Armand Mattelart Michael Palmer

Shaping the European Advertising Scene. Commercial free speech in search of legitimacy
In: Rseaux, 1993, volume 1 n1. pp. 9-26.

Abstract Summary: Ever since American advertisers first banded together early this century to deflect criticism with a code of conduct based on 'truth' and fair competition, the industry has been seeking legitimacy by creating first national, then multinational and finally worldwide associations to defend its activities and influence the environment in which it operates. Now marketing standards have penetrated widely diverse fields of activity and the economy as a whole. The forces underlying the new, pervasive advertising are helping to transform an area of culture which is already transcending national boundaries.

Citer ce document / Cite this document : Mattelart Armand, Palmer Michael. Shaping the European Advertising Scene. Commercial free speech in search of legitimacy. In: Rseaux, 1993, volume 1 n1. pp. 9-26. http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/reso_0969-9864_1993_num_1_1_3268

SHAPING THE EUROPEAN ADVERTISING SCENE Commercial legitimacy free speech in search of

Armand MATTELART and Michael PALMER

Summary: Ever since American advertisers first banded together early this century to deflect criticism with a code of conduct based on 'truth' and fair competition, the industry has been seeking legitimacy by creating first national, then multinational and finally worldwide associations to defend its activities and influence the environment in which it operates. Now marketing standards have penetrated widely diverse fields of activity and the economy as a whole. The forces underlying the new, pervasive advertising are helping to transform an area of culture which is already transcending national boundaries.

SHAPING THE EUROPEAN ADVERTISING SCENE

SHAPING THE EUROPEAN ADVERTISING SCENE

Commercial search of legitimacy free speech in

During the 1980s this expert's wishes were largely fulfilled. A joint European awareness was forged in response to the 'attacks' and its strategic follow-through was the formation or strengthening of (inter)professional organizations (agenc ies,advertisers and media) on an inter national scale. In all forums of debate or decision-making concerning the future shape of transnational audiovisual sys tems these cohesive corporate networks have come to the defence of the common interests of those involved in the advertis ing industry and have promoted their concept of the new communications land scape and their particular world view. The ideological function - to call a spade a spade - has been performed by the industry's spokesmen in a context in which one of the main challenges has turned out to be the redistribution of power between the state and commercial companies, between the standard of publ ic service and the public interest and that of private interests, between the state and the market, between the nation-state and the international community. It is a con text in which a new balance is being sought between rules laid down by the public authorities and self-regulation. It is precisely within this frame of reference that the representative bodies of the ad vertising industry have produced a r esponse to what they saw as the 'regulatory threat'. The increasingly evident political role of private players has been highlighted in a period of tension and confrontation. An indication of this is the repeated claim by lobbyists for the advertising industry that 'commercial free speech' falls within the remit of Article 10 of the European Con vention on Human Rights, Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. In short, the industry is seeking the same rights for 'commercial free speech' as for any other: 'Commercial speech is no less

Armand MATTELART and Michael PALMER

European advertisers must defend their industry ... Given the fact that the nature of such attacks is political and not professional one generally is forced into political dia logue, invariably in defence of the freedom for the manufacturer to market and ad vertise his products - it is not hard to see why creative advertising minds usually have little interest in and even less time to marshal a defence' (Rijkens, 1979). These statements were made in 1979 by R. Rijkens of the Netherlands, who at the time was a member of the international board of the American advertising agency Lintas, a former chairman of the Euro pean Association of Advertising Agencies (EAAA) and European area director of the International Advertising Association (IAA).

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free speech than Journalistic speech or political speech (Clark, 1988). This per version of the original purpose of the struggle for free speech has occasionally provoked resistance - in the Netherlands in 1981, for instance. Yet the industry's 'redefinition' of the term is increasingly accepted.

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In 1924, during the Great Empire Exhibi tion in London, the American advertising clubs held their first international meeti ng, organized by their British affiliate. Several resolutions were adopted on codes of professional ethics and a year later the British club transformed itself into the Advertising Association, grouping agencies, advertisers and media. The United States was at this time in the throes of the adoption of Taylorian massThe code production and management methods, The bedrock of self-regulation in any which has been well analysed by the his branch of industry or commerce is the torian Stuart Ewen (1983). This was the establishment of a set of rules or code of period when consumption was emerging conduct which its members agree to ob as 'the natural experience of democracy', serve. Any infringement is punished by an and when monitoring began, with the checking of the flow of goods, then of sales internal disciplinary tribunal. targets. The inter-War period also saw the The advertising industry, as spokesman development of the first international ad for the commercial sector, was soon vertising networks, mainly set up by caught in a crossfire of controversy. The American and British agencies. In 1937 establishment of the first codes of con the International Chamber of Commerce duct became bound up with the search promulgated its first code of advertising for a legitimacy that would enable adver practice: such codes stressed broad prin tising to dispel the tenacious image of ciples rather than detailed guidelines. But charlatanism. The industry's first steps for the profession the merit of the ICC towards self-regulation were also the first code lay in its function as a point of steps towards professional standards. reference for the national codes that were The initial attempt at self-regulation was being drafted at this time. made in Britain at the end of the nine In the period when the consumer move teenth century. Worried by criticism of ment was at its most radical, the British the posters for many touring theatrical advertising industry occupied a central troupes and fearful of parliamentary in role in mobilizing resistance. In 1961 it terference, billboard companies set up a revamped its self-regulatory and discipl censorship committee. The debate cen inary system from top to bottom (for media tred on 'bad taste', morality, social con other than radio and television: commerc ventions and religious beliefs. In America ial broadcasters were accountable to an these questions were discussed between independent public authority). This sys 1900 and 1917 by the advertising indust tem was to serve as a model. The United ry's first national organization, the Asso States followed suit ten years later. In the ciated Advertising Clubs of America. The 1960s and early 1970s a wide range of profession's first code of conduct emerged countries adopted advertising codes or in 1914. It was concerned mainly with 'truth' and fair competition. The pro modified existing regulations. fession claimed symbolic legitimation of The history of self-regulation clearly its practices by reference to its responsib varies, within each separate context, ac cording to the tradition of greater or lesser ility to the public, even assuming the image of a 'public service* (Schultze, state control and the advertising indust 1981). ry's differing relationships with the

SHAPING THE EUROPEAN ADVERTISING SCENE

various components of society - the com munity of citizen-consumers. One reason for the pride of place occupied by the self-regulatory standard in Britain is that country's long tradition of common law as the source of legal authority. It is evident, on the other hand, that the strong in fluence of an interventionist Jacobin state in France has rather stifled the full oper ation of this principle. As French co nsumer affairs minister Christiane Scrivener (1979) observed in her official 1978 report on advertising regulation: The notion of self-discipline is still all too often foreign to the thought patterns of French industry and commerce, where the job of regulation and supervision has been carried out by the state until re cently'. At the end of the 1970s the notion of self-regulatory codes of conduct began to spread from the advertising industry to other sectors and the experience of adver tising in this field was held up as an example for others. Witness this stat ement by the director of the French ofllce for monitoring advertising (BVP) during a conference in 1986: 'At a time when a widespread wave of public opinion is building up on themes such as 'Govern ment is too big', Tes to deregulation' and 'Free the economy', the BVP (grouping advertisers, agencies and various media) thinks it would be advisable to seek the opinions of other social and economic bodies on the question of self-regulation and whether it would be desirable at the present time to give it a bigger role in our society' (Bouis, 1986). But well before then self-regulation was already being discussed throughout the world. The global challenge 'A global challenge needs a global re sponse' declared the International Advert ising Association in a white paper, The

Global Challenge to Advertising, publish ed in 1973. This was the first manifesto laying down the broad outlines of a strategy to counter criticism from govern ments and consumer movements. The IAA, founded in 1938, is the only associ ationbringing together the leaders of ad vertising, marketing and the media at world level. Its headquarters are in New York but three-quarters of its members, from 76 countries, are not American. At the beginning of the decade dis cussions at UNESCO in Paris and at United Nations headquarters in New York considered the need to regulate direct broadcasting satellite transmissions (and the transmissions of remote sensing sate llites). These questions were put on the agenda by the Third World countries and the Soviet delegation. They were pursued at UNESCO under the banner of the 'New World Information and Communication Order' (NWICO) until political disagre ementson the subject prompted the United States and Britain to leave the organization. Various explanations have been given for the advertising industry's decision to throw its hat into the ring. Many ob servers think the advertisers reacted to the campaigns by non-governmental o rganizations against the marketing strategies used by agribusiness com panies such as Nestl to sell their pow dered-milk baby food in Third World countries, and that the last straw was the decision by the World Health Organizat ion (WHO) to lay down codes of conduct for these firms. This interpretation is probably the most plausible and is corro borated by statements of top officiais of the IAA. WHO support in 1980 of con sumer groups' disquiet about the market ing of breast-milk substitutes was a watershed. After their success against in fant formula-food, the consumer move ments turned their attention to pharmaceutical products and junk food. An IAA official reacted: The consumer

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It took more than three years to reach this definition of a sector that was hardly in But the process was also accelerated by good odour in Brussels. This small para developments in Europe. graph had only one purpose: to legitimize the industry. To gauge its importance it August 1978 saw the first victory of the should be pointed out that in the late nascent ad industry alliance in connect sixties and early seventies the Com ion with a European Community initia munity authorities shared the views of the tive. The embryonic interprofessional consumer movements. Alongside the EC's grouping included the European Associ actions, the Council of Europe included ation of Advertising Agencies (EAAA), the the question of consumer protection in its International Union of Advertisers Asso 1967/68 programme and promulgated a ciations (IUAA), the various European consumer charter in 1973. Two years members of the International Federation later the EC competition directorate of Newspaper Publishers, the Interna (DG3) was ordered to draw up a directive tional Federation of the Periodical Press on misleading and unfair advertising as and the European Group for Television part of the Community's consumer Advertising. These bodies managed to en defence policy launched in the late sixties. sure that the following paragraph was The economic role of advertising was rec included in the preamble to the Explanat ognized in the framing of this policy. ory Memorandum of the EC's philosophy on advertising and marketing: 'Advertis This draft directive set out a detailed list ing is an integral part of the system of of the products and services for which the mass production and distribution serving EC intended to harmonize Community the general public. Manufacturers of legislation. What set the cat among the goods and providers of services need the pigeons were two items concerning mis opportunity to inform and remind the leading and unfair advertising. One pro public of what they have to offer. Such a posed giving individuals or associations system of information is useful to the affected by such illicit practices 'rapid and economics of production. Consumers effective means of taking legal action*. The need information on goods and services other defined 'associations of legitimate so that they can make their choice be interest', to which the Community gave a priority right of remedy at law. The adver tween the many alternatives. Advertising has the additional effect of stabilizing em tising industry representatives objected ployment by ensuring the steady disposal that in practice this meant giving pref of production; it provides the basis for erential treatment to consumer associ competition in the marketplace and en ations which, they claimed, did not always represent the attitudes and intercourages product development and 14 * Quoted by Clark, 1988, p. 142.

groups are organizing. These people are the most rabid of consumers. Now they're talking about 'junk' food. Who is going to say what is 'junk' food? But they want to crazy.'* write codes. They are The agr ibusiness advertisers' reply to these at tacks was to counter the international community's codes by quickly cobbling together their own professional code of ethics; these were less restrictive than the code adopted by the WHO - with one dissenting vote, that of the United States.

vation and the provision of low-cost goods and services previously regarded as too expensive for the market. In addition, advertising makes a vital contribution t owards the cost of media.' (More than one advertising economist would be startled by the peremptory tone of many of these assertions, given the uncertainty that hangs over knowledge in this field (Henry, 1988). But this is not the issue here.)

SHAPING THE EUROPEAN ADVERTISING SCENE

ests of real-life consumers but those att itudes and interests that the associations considered consumers 'ought to' have (Rijkens & Miracle, 1986). Another dis puted point was the definition of 'mislead ing and unfair advertising' as 'that which omits material information'. The EAAA had this comment on the about-turn by Brussels: This change of attitudes went against the grain. But it happened. Gradually, the Commission came to the conclusion that a positive dialogue with the industry might help its cause. Does this mean that everything in the garden is lovely? Far from it. There is still a long list of items in the draft propo sal on misleading and unfair advertising that act against our interests' (Rijkens, 1978). (In the event, the advertising direc tivewas approved by the Council of Mini sters only in September 1984). In 1979 the International Advertising As sociation (IAA) got involved in the machin ery of the European Community. The trade press noted that another sign of the growing role of the IAA was its appoint ment as an official consultative body by the EC Commission services charged with drafting marketing and advertising legis lation {Advertising Age, 1979). In the same year the IAA organized a conference in Brussels on public service advertising. (It staged a similar event in 1983 and was invited by the EC to give advice on its public communications policy!). In 1980 the different sectors of the Euro pean advertising industry drew the lesson from this first trial of strength with the Community authorities and founded the European Advertising Tripartite (EAT). Players on the self-regulation scene There were two driving forces behind the setting up of the EAT: the agencies, through the European Association of

vertising Agencies (EAAA), and the advert isers, represented by the International Union of Advertisers Associations (IUAA), which was later renamed the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA). The offi cials of these two organizations - both based in Brussels - were the first to join forces in criticism of the draft directive on misleading and unfair advertising. The idea of a united front was encouraged by the Commission itself which, from 1975, let the various trade bodies know that it would prefer to deal with one organization rather than with a great variety of repre sentatives of sectional interests. The early successes of this team attracted a third member: the associations representing the advertising interests of the mass media. So from the start the WFA was joined by the Community of Associations of EC Newspaper Publishers (CAEJ) - itself part of a wider federation, the FIEJ - publish ing a total of 66 million copies and emplo ying 250,000 workers; the Federation of Associations of EC Periodical Publishers (FIPP); the European Group of Television Advertising (EGTA); and the Advertising Information Group (AIG). AIG acts as a liaison between the representatives of the different EC and non-EC national advert ising bodies; unofficially it groups the tripartite national authorities and those responsible for seeing that the principles of self-regulation and internal discipline are applied. Other partners later joined the EAT: the European Federation of Out door Advertising (FEPE) in 1983 and, two years later, the European Direct Marketi ng Association (EDMA). In 1984 the IAA acquired observer status. Bolstered by its motto and publicity slo gan 'An alliance for action', the EAT set out from the start to be the sole spokes man for all advertising interests on the European level. It was to act to defend the industry's common interests in the Euro pean institutions. The IAA, by contrast, shouldered the worldwide burden. The

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Nestl, Bristol-Myers, Unilever, L'Oral, Renault, Philips, etc. Its worldwide scope means that Europe is only one of its fields of action. In recent years this has led the WFA to be extremely active not only in the European institutions but also in such diverse countries as Brazil, Costa Rica, Singapore, New Zealand and Canada where it backed advertisers in their fight to prevent passage of a bill to ban tobacco and alcohol advertising - plus providing logistical support in Italy and the United States to block taxation on advertising, among other things. Its strike force: 'a worldwide network representing more than 170 billion dollars of annual adver-

The EAAA (European Association of Ad vertising Agencies) is on the other hand concerned only with Europe. It was founded in Oslo in 1959 on the initiative of the Scandinavian, French, German and British ad agencies. Ten years later its structure had changed. It included both There is no doubt that it was the bodies representatives of the multinational agenc ies grouped in Munare (multinational representing advertising agencies that were the first to understand the need for agency representation) and delegates of the tripartite alliance and were the quic the national agencies in the Nore (na kest to take steps to assemble it. Which tional organization representation) is not to detract from the importance of grouping. Among the transnational memb the work undertaken by the advertisers ers were Publicis, Havas, Saatchi & themselves. Saatchi, J. Walter Thompson, Young & Rubicam, etc. - the cream of the ad net As its name indicates, the WFA has a works interlacing Europe. About 1 5 count worldwide mission, which it has stressed ries were represented at the level of since 1984. Previously it defined itself national agencies. When the EAT was set mainly as a collection of national associ up in 1980 the EAAA housed its secretar ations. It was set up in 1953 by adver iat and became one of its most active tisers in Belgium, France, Italy and lobbyists. In its own words, the EAAA Sweden. Current membership is drawn draws its legitimacy from the fact that its from more than 50 countries. All major member agencies - 1500 out of 7000 advertisers belong to the federation, whose various committees and com account for more than half the European advertising market. missions include representatives from

EAT stated that it would represent the common interests of the advertising busi ness at the European level, keep its memb ers informed about developments relevant to the advertising community arising from the European institutions, contribute to European debate on advert ising matters, support the development of better practices for advertising in Eu rope, and ensure that European advertis ing interests were taken into consideration by those bodies which af fect advertising and industry at the global level (for example at the United Nations).

tising investment' (World Federation of Advertisers, 1989). An appeal for freedom of speech and choice

Officially recognized by the EC and granted the status of non-governmental organization by the Council of Europe, the EAAA offers its observations on all subjects concerning advertising and fo rmulates amendments before parliamen tary debate. A 1986 internal bulletin described its lobbying activities in this way: 4At the meeting of health ministers in 1981, advertising was one of the few industries to be present. The result has been, and continues to be, to avoid or limit the impact of legislation. We do not think it wise to boast about our lobbying work, since this could compromise future suc cess by embarrassing our friends. Moles

SHAPING THE EUROPEAN ADVERTISING SCENE

are a protected species. But a couple of examples show that the EAAA's lobbying work has been and continues to be timely, accurate and effective/ One such case was a proposal before the Council of Eu rope to ban 'all' advertising for 'all' tobacco and 'all' alcohol products. It was softened - 'thanks to vigorous action by EAA' - to a motion referring to limitation only. Simi lar amendments were achieved for advertising of pharmaceutical and food products and advertising targeted at children. The association's guiding principle is the defence of commercial free speech. 'EAT and EAAA are continuously involved in the defence of freedom of expression and freedom of choice, working to counteract the effects of UNESCO's McBride report, for example, and working to ensure rec ognition by governments that manufact urers shall be free to sell their products to consumers who are free to choose' (European Association of Advertising Agents, 1986). This declaration of faith is repeated unfailingly in all documents published by the organizations. Similarly, the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) repeats this refrain in its annual reports: 'We must keep proclaiming that commerc ial free speech and the freedom to advert ise constitute advertisers' rights, just as consumers have the right to choose what they buy'. The EAAA, an organization that militates for self-regulation, produces hard-hitting sales pitches to counter those who criticize the role played by advertising in society. The following is taken from its bulletins for members: 'Some of our weaker brethren feel that they have to apologize for advertising; for its role in the economy and in society. This is not our attitude. We recognize that there are powerful forces at work that would de stroy our market economies by placing the supply of goods and services under state control. Attacks on free enterprise may be blatantly Marxist, or they may be

more subtle; insidiously exploiting the ge nuine concerns of consumer movements, addressing highly emotive subjects like advertising to children in order to stab at the soft underbelly of our market econ omy. Whatever its form, an attack on free enterprise is an attack on freedom of speech and freedom of choice. The loss of a battle can cost us a whole market. Consider for a moment that the advertis ing market for alcoholic beverages in Ger many last year was worth DM500 million.' The leitmotiv, opposition to any measure intended to restrict advertising markets, media and earnings. There is no reason why a product that can be sold legally should not be advertised. Such bans are 'too often a hypocritical subterfuge to sat isfy activist groups without jeopardizing substantial tax revenues. Restrictions on what can be said, and requirements about what must be said in advertising, encroach on its ability to sell.' Another line of argument is an attack on the regul ator, who is seen as having too strong a tendency to act in this way to control generic advertising - advertising that pro motes whole classes of products, goods and services such as food, tobacco, banks, alcohol, toys or Pharmaceuticals, or is aimed at a specific audience, such as children. 'At EAA we do everything possible to advocate and promote free enterprise, freedom of speech and fre edom of choice. Widening the choices avail able to the consumer. Providing advertisers with new ways of reaching a given target public. Helping to contain media costs by encouraging competition. We support and encourage advertising, by government, by municipalities, by re tailers, by the professions. It all helps to enlarge the cake which is being nibbled at by Marxist mice.' In this witch-hunt of anything that moves, politicians are also hauled over the coals: "We have come a long way since the times of the mountebank and hucks ter whose aims were trickery and fraud.

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We can claim today to be far more disci journalism. It is absurd to criticize adver plined as a profession, exercising far tising for not doing what it is not sup posed to do!' greater respect for the public's intel ligence than many politicians in this world, who certainly do not always advert 'Breaks' versus 'Blocks' ise in a way that is decent, honest and truthful (as laid down in the code of con The most important confrontations over duct of the International Chamber of the future of European advertising came Commerce).' in the 1980s in the debating chambers The EAAA also assails the prejudices and corridors of the EC and the Council which, it claims, prevent dialogue and a of Europe. The EC proposed to issue a correct perception of its image: 'Advertis directive, the Council of Europe to draft a ing reflects rather than conditions so convention: both were intended to lay the ciety. But there is a tendency in the halls foundations of a European audiovisual of the Council of Europe to view advertis area through regulation of 'cross-border ing as a manipulator of culture. With television'. Advertising was one of three rising unemployment and falling product chapter-headings in these projects, ion in Europe, it is less plausible now to alongside programme quotas and copy right/neighbouring rights. The main argue against the economic role of advert ising; it is becoming fashionable, instead, areas for regulation of advertising were to accuse advertising of polluting the souL defined as: separation of advertising and We must try to correct this error/ programmes; sponsorship; targeting the audience in the receiving country; adver Another confusion pointed out by the tising quotas; advertising of certain pro EAAA consists in thinking of advertising ducts (tobacco, alcohol, medicines) and as an information service aimed at edu those aimed at certain target groups cating consumers. There is obviously (children and youth). widespread misunderstanding of what advertising is and does. We know that Both the directive and the convention consumers do not make artificial divi went through many versions. In France the battle over imposing a quota for Eu sions between needs and wants, between ropean programmes - in the name of pro rational and emotional satisfactions. We know that successful advertising appeals tecting cultural identity - hit the both to the head and to the heart and that headlines. Less attention was paid, in consumers are concerned with the total France, to another clash, known to Brit message: with that mixture of attributes ishadvertisers as breaks versus blocks. that makes one brand more appropriate The matter at issue was that some count than another. They are concerned with ries restrict advertising spots to specific results: with benefits, not things. But times during the day, outside the pro there are thousands of influential people grammes, and others allow television ad out there who have no such perception of vertising in the natural breaks that occur during the programmes as well as be advertising. They muddle advertising with tween them. Advertisers do not like the other forms of communication: informat ion, entertainment and instruction. system of block advertising: it cramps their room for manoeuvre, distorts the Curiously enough, though they recognize that entertainment does not have to be television ad market and reduces the im packed with information, and though pact of the spots. For example, in the they defend editorial information from Netherlands until 1989 an advertiser was allowed a maximum of only two spots a commercial encroachments, they fail to see that advertising is salesmanship, not week; a television campaign was therefore

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limited to between 50 and 100 spots a year. And the ads were all grouped before or after the news bulletins. Advertisers could not choose when their message would be delivered and had to accept their allotted screening time. The profession was particularly annoyed by Article 14 of the draft convention on cross-border television, covering advertis ing breaks. The article provided for one break per feature film, one break every 45 minutes in made-for-television films, ser ials and documentaries of more than 45 minutes' duration, current-affairs magaz ines, religious programmes and child ren's programmes of less than 30 minutes. The profession was worried about a possible 'domino effect' given the close link between these discussions, ap parently concerning only transnational television, and measures that might be taken by national authorities relying on the precedent set by a supranational authority. The British made the first move in the summer of 1986, when work was started on drawing up the convention. Working with the EAT, Britain's Advertising Asso ciation - which since the founding of the Tripartite has lent it many experts - con tacted the Independent Television Associ ation (ITVA) grouping the country's commercial TV and radio companies. The three partners decided to give the London office of the American agency Young & Rubicam the job of co-ordinating their campaign against Article 14. Britain was then the biggest advertising market (i ncluding television) in Europe and the third in the world after the United States and Japan. It represented about 24 per cent of European advertising investment, against 20 per cent for the former West Germany, 16 per cent for France, 15 per cent for Italy and 1 1 per cent for Spain. Moreover, London is home to the head quarters of the biggest companies - satel litetelevision networks, advertisers and agencies - capable of creating pan- and

trans-European advertising spots. The British were therefore worried about the effect such regulation could have on both their national television system and the 'continental' industry. A symbolic pr ogramme was the half-hour News at Ten, interrupted by a mid-programme break commanding some of the highest ad rates in commercial television. Article 1 4 would have meant simply putting an end to this ad slot. The drafting of the article favoured those countries with block advertising, such as West Germany, which allowed only 20 minutes a day of adverts on its public channel, and even they had to be screened before 8 p.m. The clause was proposed by West Germany, backed by Belgium, Greece, Portugal and the Netherlands; France and Italy abstained from the drafting. Those who wanted the article to be completely rewritten there fore had to convince European authorities and representatives of the harmful nature of the proposed regulation: instead of short but relatively frequent breaks (last ing between 2Vfc and 3 minutes), account ing for up to 20 per cent of screen time and averaging 15 per cent, the threat hanging over all advertisers was a changeover to less frequent and longer 'tunnels' of 10 to 12 minutes. So the EAT, the Advertising Association and the IPA (Institute of Practitioners in Advertising, which groups British advert ising agencies) bent their research skills to the task of constructing a sales pitch that could win over their adversaries. Simulations were run: if the article were enacted, TF1, the main French commerc ial channel, would lose 22.4 per cent of its revenues, Britain's ITV and Channel Four 17.4 per cent, and so on. They quoted the case of a multinational com pany advertising heavily on television in several European countries that would sell 43 per cent less in a country with block advertising than in one with natural breaks. British commercial television

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Armand MATTELARTand Michael PALMER

would lose 5 per cent of its advertising time and 6 per cent of its audience, rising to 1 2 per cent and 1 8 per cent respectively at peak viewing times. As autumn 1988 drew near - the date of the Council of Europe's Stockholm meet ing at which the convention was to be ready for signature - the lobbyists stepped up their campaign of persuasion. In July 1 988 they haunted the antechamb ers of the Home Office (Britain's interior ministry), which was responsible for tel evision and radio, hammering home the imperative need to persuade the Council to vote for a clause modelled on the British advertising regulations. At that time only Ireland, Luxembourg and Spain openly supported the British position. It was then that the leaders of the EAT, the WFA and the EAAA decided to increase their pressure on the advertisers and television networks to induce them in turn to lobby their countries' ministers for trade or broadcasting, or their equivalents. Attention was still centred on Article 14, which by dint of amendments had become Article 15. At the end of August 1988 the Advertising Association and the EAT reached a conclusion: The following shows the national voting pattern as cur rently indicated and demonstrates the need to infuence floating voters at this final stage,' they wrote in a document reviewing friends and foes: this was circu lated to big advertisers such as ColgatePalmolive, Mars, Kelloggs, United Distillers and Unilever. It contained the following lists: staunch supporters of the convention - Austria, Belgium, Liechtens tein, Netherlands, Switzerland and West Germany; open backers of a compromise - Cyprus, France, Portugal and Turkey; neutral - Denmark, Greece, Iceland and Norway; outright opponents of the draft: Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Spain and the United Kingdom. In September 1988 Mars, Kelloggs and Heinz commiss ionedthe American consultants Booz, Allen & Hamilton - which Britain's Prime 20

Minister Margaret Thatcher had already used to justify her TV deregulation bill to produce a study on the impact of the proposed new European legislation on ad vertising, and in particular its effect on the programme production industry. In Strasbourg the British ambassador, Colin McLean, was briefed by the Advertising Association. The two senior British mini sters handling the subject paid visits in September to their colleagues from the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Belgium, West Germany, France and Switzerland. At the Stockholm meeting in November the British broadcasting minister, T imothy Renton, succeeded in imposing his views and those of the British ad agencies, advertisers and commercial television networks. The British cleverly induced the Germans to agree to a surprise amendment. To compensate for ceilings on advertising time (15 per cent averaged over total screen time and 20 per cent maximum in any one hour), which were strenuously denounced by the EAT and its allies, the British proposal authorized increasing the number of breaks, espe cially in films and television films (three breaks in a full-length feature film of 1 10 minutes). In the March/April 1989 issue of its maga zine International Advertiser, launched in 1988, the IAA listed the bodies that had contributed to the success of this lobby ing effort: the EAAA, the EAT, the EGTA, the IAA, the WFA, with a special mention for the AA and ITVA of Britain and the representative of the West German ad agencies, Werbeagenturen. It concluded: This has shown the economic importance of advertising. Success was achieved be cause the end-result was a compromise favourable to the industry.' The favourable compromises The convention was approved in March 1989 by 16 votes in favour, 4 abstentions

SHAPING THE EUROPEAN ADVERTISING SCENE

(Belgium, Denmark, France and Turkey) and 2 not present (Malta and Iceland). In October of that year the European Com munity approved its directive which, des pite much discussion and amendments by the European Parliament in 1988, in effect adopted the terms of the convent ion. Only Belgium and Denmark voted against. What are the compromises that the representatives of the advertising in dustry regarded as 'favourable'? Let us look at the assessment made by the WFA in October 1989, after approval of the directive (World Federation ofAdvertisers, 1989). As regards principles, the directive refers to freedom of speech 'as laid down in Article 10, paragraph 1 of the Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Free doms.' The receiving member state monit orsbut may not impose; it is therefore the principle of the country from which the programme is broadcast which pre vails. Concerning quotas for programmes of European origin, the WFA took the position that there should be none. The formula adopted by Brussels does not lay down a precise percentage but speaks of a 'majority proportion' of European pro ductions 'whenever possible*. On spon sorship, the WFA said it was completely satisfied: 'the directive is in line with our proposals.'

replaced by 'guidelines'. The WFA wanted no reference to times or days when advert ising could be broadcast and won its case, as this section was cut from the version on which the vote was taken. As to the volume of advertising allowed, the WFA opposed any quota, but the directive plumped for the formula of 15-20%. The WFA Annual Report for 1989 ment ioned another positive aspect of the di rective: it would influence developments in other parts of the world (World Feder ationofAdvertisers ,1990). Another proof, if one were needed, of the position that Europe has achieved as a full-scale labor atory for building the big free-trade zones of the next decade and beyond.

The struggle continues now on other batt lefields. In February 1990 the EAT said it was prepared to go to the European Court of Justice if a draft directive were approved tightening the regulations on press or poster advertising for tobacco television and radio ads were already covered by the cross-border directive. As part of its severe anti-cancer campaign the European Parliament wanted a total ban on tobacco advertising throughout Europe and also proposed banning indi rect advertising, on cigarette lighters or matches for example, plus sponsorship of sporting events including Formula One motor racing. Once again the leaders of as such, the bal the Tripartite claimed that this measure Concerning advertising ance sheet, while positive overall, was would mean 'the end of free speech*. more qualified: the system of natural Going one step further - and showing to breaks won the day, but where the WFA what an extent this catch-all argument demanded breaks every 40 minutes, the has been embraced by many admen Jacques Sguela appealed in the press for gap was set at 45 minutes; the WFA sought no restrictions at all on cigarette all those who saw the tobacco advertising ban as an 'attack on free speech' to make and tobacco advertising, but the EC did not give way; for alcohol, the WFA pro their views known to the Strasbourg Par posed 'guidelines' and not rules, but ob liament. Tomorrow, in Europe, certain tained 'criteria' because 'guidelines' was products will perhaps lose the freedom to thought difficult to translate into other communicate. Tomorrow, in Europe, con languages; although the WFA wanted the sumers will perhaps lose freedom of terms *youth' and 'children' removed they choice. Every prohibition is a wound for freedom,' the adman declared. The claim were retained, but the directive adopted the term 'minors' and the term 'rules' was drew a stinging reply from public health

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Armand MATTELARTand Michael PALMER

doms as everyone else in today's society' experts in a report for the French health ministry on alcohol and tobacco con (de Win, 1989). sumption: 'Ad men use the technique of But the fine unanimity which was unwarranted association of ideas, con flaunted when stigmatizing the enemies founding the tool and its use, going so far of freedom and offering mutual congratul as to say that laying a finger on advertis ations over favourable compromises, was ing is tantamount to attacking freedom of no longer so evident in settling the inter speech, and is a scenario that leads to nalaffairs of the interprofessional al Nazism. It is not endangering advertising liances. In 1989 the World Federation of to ask it to keep out of an exceptionally Advertisers complained that the repre serious social problem' (Nau, 1990). sentatives of the agencies had gained too much influence in the EAT. It therefore Be that as it may, the crusaders for com proposed a new structure for the Tripart mercial freedom of speech have lost none ite so as to ensure its 'full legal, financial of their pugnacity. The upheavals in East and logistic independence'. It called for ernEurope lent them wings, as is ev the EAAA and the EAT to establish separ idenced by remarks in the December 1989 ate headquarters. In December of that of the World Federation of Advertising year the WFA succeeded for the first time newsletter, reflecting the thinking of its in having a representative of the adver tisers - from Procter & Gamble, the president: 'During the last few weeks one world's biggest agency - named president word, more than any other, has domi nated TV screens, the front pages of the of the EAT. All of this suggests that a press and radio news programmes lthough the industry's interests join forces throughout the world. That word is 'Fre to fight off the 'regulatory threat', they go edom' ... It is indeed this basic freedom that their separate ways on many other quest has motivated the popular uprisings that ions. have changed, almost overnight, the whole political framework of Eastern Eur The missing link ope... But there is, in the minds of some people, one freedom that is not sacred Do the debates over the past decade in the namely, the freedom to advertise ... To supranational European bodies indicate single out the freedom to advertise a spec new forms (or areas) of intervention? Have ific product is to strike at the very core new counter- strategies appeared, new of accepted human rights and freedoms players emerged? since it denies people ... the right "to hold opinions without interference and to seek, The first part of the reply is as follows. In receive and impart information and ideas order to answer these questions satisfact it has first to be acknowledged that through any media regardless of fron orily, tiers" (Article 19 of the Universal Declara within the Community there is real tion of Human Rights) ... This kind of under-representation of the so-called ter censorship and restriction is just what tiary sector - of non-governmental bodies the people of Eastern Europe have been representing users, consumers, and citizens' rights activists. Indeed, in 1989 seeking, successfully, to escape from. Thus, if advertisers do not wish to see a crisis revealed the need to diversify the their rights eroded, they - like the people representation of such European associ of Eastern Europe - must beat on the ations. Moreover, those bodies repre walls of bureaucracy and insist upon senting the public which already have full being accorded the same democratic freeaccreditation have been keeping a rather low profile. 22

SHAPING THE EUROPEAN ADVERTISING SCENE

As far as advertising is concerned, things got off to a very bad start. The repre sentatives of consumer associations, in the early 1960s, had the wind in their sails and were backed by Community authorities. They set up the European Bureau of Consumer Unions (BEUC) in 1962 with the avowed aim of representing and defending the interests of consumers in discussions with the Commission. But they were quickly overtaken by events when discussion of the directive on mis leading and unfair advertising led into discussion of the directive on cross-bor der television. The sheer scale of the stakes involved went far beyond a Maginot Line centred on the 'truthfulness' of advertisements. The functional concept of advertising as information - which was such an effective prop for the consumer movements in Britain and the United States in the early stages - together with the absence of serious consideration of the commercial logic that characterizes modern advertising and marketing, de layed realization of the Hydra-headed na ture of the beast. This universality was soon perceived and appropriated by the advertising industry and its repre sentatives, and led to their corporative reorganization on an international scale. Compared with the thorough Job done by the advertising lobbyists, the slim files produced by the BEUC carried little weight - especially as the consumers often used the same consultants as their opponents to explain their points. This imbalance is all the more striking given that In the past 15 years the inte rnational area of public concern has grown to Include new agents and forms of social Interaction which take as their startingpoint a questioning of models of con sumer behaviour (de Aguilera & Carreno, 1990). This is illustrated by the strategies adopted by the International Organizat ion of Consumer Unions (IOCU) and the creation of networks linking NGOs that started in the first half of the 1 960s during

the protests against Nestl. It should also be said that most of the operations under taken by these networks of NGOs chiefly targeted the misdeeds in the Third World of multinational companies, particularly in the chemicals, Pharmaceuticals, to bacco and food sectors. This was the way they chose to contest a mode of global development and growth and its con sumption models. The originality of the forms of organization and action adopted by these networks - whose contacts have proliferated in both North and South - has been recognized by the representatives of the world advertising industry. Indeed, the J. Walter Thompson agency's vice-president for Britain, an official of the EAT, had no hesitation in telling his col leagues: 'I propose to look at who is press ing the regulators with global questions (and proposing several answers of their own); and to suggest that communicat ions experts have something to learn from them ... Their motto might be said to be: Think globally, act locally' . . . What are the characteristics of activist groups? Dedication. Professionalism from com mitted amateurs. Close national and i nternational links and very fast information exchange. Good media rela tions. Popular and newsworthy causes. Good organization. Increasingly better finance. Growing respect. Last but not least, they are committed to training: to workshops, handbooks and action packs so ideas and deeds can travel fast and efficiently' (Mann, 1987). This experience of critical networks in action also provides food for thought for those who, tired of niggling, procedure-ridden - in fact chauv inistic - debate on the future of advertis ing in Europe, suspect that nowadays it is hardly possible to discuss the relation ship between advertising and society without taking into account the logic of social exclusion inherent in the new world economic order. That logic is dismissed by the strategists of 'globalization' of markets and ad campaigns, who are used to view23

Armand MATTELART and Michael PALMER

Ing the world only through the diminish ing geopolitical and intellectual lens that encompasses four-fifths of the world's purchasing power and no more than onefifth of the world's population.

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Now for the second part of the reply to the original question. It is evident that many players were called upon to take up a Initiatives by such movements in the position on the directive and the convent 1980s were admittedly very modest, but ion without necessarily having any rep they have the merit of showing that resentative status with the Community answers are being sought by a public still authorities. One thinks, for example, of in a state of shock caused by the speed of the European Federation of Audiovisual changes in the rules governing the audio Directors, which took up arms over the visual sector. Quite simply, they demons subjects of European programme quotas, tratethat not all citizens accept that the advertising breaks and copyright. They means of communication may be man sought to attract the support of intellec aged only by self-regulation and the rea tuals and creative people in other fields, soning of the marketplace. Some reject inviting them to Delphi to sign a 'Euro the panacea of the 'principle of consumer pean Authors' Charter*. Another example sovereignty', which leaves the consumerof unofficial pressure groups is the Cul viewer alone in front of his screen, trying tural States General organized in France to make sense out of everything he sees in 1987 and its protests to the European and hears through an endless series of Parliament in 1989 (Etats Gnraux de la mediations. But they also show that some Culture, 1987). (This formula of 'States people think that bringing about the General', gathering together creators and democratic imperative in a mediatized researchers to discuss audiovisual ques and mediated society also requires collec tions, has spread to other European tive forms of expression and organization. countries and to Latin America.) There is Lastly, these efforts show that it is also the emergence, and in some count possible to think about 'self-regulation' in ries the strengthening, of media users' terms other than the scenario presented associations that, even though they were in the increasingly stentorian platitudes often spurred into action by upheavals in of different professional bodies. Instead of the audiovisual landscape of individual 'Less State/More Market' they speak countries, have nevertheless followed the about 'Less State/More Public Participat debates in Strasbourg and Brussels with ion', and not only about more profes keen interest. They too have realized the sional ethics but about more ethics. This fundamental importance of the need for is probably one way of stopping the indus international links. In France indeed, one try from using professionalism as an effect of the reorganization of its audiovis authoritarian argument to prevent out ual sector was to prompt movements rep siders getting a glimpse of what goes on resenting the general public (such as behind the scenes. In any case it is the viewers' associations) to come to the fore, only way of preventing the debate on just as in other areas of national life. 'human rights' from being reduced to the These new forms of participation are level of the bargain basement. emerging in a space where, traditionally, major organizations such as political par The implications of the debate are all the ties and trade unions were none too ac more crucial because the process of pol itical emancipation of private agents, as tive. These institutions have rarely

produced explicit and non-general ana lyses and position papers on the subject of advertising. Documents like the Green Paper on Advertising produced in 1 972 by the British Labour Party remain all-toorare exceptions. Indeed, at the time, this report caused quite a stir in American advertising circles.

SHAPING THE EUROPEAN ADVERTISING SCENE

seen in their militant action within inte rnational bodies, cannot be dissociated from the new central role acquired by advertising in the reshaping of audiovis ual rules in a Europe in the grip of privat ization and deregulation. Advertising, the touchstone of financial packaging, has increasingly close links with production and programming, at the same time as its roles of consultant/adviser and prospec tor/forecaster are growing in importance in a context of increased overlapping of consumption and production. This over laprequires ever more efficient 'tracking stations' to gather and correlate complex information on the flows of programmes, audiences and goods. In a more general way, the 'advertising paradigm' draws its vitality from the industry's new status.

There has been a transfer of marketing standards into the most diverse fields and the 'managerial approach' - and the com munication strategies derived from it has permeated the methods of manage ment of society and of the economy (Mattelart, 1991). These forces that underpin the new ad vertising configuration must be taken into account in any attempt to understand and evaluate the changes that are reshap ing public life. This new understanding of public life is poised to spill over the bor ders of the welfare-nation-state in line with the seemingly inexorable advance of marketing, commercial logic and their in herent aspiration to become the dominant universal mode.

References Advertising Age (1979): Europe supplement, 26 March 1979. de AGUILERA, M. & CARRENO, O. (1990): 'Comunicacion y calidad de la vida. El Punto de vista de los consumidores', in Telos, Madrid, December 1989February 1990. BOUIS, L. (1986): 'Drglementation et auto discipline interprofessionnelle. Le rle du BVP, in Revue Franaise du Marketi ng, No. 5. Paris. CLARKE, E. (1988): The Want-Makers, Hodder & Stoughton, London. Etats Gnraux de la Culture (1987): La cul ture franaise se porte bien pourvu qu'on la sauve, Messidor, Paris. European Association of Advertising Agenc ies(1986): Internal newsletter, Brussels. EWEN, S. (1983): Captains of Consciousness: Advertising and the Social Roots of the Consumer Culture. McGraw-Hill, New York, 1976. French translation: Con sciences sous influence. Publicit et gense de la socit de consommation, Aubier-Montaigne, Paris. HENRY, H. (1988): Towards a Better standing of the Economics of Television Advertising, YTV, London. MANN, P. (1987): Workshop on the theme 'Regulatory Intervention Calls for a Glo balAnswer', World Council of the Inter national Advertising Association. MATTELART, A. (1991): L'internationale publ icitaire. La Dcouverte. Paris, 1989. English translation: Advertising Interna tional The Privatization of Public Space, M. Chanan, trans., Routledge, London and New York, 1991. See also 'Euro pean media lobbying' in TUNSTALL, J. & PALMER M., Media Moguls, Routledge, London and New York. NAU, J.Y. (1990): 'Intrts et dommages", in Le Monde, 16 March 1990. RIJKENS, R (1979): 'Europe admen must de fend their industry', in Advertising Age (International), 11 June 1979. RIJKENS, R & MIRACLE, G.E. (1986): Euro pean Regulation ofAdvertising: Supranat ional Regulation of Advertising in the EEC, Elsevier, Amsterdam. RIJKENS, R (1987): 'Ad forces rally to repel their critics', in Advertising Age, 14 Au gust 1978. 25

Armand MATTELART and Michael PALMER

SCHULTZE. Q.J. (1981): 'Professionalism In advertising; The origin of ethical codes', in Journal of Communication, Spring 1981. SCRIVENER, (1979): Rle, responsabuit et avenir de la publicit. La Documentat ion Franaise, Paris.

de WIN, P. (1989): Editorial in WFA News Rep ort, November-December 1989. World Federation of Advertisers (1989): 1988; Report & Review, Brussels. World Federation of Advertisers (1989): Brief ing paper, 5 October 1989. World Federation of Advertisers (1990). 1989 Report & Review, Brussels.

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