Towards a Global Framework for Advertising Self Regulation

Abstract

One of the forces which has indelibly shaped marketing is the internet. It has not only changed the way we communicate, but our marketing practices and our advertising self-regulation process (Kerr, et al 2012). Most advertising self-regulatory frameworks are country specific and typically an artefact of culture and the national regulatory environment (Boddewyn 1989; Rotfeld 1992). The importance of protecting consumers from deceptive advertising is universal, and in trying to regulate a global medium, we need to integrate national concerns into global guidelines and international best practice. Currently there is no global framework for advertising self-regulation, even though there is an urgent need to both protect consumers in this unregulated environment and ensure marketers’ obligations for legal, decent and truthful advertising are met.