Explore the vast range of titles available.

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND False and misleading advertising for drugs can harm consumers and the healthcare system, and previous research has demonstrated that physician-targeted drug advertisements may be misleading. However, there is a dearth of research comparing consumer-targeted drug advertising to evidence to evaluate whether misleading or false information is being presented in these ads. OBJECTIVE To compare claims in consumer-targeted television drug advertising to evidence, in order to evaluate the frequency of false or misleading television drug advertising targeted to consumers. DESIGN A content analysis of a cross-section of television advertisements for prescription and nonprescription drugs aired from 2008 through 2010. We analyzed commercial segments containing prescription and nonprescription drug advertisements randomly selected from the Vanderbilt Television News Archive, a census of national news broadcasts. MAIN MEASURES For each advertisement, the most-emphasized claim in each ad was identified based on claim iteration, mode of communication, duration and placement. This claim was then compared to evidence by trained coders, and categorized as being objectively true, potentially misleading, or false. Potentially misleading claims omitted important information, exaggerated information, made lifestyle associations, or expressed opinions. False claims were factually false or unsubstantiated. KEY RESULTS Of the most emphasized claims in prescription ( n  = 84) and nonprescription ( n  = 84) drug advertisements, 33 % were objectively true, 57 % were potentially misleading and 10 % were false. In prescription drug ads, there were more objectively true claims (43 %) and fewer false claims (2 %) than in nonprescription drug ads (23 % objectively true, 7 % false). There were similar numbers of potentially misleading claims in prescription (55 %) and nonprescription (61 %) drug ads. CONCLUSIONS Potentially misleading claims are prevalent throughout consumer-targeted prescription and nonprescription drug advertising on television. These results are in conflict with proponents who argue the social value of drug advertising is found in informing consumers about drugs.

Digital advertising markets are growing and attracting increased scrutiny. This article explores four market inefficiencies that remain poorly understood: ad effect measurement, frictions between and within advertising channel members, ad blocking, and ad fraud. Although these topics are not unique to digital advertising, each manifests in unique ways in markets for digital ads. The authors identify relevant findings in the academic literature, recent developments in practice, and promising topics for future research.

Drawing from the affect–reason–involvement model, we examine how misleading advertising about the environmental features of products, or greenwashing, affects how consumers perceive ads and brands. Using data from two experimental studies with quota-based samples in the United States (N = 486) and Germany (N = 300), we compare nondeceptive claims with two types of claims often used in greenwashing: vague claims and false claims. We also identify the presence of pleasant nature-evoking images and test for interaction effects with two types of environmental involvement: environmental concern and environmental knowledge. Results indicate that while vague claims do not enhance consumers’ perceived greenwashing regardless of their environmental knowledge or concern, false claims do, which consequently harms consumers’ attitudes toward those ads and brands. In the United States, consumers’ environmental knowledge moderates that effect, whereas all consumers in Germany could identify false claims as attempts at greenwashing. Moreover, associating greenwashing claims with nature-evoking images activates an affective persuasive mechanism that appeals to consumers’ affinity for nature, which not only positively influences their evaluations of ads and brands but also influences their attitudes toward ads and brands more strongly than perceived greenwashing. In closing, we discuss the theoretical and practical implications of these findings.

Misinformation can undermine a well-functioning democracy. For example, public misconceptions about climate change can lead to lowered acceptance of the reality of climate change and lowered support for mitigation policies. This study experimentally explored the impact of misinformation about climate change and tested several pre-emptive interventions designed to reduce the influence of misinformation. We found that false-balance media coverage (giving contrarian views equal voice with climate scientists) lowered perceived consensus overall, although the effect was greater among free-market supporters. Likewise, misinformation that confuses people about the level of scientific agreement regarding anthropogenic global warming (AGW) had a polarizing effect, with free-market supporters reducing their acceptance of AGW and those with low free-market support increasing their acceptance of AGW. However, we found that inoculating messages that (1) explain the flawed argumentation technique used in the misinformation or that (2) highlight the scientific consensus on climate change were effective in neutralizing those adverse effects of misinformation. We recommend that climate communication messages should take into account ways in which scientific content can be distorted, and include pre-emptive inoculation messages.

Native advertising is a new form of online advertising that appears in many settings, such as blogs, social media, and entertainment and news publications. Native ads typically blend with their surrounding context, stem from sources or placements that do not signal advertising, lack overtly persuasive or sales-focused messaging, and have less clear material outcomes. Such characteristics raise ethical concerns because native ads are more difficult for consumers to identify and because they challenge concepts that are central to current deceptive advertising policy. Native advertising is a Federal Trade Commission enforcement priority, and the agency has developed guidelines for this new ad form. However, the unique characteristics of native advertising likely require novel approaches to protect consumers. In this article, the authors trace the evolution of regulation relevant to native advertising. They identify shortcomings and propose remedies that the Federal Trade Commission or industry could adopt to prevent consumer harm, detect infractions, and enforce its regulations. The authors also develop an agenda for future research needed to more fully inform public policy and industry response in this arena.

There is widespread evidence that some firms use false advertising to overstate the value of their products. We consider a model in which a policy maker can punish such false claims. We characterize an equilibrium where false advertising actively influences rational buyers and analyze the effects of policy under different welfare objectives. We establish precise conditions where policy optimally permits a positive level of false advertising and show how these conditions vary intuitively with demand and market parameters. We also consider the implicationsfor product investment and industry self-regulation and connect our results to the literature on demand curvature.

Information Communication Technology (ICT) has had a significant impact on modern trade and commerce in Nigeria. Unfortunately, the impact of digitization and digital technology on commercial transactions has exposed consumers in Nigeria to a variety of issues, most notably consumer dissatisfaction. The phrase ‘what you ordered versus what you got’ has become popular as a result of unfair business practices and phoney advertising. Despite this, the efficacy of existing laws to safeguard consumers in Nigerian e-commerce transactions has now been called into question, as they continue to be subjected to unfair trade practices and deceptive advertising with limited legal recourse. As a result, this paper analyses the existing legislation in Nigeria that safeguards consumers’ rights and interests in e-commerce transactions. To achieve this aim, this paper adopts the doctrinal research methodology and finds that the extant laws for the protection of consumers in e-commerce transactions in Nigeria are outdated and not adequate to prevent exploitation and unfair trade practices. Consequently, it argues that there is an urgent need for the amendment of the existing laws to protect the rights of consumers in e-commerce transactions. E-commerce, consumer satisfaction, consumer protection law, Nigerian laws, consumer dissatisfaction, commercial law

Prototypical instances of disinformation include deceptive advertising (in business and in politics), government propaganda, doctored photographs, forged documents, fake maps, internet frauds, fake websites, and manipulated Wikipedia entries. Disinformation can cause significant harm if people are misled by it. In order to address this critical threat to information quality, we first need to understand exactly what disinformation is. This paper surveys the various analyses of this concept that have been proposed by information scientists and philosophers (most notably, Luciano Floridi). It argues that these analyses are either too broad (that is, that they include things that are not disinformation), or too narrow (they exclude things that are disinformation), or both. Indeed, several of these analyses exclude important forms of disinformation, such as true disinformation, visual disinformation, side-effect disinformation, and adaptive disinformation. After considering the shortcomings of these analyses, the paper argues that disinformation is misleading information that has the function of misleading. Finally, in addition to responding to Floridi’s claim that such a precise analysis of disinformation is not necessary, it briefly discusses how this analysis can help us develop techniques for detecting disinformation and policies for deterring its spread.

The authors show that deceptive advertising engenders distrust, which negatively affects people's responses to subsequent advertising from both the same source and second-party sources. This negative bias operates through a process of defensive stereotyping, in which the initial deception induces negative beliefs about advertising and marketing in general, thus undermining the credibility of further advertising.

Consumers cannot verify green attributes directly and must rely on such signals as eco-labels to authenticate claims. Using signaling theory, this study explored which aspects of eco-label design yield more positive effects. The study uses a 2 (argument specificity: specific versus general) × 2 (label source: government versus corporate) × 2 (product involvement: low versus high) experimental design (n = 233). Specific arguments consistently yield greater eco-label trust and positive attitudes toward the product and label source, but only with low-involvement products is source important, with corporate labels yielding more positive attitudes. Findings are discussed in terms of theoretical and managerial implications.