thought to be.
Today’s advertising is highly criticized for creating the needs which are not really the needs. It multiplies the needs of the people. Variety of eatables, drinks, cosmetics, etc. have become the needs of the people.
There is a competition among the people to acquire maximum of things advertised on television even if they have to spend beyond their means.
Many a time’s advertisements were misleading and they make false claims. Such as advertisements of beauty creams show that it is very easy to change one’s complexion. Advertisements of imitation jewelleries and sarees also make big claims of standard brand from a famous place which they are not in reality.
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Advertisements are also criticized for portraying women as a beautiful object, sexual being and exchangeable with objects, stereotyped wife, mother or house keeper, working woman but dependent women, as receptive to male authority and advice and thus reflect vulgar taste. .
Once the image of the product is created by advertisements, it gets monopolilsed and the prices of the product also go high. Chunnawala and Sethia also point out the following objections to advertising.
a) Expensive advertising alone cannot promote a product.
b) In a poor country, advertising amounts to waste of national resources.
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c) Advertising engenders unhappiness amongst those who desire the product but do not have the capability to buy it.
d) Indian advertisers are apes and imitate the content and style of their foreign counterparts. Thus the criticism of advertising mainly centres on the following complaints.
1. Advertising persuades us to buy goods and services we cannot afford.
2. Advertising appeals primarily to our emotions, rather than to our intellect.
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3. Advertising is biased.
4. Advertising involves conflicting competitive claims.
5. Advertising is unduly repetitious.
6. Most of advertising is vulgar, obtrusive, irritating.