"A Brief History of Sex in Advertising"

By Tory Ball & Paul Avers

____In 1924, the American Association of Advertising Agencies published the advertising code of ethics, which stated that the following practices were unethical:
- false or misleading statements or exaggerations, visual or verbal
- testimonials which did not reflect the real choice of a competent witness
- price claims which were misleading
- comparisons which unfairly disparaged a competitive product or service
- unsupported claims, or claims that distorted the true meaning of statements made by professional or scientific authorities
- statements, suggestions or pictures offensive to public decency
(Making Sense of Media, p 309).

____If one were to evaluate each ethical code, they are rather vague in nature, allowing an advertiser to push the limits of what is actually acceptable to advertise about a product or service. In the specific case of the last code, sex is more or less addressed as being potentially offensive to the public. The problem with this code is that what is not found to be offensive to one person could just as easily be found horrible and shocking to another. It is the responsibility of the advertiser to maintain the delicate balance between pushing the envelope to create a memorable advertisement and offending or outraging the public that they are trying to convince to buy the product or service.

____Advertisers recognize the power that sexual imagery and suggestion have on consumers. According to Neil E. Harrison, a writer for Canadian Business and Current Affairs, “advertisers recognize that ''sex sells'' because it attracts attention” (Harrison). Attention-getting techniques have always been the cornerstone of advertising; even if it makes a consumer look in disgust, the point is that the consumer looked, and if the imagery is pushing the envelope or shocking or borderline offensive, it becomes more memorable.

____In some instances, sex has always been more accepted when it is used to advertise a specific product type. As cited in the article “Playing the Game,” which appeared in Marketing Week in July of 2002, “Perfume houses and lingerie brands have long used sex in their advertising campaigns, and few people would consider this to be out of place. But when purveyors of cheese, soft drinks, ale and junk food start using sexual imagery in their marketing, some wonder whether this is exploiting sex in an unacceptable way” (Playing the Game). When a consumer sees an advertisement for lingerie, they are expecting a sexual portrayal because of the nature of the product, however, when the same consumer views an advertisement for potato chips, they are not expecting to see sexual imagery because the product and sex are ironically diametrically opposed.

- TB/PA

WORKS CITED:

Harrison, Neil E. (2001, June). All consuming desire: advertisers prey on our sexual insecurities to mass-market products and services. Canadian Business and Current Affairs, p 24. Retrieved March 28, 2003 from Lexis-Nexis database (Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe) on the World Wide Web: http://www.lexis-nexis.com/universe/

Rodman, George. (2001). Making Sense of Media: An Introduction to Mass Communication. Needham Heights, Massachusetts: Allyn &Bacon.

Playing the Game (2002, July 25). Marketing Week, pg 25. Retrieved March 28, 2003 from Lexis-Nexis database (Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe) on the World Wide Web: http://www.lexis-nexis.com/universe/