ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, February 26, 1997 TAG: 9702260063
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B-6 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: VATICAN CITY
SOURCE: Associated Press
Advertising is all about making money, for those who make the ads and the products. But the Vatican wants advertisers to follow their consciences when tempted to shock, titillate or manipulate.
The Holy See's media experts recognize advertising's potential force for good in their handbook issued Tuesday, intended for anyone connected to the field. The trouble comes when ads appeal to ``lust, vanity, envy and greed.''
But will anybody in the cutthroat, multibillion-dollar ad business listen to the Vatican?
``There are a lot of good people in the world who want to do good, who feel they have no support,'' said Archbishop John P. Foley, head of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, which issued the 35-page pamphlet ``Ethics in Advertising'' in English and five other languages.
In the end, the Vatican said, the elimination of exploitive, manipulative and false advertising really depends on the consciences of the people making and buying advertising.
Foley said the council consulted executives on Madison Avenue and around the world before preparing the pamphlet, which recognizes ads as a necessity - and a promoter of growth - in modern market economies.
Ads can tell people about new products, improve democracy by informing people about parties and candidates and support programs and writings of high cultural value. Some ads even can be ``popular art,'' and ``brighten lives simply by being witty, tasteful and entertaining.''
But the document also outlines the abuses and potential for harm as a tool of pure ``consumerism,'' often cited by Pope John Paul II. And it condemns ads for contraceptives, abortion-related materials and ``safe sex'' campaigns.
Making people want goods they don't need by appealing to their ``lust, vanity, envy and greed'' is a ``serious abuse'' in rich societies and even worse in developing countries.
Advertisers commit wrong when they exploit and objectify women, the document said.
``Some advertisers consciously seek to shock and titillate by exploiting content of a morbid, perverse, pornographic nature,'' it said.
Two main features of U.S. political campaigns - massive spending on advertising and attack ads - would not fare well according to the Vatican view.
Democracy is hurt when ad costs limit elections to rich candidates, when candidates ``compromise their integrity and independence'' by relying on special interests for money, and when political ads distort an opponent's record or attack reputations, the document said.
Among the Vatican's recommendations for the advertising business:
* New ethical codes with input by church people and consumer groups.
* More government controls on the quantity and content of ads.
* Closer scrutiny of the ad business by the media.
* School courses on the role of advertising.
LENGTH: Medium: 59 linesby CNB