Children and Advertising in Sri Lanka


Children
in
Advertising
in
Sri
Lanka
A
Media
Study
P a g e | 2
Centre
for
Policy
Alternatives
(c)
2008
The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) is an independent, non‐partisan organization that focuses primarily on issues of governance and conflict resolution. Formed in 1996 in the firm belief that the vital contribution of civil society to the public policy debate is in need of strengthening, CPA is committed to programmes of research and advocacy through which public policy is critiqued, alternatives identified and disseminated. Address: 24/2 28th Lane, off Flower Road, Colombo 7, Sri Lanka Telephone: +94 (11) 2565304‐6 Fax: +94 (11) 4714460 www.cpalanka.org Email [email protected] Web P a g e | 3
Introduction
Children live and grow up in a commercial environment where they see and hear a lot of advertising. Although advertising to children is a sensitive issue, there is nothing wrong per se about it. Advertising has positive effects on the economy that benefit society, including children. Advertising revenue, for example, helps fund quality children’s programmes. Advertising revenues support feed into efforts by many actors to engender a healthy and independent media, viable TV production and a free and independent press. These media all provide products and services that help inform and educate children. Nonetheless, commercial marketers ‐ including advertisers, advertising agencies and the media – should acknowledge that children do constitute a very special audience. Children have a limited capacity to evaluate the credibility of information in advertising. Therefore, many marketers should adhere to self‐regulatory codes and standards that specifically prohibit any exploitation of the inexperience or natural credulity of children. In other words, these marketers should act with great responsibility to protect children from any advertising or marketing practices that would cause them harm. This is true regardless of the medium ‐ newspapers, magazines, radio, television or the Internet. Some self‐regulatory standards are clearly detailed in the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Marketing Codes and Guidelines, in particular in Article 14 of the ICC International Code of Advertising Practice that states: •
Advertisements
should
not
exploit
the
inexperience
or
credulity
of
children
…
•
Advertisements
should
not
understate
the
degree
of
skill
or
age
level
generally
required
to
use
or
enjoy
the
products
…
•
Price
indication
should
not
be
such
as
to
lead
children
…
to
an
unreal
perception
of
the
true
value
of
the
product
…
•
Advertisements
should
not
contain
any
statement
or
visual
presentation
that
could
have
the
effect
of
harming
children
…
mentally,
morally
or
physically
…
•
Advertisements
should
not
suggest
that
possession
or
use
of
a
product
alone
will
give
the
child
…
physical,
social
or
psychological
advantages
over
other
children
…
or
that
non‐
possession
of
the
product
would
have
the
opposite
effect
…
•
Advertisements
should
not
undermine
the
authority,
responsibility
…
of
parents
•
Advertisements
should
not
include
any
direct
appeal
to
children
…
to
persuade
their
parents
or
other
adults
to
buy
advertised
products
for
them.
The argument repeated in existing literature on advertising to children assumes that television commercials create wants in children, who then pester their parents for the advertised product. The parents, apparently helpless to refuse, succumb to the demands of their children and purchase the product. If they do not give in to their children’s demands, the argument goes, parent‐child conflict is the inevitable result. This ‘standard argument’ assumes that commercials create wants because young viewers do not understand advertising and are therefore particularly influenced by it. P a g e | 4
However, as international research has shown, there is a complex interaction of relations between advertising, media and children that cannot be under‐estimated or glossed over. It can be strongly argued that there is thus no straightforward one‐way linear influence of an advertisement aimed at children and of their acceptance of it. That influence is dependent on how a child negotiates the meaning of the ad, in turn determined by a number of variables such as family, caste/class, religion, school, and community. In the case of Sri Lanka, there has not been any discussion on ethical standards of advertising, or the effect of advertising on children. We need to recognise: 1.
The special sensitivities involved in communicating to children 2.
The various stages of development the child undergoes in its social environment 3.
The lack of experience the child has and its limited capacity to assess the credibility of messages it receives from the media 4.
The importance for caution when appealing to the imaginative capabilities of younger children 5.
The decisive roles of parents and their responsibility in the upbringing of their children and 6.
The reality that advertising plays a natural and integral part of any child's intellectual growth and the need to ensure that children understand the reality of the world in which they live. The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) in collaboration with UNICEF organised a half‐day consultative meeting in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Children and Advertising in Sri Lanka on 1st August 2003. This consultative meeting was held to examine the complex interaction of relations between advertising, media and children – a topic on which there was very little informed debate in Sri Lanka. Recognising the market imperatives of advertising and also the need to safeguard the best interests of children, participants at the consultative grappled with the need to sensitise marketers and advertisers on the need to adhere to certain basic guidelines which are laid out in international covenants laying out the Rights of the Child. As was brought out at a consultative meeting, while the members of the Accredited Advertising Agencies Association (4A’s) spoke of the Association’s new code governing laying out self‐regulatory guidelines for all its members, they questioned the commitment of ad agencies to any code of ethics and also flagged the need to focus specifically on children.
In the plenary discussions that followed, it was agreed that a study looking at Children and Advertising would also have to look at promotions and other marketing strategies as well. Some participants also felt there was a need to look at the entire spectrum of media and not just advertising when examining its effects on children. However, it was agreed that while a number of interventions and studies had concentrated on other aspects of the media, there research on children and advertising in Sri Lanka was abysmal. As such, it was also agreed that while a holistic perspective of the media was of pivotal importance in any study or intervention, a more focused examination of the impact of advertising on children was necessary as well. This brief report and the related media monitoring exercise, conducted over 3 months in 2006, is the response to the needs and challenges articulated at the plenary session. It is in essence a first stab at establishing a greater awareness on and adherence to established codes of conduct P a g e | 5
relating to the use and portrayal of children in advertising, including the construction of content and messaging in advertisements and marketing directly aimed at children. P a g e | 6
Children
and
Advertising
in
Print
Media
–
Results
of
media
monitoring
As a pivotal component of the study, Sri Lankan print media was monitored for a period of three months1 . The media monitoring focussed on two main areas: 1.
Monitoring of all national daily and weekly newspapers published in all three languages. 2.
Monitoring of all weekly children’s publications and newspapers. In February 2006, the President of Sri Lanka gave a speech in which he recognised the need to look into the depiction of children in the media. He noted that2, Today,
the
use
of
children
for
advertising
has
become
a
major
issue.
The
time
set
apart
for
children
on
TV
and
radio
is
in
no
way
adequate.
Changes
in
this
should
begin
this
year.
Classification
of
the
advertisements
For the purpose of the study following definitions apply: •
Children: refers to persons less than 18 years of age as per Article 1 of the Child Rights Convention3 •
Children’s
Advertisements: a paid commercial message that utilizes a mass media channel, •
Depiction
of
children: a paid commercial message which would not necessarily aim to which directly or indirectly promotes products, services, ideas for children. promote a product or service to children but employ children in a prominent or non prominent manner in its content. •
For the purpose of the study the term ‘children’s advertisements’ will represent advertisements that promotes brands for children and which depict children in their content. Print
media
The study covered 11 daily and 22 weekly national newspapers, which comprised 14 Sinhalese, 9 Tamil and 10 English language newspapers per week. The newspapers mentioned below
were monitored for a period of three months in order to determine the manner in which children were targeted and depicted in local print media advertisements. From September to November 2006. See http://www.president.gov.lk/sinhala/html/speeches/2006/national_year_of_child.htm 3 Convention on the Rights of the Child, Adopted and opened for signature, ratification and accession by General Assembly resolution 44/25 of 20 November 1989, entry into force 2 September 1990, in accordance with article 49, http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu3/b/k2crc.htm 1
2
P a g e | 7
Daily
Newspapers
Sinhala
Tamil
English
Lankadeepa Virakesari Daily News Divaina Thinakaran Daily Mirror Lakbima Thinakkural The Island Dinamina Sudaroli Morning Leader Weekly
Newspapers
Sinhala
Tamil
English
Irida Virakesari The Sunday Times Irida Divaina Thinakkural The Sunday Island Irida Lakbima Thinakaran Vara manjaree The Sunday Observer Silumina Sudaroli The Sunday Leader Irudina Metro The Nation Rivira The Sunday Standard Sathdina Maubima Ravaya Lanka Lankadeepa Findings
A total of 524 children’s advertisements4 were recorded for the period, out of which 367 were published in Daily newspapers and 157 advertisements were published in weekly newspapers. English papers had the most number of advertisements for the period (220 advertisements). The Sinhala papers recorded 206 advertisements whilst the Tamil papers had only 98 advertisements for the period in concern5. Out of 278 advertisements aimed at children, 247 had children in their content. Advertisements aimed at children and depicting children in its content. The
Nation,
Maubima,
Ravaya,
Lanka,
The
Sunday
Standard and Metro didn’t publish children’s advertisements over the period monitored.
4
5
P a g e | 8
The daily newspapers printed the most number of advertisements over the period the media was monitored. English newspapers contained 161 advertisements, Sinhalese papers 132 whereas Tamil papers had only 75 advertisements. The weekly newspapers contained fewer advertisements when compared to the daily newspapers. 74 advertisements were in the Sinhalese press, 59 in the English and 24 in the Tamil press. Newspapers
No.
published
Daily Newspapers 368 Weekly Newspapers 157 Total
525 Daily
newspaper
Advertisements
by
language
for
the
period
Sep
Sinhala 33 Tamil 21 English 60 Total
114
Oct
Sinhala 42 Tamil 37 English 52 Total
131
Nov
Sinhala 58 Tamil 17 English 49 Total
124
P a g e | 9
Weekly
newspaper
Advertisements
by
language
for
the
period
Sep
Sinhala 16 Tamil 4 English 15 Total
35
Oct
Sinhala 35 Tamil 14 English 19 Total
68
Nov
Sinhala 22 Tamil 6 English 25 Total
53
Summary
of
the
advertisements
by
language
Daily
Weekly
Sep Sinhala 33 16 Tamil 21 4 English 60 15 Total
114
35
Oct Sinhala 42 35 Tamil 37 14 English 52 19 Total
131
68
Nov Sinhala 58 22 Tamil 17 6 English 49 25 Total
124
53
P a g e | 10
English
daily
newspapers
The
Island newspaper, with 66 advertisements, had the most number of advertisements published over the period media was monitored. 60 advertisements of this total represented brands within the same group of companies.6 The State owned Daily
News carried the most number of advertisements over the period whilst the Daily
Mirror recorded the least. Number
of
advertisements
published
in
the
English
Daily
newspapers
from
September
to
November
Name
Number
of
ads
published
The Daily News 65 The Island 66 The Daily Mirror 30 Total 161 6 The majority of the advertisements that were published in the Island newspaper were those related to Kandos chocolates and Delta Toffee brands, owned by the same Upali Group that publishes the Island newspaper. Further, these advertisements were published only in newspapers published by the Upali Group (The
Island,
Divaina,
Sunday
Island,
Sunday
Divaina) P a g e | 11
Daily
Sinhalese
newspapers
Lankadeepa had 68 children’s advertisements, the highest in any Sinhalese daily over the period monitored. Interestingly, the State owned Dinamina recorded only 11 advertisements for the period, the lowest amongst the newspaper monitored. Number
of
advertisements
published
in
daily
newspapers
in
Sinhala
from
September
to
November
Name
Number
of
ads
published
Lankadeepa 68 Divaina 30 Lakbima 23 Dinamina 11 Total
132 P a g e | 12
Tamil
daily
newspapers
Children’s advertisements published in Tamil daily newspapers were much less than newspapers in English and Sinhalese daily newspapers. The daily Virakesari had the highest number of advertisements whilst the State owned newspaper Thinakaran recorded the lowest number of advertisements. Number
of
advertisements
published
in
Tamil
Daily
newspapers
from
September
to
November
Name
Number
of
ads
published
Virakesari 44 Thinakkural 21 Sudaroli 6 Thinakaran 3 Total
74 Tamil Daily (from Sep-Nov) No: of ads
published
8
0
7
0
6
0
5
0
4
0
3
0
2
0
1
00
Virakesar
i
Thinakkura
l
SudarOl
i
Thinakara
n
Tota
l
Weekly
and
Weekend
newspapers
In comparison to the daily newspapers, weekly newspapers published fewer
advertisements for and featuring children. The weekly newspapers contained only 30% (157) of children’s advertisements over the period of media monitoring. The State owned Sunday
Observer recorded the most number of advertisements for the period whilst The
Nation and The
Sunday
Standard did not publish any advertisements related to children. P a g e | 13
Number
of
advertisements
published
in
English
weekly
newspapers
from
September
to
November
Name
Number
of
ads
published
The Sunday Observer 21 The Sunday Island 14 The Sunday Times 17 The Sunday Leader 7 The Nation 0 The Sunday Standard 0 Total
59
Weekly
Sinhala
newspapers
Irida
Lankadeepa published the most number of advertisements, whilst Ravaya and Lanka newspapers did not carry a single children’s advertisement over the period of media monitoring. P a g e | 14
Number
of
advertisements
published
in
Sinhalese
weekly
newspapers
Name
Number
of
ads
published
Iridha 20 Lankadeepa Iridha Divaina 12 Iridha Lakbima 13 Irudina 13 Silumina 7 Rivira 5 Sathdina 2 Maubima 2 Ravaya 0 Lanka 0 Total
74 Tamil
weekly
newspapers
In comparison to Sinhalese and English weekly newspapers, Tamil weekly papers published a considerably lower number of children’s advertisements. The privately owned Virakesari published the most number of advertisements. The weekly edition of Sudar
Oli and Metro
did not carry a single advertisement for the period. P a g e | 15
Number
of
advertisements
published
in
weekly
Tamil
newspapers
from
September
to
November
Name
Number
of
ads
published
Virakesari 17 Thinakkural 4 Thinakaran / Vara 2 manjari Sudaroli 0 Total
24 P a g e | 16
Categorization
of
advertisements
The advertisements that were published over the monitoring
period were classified under 16 broad categories using established advertising classifications7 to incorporate all advertisements published within the period of the study. Description
Sep
Oct
Nov
Total
1 Financial Services 28 62 50 140
2 Food 30 38 20 88
3 Product ads 23 17 31 71
4 Media 6 11 33 50
5 Auto mobiles 12 7 12 31
6 Government ads 16 4 5 25
7 Education 17 1 7 25
8 Real estates 7 10 6 23
9 Children's Day ads 0 18 0 20
10 Corporate ads 5 13 1 19
11 Health 3 2 5 10
12 NGO ads 7 2 1 10
13 Leisure & Travel 0 2 7 9
14 Social Responsibility 2 0 0 2
15 Ramadan ads 0 1 0 1
16 World Thrift Day 0 1 0 1
156 189 178 525
Total Financial
Services
Advertisements
Advertisements for financial services (banking and insurance) were those that were published the most over the period monitored. Most of the financial services published within the period 7 The categories of advertising p17‐p20, “The Fundamentals of Advertising” Johan Wilmshurst, Charted Institute of Marketing Publication 1994 P a g e | 17
were related to children’s savings schemes offered by financial organizations8. Advertisements of insurance services published were not directly aimed at children but depicted children. Children’s
Savings
Accounts
Advertisements that promoted children’s savings accounts targeted parents and guardians and appealed to both through the depiction of children. In many cases, children were shown as the recipients of gifts when a product and / or service from a particular provider / manufacture was chosen over others. Visually, most of the advertisements were colourful with images appealing to children. It was also the case that many of the advertisements were informative and provided detailed of what was being offered. Banking
Services
Advertisements that were aimed at promoting housing loans, savings accounts and related services and products were not directly aimed at children but featured children in the content. Insurance
Services
These advertisements promoted insurance services to different target audiences – e.g. the family, children, individuals, car. These advertisements targeted children as well as featured them in the content. Food
Advertisements
Advertisements for food advisements featured heavily in the period monitored, second only to those on financial services. Chocolates, toffees, biscuits and dairy products were the most advertised food categories. Images of children were used to promote milk powder and biscuits brands. Product
Advertisements
Product advertising was the third highest featured category. Products advertised ranged from water tanks, electric cables, electric switches and clothes to electrical appliances. Most of the advertisements did not target children, but featured them in the content. Interestingly the Government of Sri Lanka used children a great deal in the promotion of services and raising awareness of its initiatives. Notable amongst this category were advertisements for defence put out by the armed services and the Ministry of Defence. Many of the advertisements by the Ministry of Defence employed children even though the messaging and content was for adults. World Children’s Day, World Thrift Day and Ramadan all fell during the media monitoring exercise. A considerable number of advertisements were published in the print media to celebrate World Children’s Day1. Most of the advertisements were from banks and financial service providers who used the opportunity to promote their brands and services for children. World Vision (an INGO) was the only organization that used the mode of advertisements to raise awareness on a pressing issue which was faced by a segment of children ‐ the recruitment of 8 Sampath "Sapiri" children's savings account ‐ Sampath Bank Sisu Udana Vishishtayo Winners ‐People's Bank P a g e | 18
children as armed combatants. Images of children, symbols and toys were used to convey the message.
Classification
of
published
children’s
advertisements
Month
Ads
aimed
Ads
depicting
Total
at
children
children
Sep 72 77 149 Oct 120 79 199 Nov 86 91 177 Total 278 247 525 % 53 47 Out of the total number of children’s advertisements published within the period, 53% of the advertisements were aimed at promoting products or a service directly or indirectly to children. The service sector was the most advertised sector which promoted savings and other financial schemes to parents and children. The three most advertised brands for the period were: •
Lankaputtra “Lakmuthu” children’s savings account •
Ceylinco pranama scholarship scheme •
Miniketa children’s savings account 47% of children’s advertisements contained images of children. In most instances children had no association with what was advertised. The following advertisements were the most advertised containing images of children: P a g e | 19
•
Defence ministry campaign “together for all campaign”
•
Sony Sparkling WEGA television advertisement •
Sri Lanka life “stand up for life” campaign
Monthly
Analysis
Daily
Weekly
Month
Total
Total
Sep 114 35 Oct 131 68 Nov 124 54 Total
368
157
Children’s
Newspapers
All children’s papers that were published in Sri Lanka were monitored on a monthly basis to determine the level of advertising in them. 65 children’s papers were referred for this purpose. The notable fact was that there was only one Tamil paper published for children9, whilst there was no children’s English newspaper published in the country. Most of the children’s newspapers were published with a narrow focus directly linked to the school grades10. Except for “Mihira” and “Wijaya” newspapers all other newspapers carried only in‐house advertisements of the relevant publication house. Mihira and Wijaya children’s newspapers had several advertisements that promoted pens, exercise books and bicycles. 9
Wiya newspaper Year one/ year two and so on.
10
P a g e | 20
P a g e | 21
Qualitative
Analysis
Guidelines
/
Framework
A content analysis on print media depicting children’s advertisements was conducted to determine the nature in which children are portrayed in them. In order to develop the content analysis, local codes pertaining to advertising were examined. The main advertising and marketing bodies, namely SLIM11, IAA12 & The Four A’s, Lake House newspapers were contacted to examine whether there are specific codes developed in Sri Lanka in the usage of children in advertisements13. However the above organisations did not have a printed/ published guide line with regards to children’s advertisements. The only Advertising code pertaining to advertising is the SLRC “Code of conduct and standards and practices in Television broadcasting and advertising”. The code had a section for children’s advertising and the usage of children in advertising. Since the code was developed specifically for television advertising, a further three international codes that govern children’s advertisements were used in determining the standards of the local advertising. Guidelines
of
the
Children’s
Advertising
Review
Unit
(CARU),
New
York,
USA14
The Children's Advertising Review Unit (CARU) was founded in 1974 to promote responsible children's advertising as part of a strategic alliance with the major advertising trade associations through the National Advertising Review Council (comprising the AAAA, the AAF, the ANA and the CBBB). CARU is the children's arm of the advertising industry's self‐regulation program and evaluates child‐directed advertising and promotional material in all media to advance truthfulness, accuracy and consistency with its Self‐Regulatory Guidelines for Children's Advertising and relevant laws. CARU's basic activities are the review and evaluation of child‐directed advertising in all media, and online privacy practices as they affect children. When these are found to be misleading, inaccurate, or inconsistent with CARU's Self‐Regulatory Guidelines for Children's Advertising, CARU seeks change through the voluntary cooperation of advertisers. CARU's Self‐Regulatory Guidelines are deliberately subjective, going beyond the issues of truthfulness and accuracy to take into account the uniquely impressionable and vulnerable child audience. CARU recognizes that the special nature and needs of a youthful audience require particular care and diligence on the part of advertisers. Consequently, CARU performs a high level of monitoring, including the scrutinizing of over ten thousand television commercials, and the review of advertisements in print, radio and online media. Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing International Advertising Association 13 Accredited Advertising Agencies Association 14 See http://www.caru.org/index.aspx 11
12
P a g e | 22
Seven basic Principles underlie CARU's Guidelines for advertising directed to children under 12: 1.
Advertisers should always take into account the level of knowledge, sophistication and maturity of the audience to which their message is primarily directed. Younger children have a limited capacity for evaluating the credibility of information they receive. They also may lack the ability to understand the nature of the personal information they disclose on the Internet. Advertisers, therefore, have a special responsibility to protect children from their own susceptibilities. 2.
Unreasonable expectations of product quality or performance should not be stimulated either directly or indirectly by advertising. 3.
Products and content which are inappropriate for children should not be advertised or promoted directly to children. 4.
Recognizing that advertising may play an important part in educating the child, advertisers should communicate information in a truthful and accurate manner and in language understandable to young children with full recognition that the child may learn practices from advertising which can affect his or her health and well‐being. 5.
Advertisers are urged to capitalize on the potential of advertising to influence behavior by developing advertising that, wherever possible, addresses itself to positive and beneficial social behavior, such as friendship, kindness, honesty, justice, generosity and respect for others. 6.
Care should be taken to incorporate minority and other groups in advertisements in order to present positive and pro‐social roles and role models wherever possible. Social stereotyping and appeals to prejudice should be avoided. 7.
Although many influences affect a child's personal and social development, it remains the prime responsibility of the parents to provide guidance for children. Advertisers should contribute to this parent‐child relationship in a constructive manner. Advertising
Codes
of
the
International
Chamber
of
Commerce
(ICC
Codes)
1.
Advertisements should not exploit the inexperience or credulity of children … 2.
Advertisements should not understate the degree of skill or age level generally required to use or enjoy the products … 3.
Price indication should not be such as to lead children … to an unreal perception of the true value of the product … 4.
Advertisements should not contain any statement or visual presentation that could have the 5.
Advertisements should not suggest that possession or use of a product alone will give the effect of harming children … mentally, morally or physically … child … physical, social or psychological advantages over other children … or that non‐
possession of the product would have the opposite effect … 6.
Advertisements should not undermine the authority, responsibility … of parents 7.
Advertisements should not include any direct appeal to children … to persuade their parents or other adults to buy advertised products for them. P a g e | 23
Advertising
Guidelines
of
European
Association
of
Communications
Agencies15
1.
Advertisers should take great care in assessing the level of knowledge, sophistication and maturity of the intended audience. In particular great care should be taken when communicating with younger children who may have a lack of ability to comprehend the purpose of advertising and differentiate between it and non‐advertising messages; 2.
Advertisers should ensure that the language and manner of any advertisement is easily understood by those children for whom it is intended; 3.
Advertisers should not exploit the lively imagination of children and their use of make‐
believe, by creating communications that take unfair advantage of their commercial innocence; 4.
Advertisers should not portray unsociable or stereotyped behavior; every opportunity should be taken to promote such attributes as friendship, kindness, honesty, justice, generosity and the like. Care should be taken to avoid any suggestion of bullying, vindictiveness, cruelty or behavior involving undesirable body language or other anti‐social gestures; 5.
Advertisers should take great care to avoid any inference of or endorsement for discrimination based on race, religion or sex. 6.
Advertising should not unfairly imitate programmed or editorial content so as to confuse children as to what is advertising and what is not; where there is danger of this there should be clear statement marking it as an advertisement; 7.
Advertisements should not portray violence or aggression, nor contain menacing or horrific elements likely to disturb children 8.
Advertisements should be rigorous in depicting proper behavior and must avoid suggesting any activity that would be unsafe for children; 9.
Advertisements should not suggest any feeling of inferiority or unsociability for not buying the product or service; 10. Children should not appear in any hazardous situation or be depicted behaving dangerously or irresponsibly (except in public service advertising where a problem is being addressed); children should not appear in street scene without supervision unless they appear old enough to take care of themselves; care should be taken not to place them in the context of potentially dangerous situations as with fire, matches, petrol, electrical appliances, inappropriate medicines or household substances; they must not be seen to operate vehicles, farm machinery, unsuitable electrical appliances and the like; 11. Advertisements must not play on children's potential to pester their parents to make a Purchase; 12. Where price is mentioned or suggested, a clear and complete price for the product or service must be given, any additional items offered must be clearly defined; there must be no appeal to excessive purchasing 13. If additional items are needed, such as batteries, this should be clearly communicated; 1.
A product that is part of a series should be placed in the contest of that series; 2.
Advertising should not exaggerate what is attainable by a child with the product or service; 15
See http://www.eaca.be/documentation/results.asp?type=1 P a g e | 24
3.
No appeal to a charity should be unfairly used to pressurize children or create a feeling of guilt in them; P a g e | 25
Findings
All advertising codes advocate and are established around the core idea of the safety when depicting children. The codes clearly state that children should not be depicted in dangerous environments or engaging in such activity16. However, there were two advertisements encountered during media monitoring that directly violated the code. Example
Advertisement
#
1
This advertisement is about the launch of a new Air Line by the Government of Sri Lanka. Children were used in this advertisement with the tagline, “The Sky Belongs to them as well!” children were jumping into a river from the wing of an aircraft. This activity can be regarded as a dangerous activity that violates the children’s advertising codes. Children should not appear in any hazardous situation or be depicted behaving dangerously or irresponsibly (except in public service advertising where a problem is being addressed); children should not appear in street scene without supervision unless they appear old enough to take care of themselves; care should be taken not to place them in the context of potentially dangerous situations as with fire, matches, petrol, electrical appliances, inappropriate medicines or household substances; they must not be seen to operate vehicles, farm machinery, unsuitable electrical appliances and the like; (ICC Codes) / Children should not appear in any hazardous situation or be depicted behaving dangerously or irresponsibly (except in public service advertising where a problem is being addressed) ( EACA Guidelines) / Rupavahini Code. 2(b) any situation in which children are to be used in television advertisements should be carefully considered from the point of safety. 16
P a g e | 26
Example
Advertisement
#
2
This advertisement promotes a motorbike and depicts very young children playing on the bike unattended – a potentially dangerous situation if any child tries to emulate it. The advertisement clearly violates local and international regulations17. Children should not appear in any hazardous situation or be depicted behaving dangerously or irresponsibly (except in public service advertising where a problem is being addressed); children should not appear in street scene without supervision unless they appear old enough to take care of themselves; care should be taken not to place them in the context of potentially dangerous situations as with fire, matches, petrol, electrical appliances, inappropriate medicines or household substances; they must not be seen to operate vehicles, farm machinery, unsuitable electrical appliances and the like; (ICC Codes) / Children should not appear in any hazardous situation or be depicted behaving dangerously or irresponsibly (except in public service advertising where a problem is being addressed) ( EACA Guidelines) / Rupavahini Code. 2(b) any situation in which children are to be used in television advertisements should be carefully considered from the point of safety. 17
P a g e | 27
Example
Advertisement
#
3
This advertisement, aimed at promoting a tyre, used children in its content to demonstrate the stability of the ride. However, the advertisements depicted children in an extremely dangerous manner, having them lean out of a moving vehicle. The risk of loss of life and limb if the child emulated this action was an egregious violation of advertising codes on the depiction of children18. P a g e | 28
General
Observations
Gender
Roles
There were several instances where print media advertisements blatantly reinforced gender stereotypes. This advertisement for kids bicycle is a case in point. It clearly depicts the male child playing with the bike with the girl child standing behind. Many other subtle gender stereotypes were portrayed and reinforced through advertisement depicting and aimed at children. Concept
and
depiction
of
family
Nearly all advertisements depicted families consisted of a father, mother and two children ‐ one boy and one girl. No other variations or combinations were depicted. The female child for example was never depicted alone in portrayals of a “complete family”. Obviously, same sex relationships were taboo. Single parent households were also not depicted – children always found comfort in mother’s bosom – a mother who stayed at home or after work returned home to take care of her family. The father was always hard at work or play and depicted often as the sole breadwinner and patriarch. P a g e | 29
Depiction
of
Children
Over the period media was monitored there were several advertisements that featured children for products and services that were not in any way related to children. Many of these advertisements were linked to large companies and their products. The government’s defence campaign also featured children heavily. A group of school children were juxtaposed with the images of army personnel and the impression given to both child and adult was one of patriotism and nationalist fervour. Another instance was related to an advertisement calling for submissions to a photographic competition. The image used in this advertisement portrayed a tasteless and deeply insensitive image of a huger stricken, unnamed African child of indeterminable age and origin. Children in these instances were used to manipulate and capture public attention. P a g e | 30
Summary
of
findings
•
The majority of children’s advertisements promoted financial services to children via parents. The advertisements targeted the parents rather than the children. •
There were only few advertisements that directly targeted children. Many were addressed to adults and used children as a form of leverage to capture their attention. •
The advertisements reinforced traditional gender stereo types. •
We do not know whether children themselves were influenced to any degree by the advertising aimed at them to buy / select / be partial to the products / services advertised. Given their lack of purchasing power, it can be assumed that pressure is put on parents to pursue the products and services promoted in advertising. P a g e | 31
Recommendations
Based on the plenary discussions of the consultative meeting in 2003 and the results of the media monitoring exercise, we propose the following recommendations in the establishment of a stronger regime of self‐governance and self‐regulation in the depiction and use of children in advertising in Sri Lanka. •
Strict advertising codes, with clear modes of redress and complaint if transgressed, need to be established to engender a child friendly media in Sri Lanka. •
The establishment of a robust, transparent and effective complaints mechanism through which advertising agencies and marketing campaigns could be scrutinised and subject to public debate. This could be linked with the existing Press Complaints Commission. •
Establishment of an arbitration body which advertisers and marketers could go to if they felt they were being unfairly targeted for criticism. •
Sri Lanka marketers and advertisers needed to look more closely at the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). •
The establishment of an independent advisory body comprised of marketers, advertisers as well as child rights activists and civil society stakeholders to oversee the development and compliance of established guidelines and standards in the depiction of children in advertising. The advisory group could stimulate public discussion on the effects of advertising on children and build a constructive dialogue between marketers, advertisers on the one hand and children, parents, lobby groups, child rights activists and civil society stakeholders on the other which would lead to more self‐regulation. This body could also be modelled after the organisations like the Advertising Standards Authority in the United Kingdom – an independent, self‐regulatory body for advertisements, sales promotions and direct marketing. •
Further study into the effects of irresponsible advertising and the resulting negative effects on children was needed. P a g e | 32
Postscript
In the two years after the media monitoring exercise was conducted, there is little or no change from what was observed then and the depiction of children in the media today. The increasing sophistication in the messaging aimed at and using children is evident. As noted in international studies and reflected to a large degree in Sri Lanka19, It
can
be
by
intensifying
the
number
of
times
an
ad
is
screened
during
school
holidays,
by
increasing
the
sound
level,
or,
more
subtly,
for
brands,
by
sponsoring
programmes
for
children
and
broadcasting
their
publicity
just
before
or
just
after
such
programmes.
Generally,
the
majority
of
advertisements
today
are
made
like
a
genuine
programme
for
children.
They
are
imaginative,
short,
rhythmical
and
often
presented
in
the
form
of
animated
cartoons.
These
are
little
adventure
stories,
often
intended
to
be
comic,
and
sometimes
broadcast
in
several
episodes
to
maintain
attention.
The
heroes,
with
whom
children
may
identify,
are
perceived
by
them
in
an
effective
way.
They
end
up
loving
the
ads
‐
which
are
both
reassuring
and
make
them
feel
valued
‐
and
as
a
result
watch
them
in
the
same
way
as
any
other
entertainment
programme.
Which
is,
of
course,
the
aim.
This is particularly true of depictions of children and the family in an increasing frequency of
advertisements by the Sri Lankan defence establishment. The lack of any established code of conduct or set of guidelines for self‐regulation by marketers and advertisers on the use of children has led to the further erosion of best practices in the media. The lack of any public agitation on this issue certainly contributes to the lack of responsibility and adherence to well established international guidelines. The overarching erosion of media freedom in Sri Lanka since 2006 renders issues related to the depiction of children in the media are peripheral to the existential challenges facing journalists and media personnel. Major media organisations and press freedom groups have formulated Codes of Ethics and professional guidelines for accurate, impartial and responsible reporting. However, there is not a single mention of safeguarding the interests of children, or the protection of children from exploitation in the media20. Young
people,
new
targets
for
advertising, http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/en/france_159/label‐france_2554/label‐
france‐issues_2555/label‐france‐no.‐48_3633/multi‐media_3644/young‐people‐new‐targets‐for‐advertising_4846.html 20 See Code of Professional Practice (Code of Ethics) of The Editors Guild of Sri Lanka and Free Media Movement Adopted by the Sri Lanka Press Institute, http://freemediasrilanka.wordpress.com/code‐of‐ethics/ 19
P a g e | 33
Report edited by Sanjana Hattotuwa, Senior Researcher | [email protected] Media monitoring and background research conducted by the Media Unit, Centre for Policy Alternatives For more media studies, please visit http://www.cpalanka.org