It’s a good thing that advertising is being held to higher standards of accountability by regulators when it comes to important issues around energy and the environment. There’s no longer blind faith in science and engineering to solve these challenges within the dynamics of the marketplace, nor are ordinary folks prepared to turn a blind eye to the suave rhetoric of advertising that might previously have passed without interrogation..
It’s not only regulators stepping up, Joe Public is finding his voice and others are listening. I saw research recently from the UK which explained that on matters of the environment, friends and family were the most influential source of information, work colleagues came next while the influence of governments and newspapers had declined, so too the Church and advertising. Outside of “people like me”, the only group whose influence on these matters had gone up in recent years was the Royal family. Almost makes your taxes worthwhile doesn’t it?
