How the public looks upon advertising

Advertising has been criticized by consumers, by the government, and by business men. In recent years, many outspoken members of the advertising industry have suggested remedies. Codes for truthful advertising have been drawn up and approved in many circles. Some feel that these codes may be too little and too late.
Congressional investigations and regulations have intensified public interest. So has the appearance of certain books such as "The Hucksters" and "The Waste Makers." Terms such as "Madison Avenue," referring to advertising people and their techniques, are intended as terms of scorn. There seems to be little doubt that what is generally known as the corporate image of advertising needs bolstering.
On the other hand, the student is reminded that the abuses and excesses which exist are by no means universal. Most advertising agencies maintain scrupulous care, and adhere to stringent codes of ethics in their methods of operation and in their messages to the public. It is manifestly unfair to brand all advertising as exaggerated, misleading, or deceitful because of the relatively few instances in which carelessness or downright dishonesty has led to misleading, deceitful or untrue advertising.
In practice, advertising agencies handle only about 50 per cent of the total advertising money spent in the
United States and Canada. The balance of advertising expenditures is handled directly by the companies that do the advertising. While undoubtedly the techniques and practices of advertising agencies influence advertisers who do their own advertising, "Madison Avenue" can certainly not be considered responsible for local advertising practices.
A large proportion of all local newspaper advertising, as well as a very large share of direct-mail material (catalogs, brochures, price lists, booklets) and much of spot radio and spot television advertising, is handled directly by advertisers.
A recent survey undertaken by one of the country's leading business publications indicated that most company presidents expected to spend more on advertising in the years ahead, reflecting faith on the part of the leaders of American industry in advertising. However, these company presidents also indicated concern with the weaknesses shown by advertising, its ethics, its waste, and most of all, with the inability of business to measure directly the effectiveness of advertising. Most business men are demanding a quantitative measure of their money's worth in advertising. So far, no such measure has been discovered, although much effort has been expended on this.
It is undoubtedly true that a large proportion of the general public has a distorted view of both the power and ethics of advertising. Many people have no idea of the contributions that advertising has made to the economy, especially toward raising the standard of living in the Western World.
Several of the most important national associations, such as the American Association of Advertising Agencies, the Association of National Advertisers, the Advertising Federation of America, the Advertising Research Foundation, as well as the Better Business Bureau and many private firms, have intensified their efforts to clarify the contributions of advertising. It is confidently expected that the image of advertising will improve as a result of these efforts.