Essay about Advertising Ethics

There are proponents of DTC prescription drug ads. They argue that “the ads inform patients about diseases and possible treatments, encourage people to seek medical advice, help remove stigma associated with medical conditions, and provide needed sales revenue to fund costly research and development (R&D) of new drugs (Drug Ads ProCon.org).” On the flip side opponents argue “that DTC drug ads misinform patients, promote drugs before long-term safety-profiles can be known, medicalize and stigmatize normal conditions and bodily functions like wrinkles and low testosterone, waste valuable medical appointment time, and have led to our society’s overuse of prescription drugs (Drug Ads ProCon.org).”

DTC prescription drug ads raise people’s awareness of possible health issues and encourage them to seek medical advice they might not get otherwise. Knowledge is power, and DTC ads help people become educated about drugs, medical conditions, and

In regards to the price of prescription drugs, supporters note that the advertising promotes competition among the drug companies, thus driving the drug prices down. Assuming that this is true, which is disputable in itself, “some opponents also suggest that DTCPA increases health care costs because visits to the physician prompted by a drug ad can be a waste of time and money”.(nih.gov) So if the prices are driven down then that would be of benefit to some and if they are, in fact, increased that would be of impact to all consumers. This ethical analysis does not require an answer as to which point of view is true.

This advertisement, intended for publication in American family magazines, is a print ad manufactured with the goal of supporting the fight against prescription drug abuse. This advertisement uses a strong visual metaphor, an emotional appeal, and persuasive techniques to positively sell the idea of anti prescription drug abuse. The ad uses the visual metaphor of a vending machine to create the subtext of prescription drugs being easy to access. Vending machines are convenient, widely available, and a fast, easy, and inexpensive method of delivery.

This case study analyzes the experiences of Courtland Kelley at General Motors (GM). Courtland Kelley a third generation GM worker put his job on the line by pushing the GM managers and executives to fully respond to the safety issues found while working as a safety inspector at the company. Kelley along with his supervisor Bill McAleer first discovered the issues while auditing GM cars at rail yards across the country, a spot check of vehicles before the cars were cleared to be delivered to the dealers. McAleer was taken off the audit as a result, who subsequently sued the company seeking whistle-blower protection. The case was eventually dismissed by a judge in favor of GM. The judgement only increased Kelley’s

Overall, the analysis found that 37% of physicians said they sometimes or often agreed to prescribe a brand-name drug at their patients’ request.” Consumers rarely think to give their doctor permission not to prescribe them a drug. The emotional connection and sense of urgency created by advertisements can make patients develop a sense of dependency on the product before even trying it.

The following advertisement is about a prescription medicine, HARVONI, that is used to treat chronic hepatitis C. This advertisement derives from the Sports Illustrated magazine and is a prime example of the utilization of logos due to the fact that it provides facts on the medicine and informs the audience of how extraordinary its success rates are. It is inferred that the message of the ad is it is in the best interest for people to purchase HARVONI. The intended audience is comprised of adults diagnosed with hepatitis C due to the fact that the remedy is used to cure the illness. The advertisement is attempting to elicit the emotion of eagerness in its audience to encourage them to obtain HARVONI to purge themselves of the virus. Also, a sense of joy is felt because the ad declares nearly all people who used it were cured in only twelve weeks, compared to other medicines that can take as long as a year to

Ever since the legalization of direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical advertising in 1985, drug companies have grown and greatly increased their spending, making this the most popular type of health communication to the general public. From 1996 to 2005, the total amount of spending on pharmaceutical advertisements increased by 3252 million dollars and the percentage of drug sales increased by 1.4 percent (New England Journal of Medicine). This positive increase in sales is why the United States allows for these advertisements to be aired, they bring in revenue and as people become more sick, they will continue to buy more drugs and increase the revenue. However, even with all this spending, after observing hours of television on three different channels, I found it surprising on the limited amounts of pharmaceutical advertisements that were presented. For the network CBS, there were three drug advertisements, for CNN there were four and for the network AMC, there were only two of the same commercial. This trend shows how different airing times affect different populations of people. I watched CNN at 11:30 in the morning, a more common

Marketing products, services, or even charities to the public has become a very powerful force in our world. Millions of dollars are spent on advertising each year with the goal of increasing revenue for the business or raising awareness of an organization to the public. Pharmaceutical companies bring products to the markets that are intended to help people live better lives. Advertising is a relatively new phenomenon for pharmaceutical companies in the United States. “In 1985, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which has the responsibility for safety regulations governing drugs, passed a ruling that allowed direct market to consumers on the condition that a great deal of warning information was provided

Medical commercials are something that the general public have learned to phase out if it has nothing to do with them or anyone they know. These prescription drug advertisements are usually jam-packed with too much information and often leaves their audience snoring. However, the newest commercial for Opdivo (Nivolumab) recently caught my attention. Through its use of emotional tones, symbolic visuals, and hopeful tagline, Opdivo is able to capture the interest of someone suffering with certain diseases and inform them about their product. The history of drug advertisements is a long one, and Opdivo’s “New Hope” commercial simply adds to its legacy by using the following aspects to grab their audience’s

There are many direct to consumer advertising for prescription drugs. On television, magazines, radio etc, you see the most recent advertisements for prescription drugs. After some people see the advertisements they soon rush over to their doctor and their illness and life would be perfectly pain and stress free. Making the public conscious of options for treatment is not a bad thing. But these false advertisements are misleading consumers onto unnecessary treatment.

I think you bring up a very good idea about criminalizing drug advertisements. I do agree that the primary recipient of these advertisements do need to be the doctors. On the other hand I would not like to see this happen. I actually look for advertisements at certain times. My son has Adhd and to find the medicines that work or newly released medicines, I have to at times do research. If the doctors were the only ones to have the information, we would not be informed enough to make decisions regarding his care. I agree that their seems to be a pill for everything as this is a billion dollar industry .However, I can attest to the fact that with out my sons medicine ,he would not be able to be in a classroom setting in school .Many patients

In the United States, a drug can only be advertised legally after being approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Once attaining at least one FDA-approved use, physicians can prescribe a drug for other unapproved uses, based on their clinical judgment; this is referred to as “off-label use” (McCambridge, 2008). In general, marketing drugs for off-label uses is illegal; however, pharmaceutical companies have gone to various lengths within their legal rights to accomplish exactly that.

Advertising has been defined as the most powerful, persuasive, and manipulative tool that firms have to control consumers all over the world. It is a form of communication that typically attempts to persuade potential customers to purchase or to consume more of a particular brand of product or service. Its impacts created on the society throughout the years has been amazing, especially in this technology age. Influencing people’s habits, creating false needs, distorting the values and priorities of our society with sexism and feminism, advertising has become a poison snake ready to hunt his prey. However, on the other hand, advertising has had a positive effect as a help of the economy and society.

Now the wind of technological advancement is blowing all around the glob. Our life become so much easy and comfortable. For the sake of explosion of new technology, media, and new opportunities is transforming the marketing and advertising landscape and revolutionizing the way the industry conducts business. The only fact is the transparency that is needed. For the sake of motivating advertising, public relations, and marketing communications professionals to practice the highest personal ethics in the creation and distribution of commercial information to consumers the institute for advertising (IAE) was created.