VATICAN CITY, MAY 7, 2004 (VIS) - Archbishop John Foley, president of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, is in Santiago, Chile where yesterday he addressed the international convention of the World Federation of Advertisers, focusing on the council's document "Ethics in Advertising" which was published in 1997.
He noted that the document began with "The Benefits Of Advertising," which include "sustaining honest and ethically responsible competition which contributes to economic growth, to the possibility of choice and to authentic human development. ... and promoting morally healthy activity. ... It also contributes to wider knowledge, to lower prices and, usually, to more jobs." He added that "freedom of political advertising" is important for "making people aware of candidates and their proposals."
On the negative side, the archbishop said that he "personally" felt that "the greatest harm of advertising would be the impression which is created that having is more important than being."
Archbishop Foley then addressed three particular principles and concerns. He said that the first principle, "Being is better than having" comes from the fact that "our essential God-given human dignity is not based upon the possessions we have" and he implored advertisers never "to put poor people down, even subconsciously."
The second principle, he added, is "Each person must be treated with respect" and he noted that "so often the media in general and advertising in particular" exploit both men and women "as sex symbols."
"A third principle of ethics in communications is the common good. A growing concern in democratic societies is the ethical aspect of political campaigning ... when, instead of being a vehicle for honest expositions of a candidate's views and records, political advertising seeks to distort the views and records of opponents and unjustly attacks their reputations."
CON-CS/ETHICS:ADVERTISING/CHILE:FOLEY VIS 20040507 (290)
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