Advertising Ethics: Deceitful celebrity endorsements through social media

There are a lot of ways to market a product through social media. Some of the famous social media sites are Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr. Social media sites are an advantage to companies in promoting their products; it is cheap and very effective. In order to get the attention of the netizens, the company uses celebrities or individuals who are famous in the internet to market these products.

There is a difference in advertising through television and advertising through social media. Advertising in television makes it obvious that the celebrity or commercial models were paid to promote the product. In contrary, social media does not give the idea of celebrities or famous internet personalities being paid of what they post and share online. This is somehow deceiving in a way that consumer gets confused if they really use the product or if it is really the product of their choice that they decided to choose for their personal use.

Not all endorsers on social media are celebrities, there are also non celebrities that posts different products online. One cannot really tell what the story behind those pictures is whether it’s the real thing or not. I have been actively browsing on social media a few years ago and I have decided to quit it because I believe that it is just a total waste of time with too much exaggeration and nonsense. I remember scrolling accounts on social media where I see celebrities and internet personalities post different kinds of things like their outfits of the day #OOTD. Other things that they post regularly online are the gadgets that they use, the food that they eat and the places and events that they go to stressing out the sponsors and brands every time.

It is heartbreaking to see those persons change over time. I could recall following someone’s account and I think I was one of the few to start following her. She posted her everyday life online where it looks very real, normal and natural. After a while she became popular having gained many followers, this is when she started being someone else entirely posting random things online that is irrelevant to her everyday life which obviously looks fake. The bad thing there is, instead of disclosing that she had been paid or sponsored to post some products, she denied the whole thing and just continues to make things look natural from there on. As I’ve realized these flaws, I have recently read an article similar to this story that shows exactly what I’ve meant about the deceitful, untrue and pretentious posts that we see every day online. You may have to rethink again that almost more than half of those things that we see on social media is just a total waste of time.

Posted on November 2, 2015 on elitedaily.com here is 19 year old instagram model Essena O’Neill from Australia who recently caught fire on social media when she edited her posts to reveal truth behind her photos.

Her Instagram account, which featured a standard mix of scenic and seemingly candid photos one can expect from someone who makes her money looking good next to waterfalls, boasted close to 580,000 followers. She had another 260,000 subscribers on her YouTube account and 60,000 on Snapchat. That was before her Will McAvoy-esque breakdown — a breakdown that led her to delete over 2,000 photos and go inactive on her YouTube and Snapchat accounts in an attempt to expose the fabricated reality behind social media modeling.

She re-captioned the posts she left up on Instagram to reveal the lengths she went through to make certain shots look perfect, yet spur-of-the-moment.

This change all seems to be in line with O’Neill’s new website, Let’s Be Game Changers, which so far consists of some personal blog posts, a lengthy info section, a community forum and a series of supplemental anti-modeling blogs giving you a look into what exactly is going on in her mind as she aggressively steps away from the career she built.

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In a video (which has since been deleted), she explained the business of social media, what it’s like to work as a model in the field and what changes she made to get her to the point where she felt quitting was nothing short of mandatory to her wellbeing.

In the website’s description, Essena spoke more about reasons she specifically quit modeling on social media.

She wrote,

I was miserable. Stuck. Uninspired. Angry. I didn’t enjoy the act of creating art, writing or any forms of self-expression like I once did as a child. When no one judged it, I created without limitation or filters. When it was for no one else but myself, I fell in love with it. And it loved me right back. It made me feel alive. It was like capturing and expressing real life, real feeling, real beauty — it gave me this joy that I still can’t explain. You know that feeling of inspiration, passion and purpose you get when you do something you just love? That’s why I do what I do. I don’t want approval anymore, it traps me into thinking I need more and more and more. I don’t want to be liked or judged either. I want a place where I can give with no expectations or outcome. I don’t want followers anymore. I want a world of individual beings.

Elsewhere on the site, she pleaded with the greater online community, writing,

PLEASE CAN SOMEONE MAKE A SOCIAL SHARING PLATFORM NOT BASED ON VALIDATION IN VIEWS/FOLLOWERS/LIKES BUT SHARED FOR REAL VALUE AND LOVE. THANK YOU. PLEASE HURRY UP.

We need more people like Essena.

Yes, theblogs and some of the YouTube videos do come across a little preachy and sound like a beautiful, blonde 19-year-old Howard Beale yelling, “I’M MAD AS HELL” into an iPhone 6S, but there needs to be change like this.

References:

Elite Daily Former Instagram Model Edits Her Posts to Reveal Truth behind the Photos

 (Levine, 2015) Retrieved November 11, 2015 from

http://elitedaily.com/social-news/former-model-reveals-truth-fake-instagram/1268924/

The Ozone Threat

Our environment is one of the main sources that give us life. We are responsible in preserving its limited resources. I am quite aware of what is happening in the environment and how our resources have been depleted over the years. The ozone threat case study was discussed by my group during one of our CSR classes. After analyzing the case, it gave me more insights of how our ozone layer has been depleted due to the bad effects of CFC gases. DuPont Company, which was the largest manufacturer of CFC, was the main focus of the study.

It is a whole different situation when you pay attention to detail, when you start to realize those small flaws that made a big difference to the world. Doing the ozone threat case gave me that opportunity to have a deeper understanding of what global warming is all about and where it all started. It is when I figured out that the more we learn more about something, the more we realize how much we are involved. It is like having a view of a bigger picture then suddenly we increase the meaning and purpose of our lives. It is when we start to appreciate our environment and then realize how crucial our responsibilities are in terms of preserving and protecting the environment. It is a positive thing to be more involved and show concern to our mother nature.

DuPont Company who was the largest CFC manufacturer reacted to the CFC ban. They denied the studies that were done by scientists Rowland and Molina. They attacked them, so the scientists fought back and gathered more evidence on the ozone depletion. It was then successful when the Montreal Protocol in 1987 was agreed globally to limit the use of CFC. By 1990 it had been amended to become a global phase-out agreement.  That same year Congress added strong ozone safeguards to the Clean Air Act.

Millions of lives saved.  Hundreds of millions of cancers averted.  Agricultural disaster avoided. These are big achievements. But our work is not done. We still have to make sure that we are consistently compliant and responsible to make improvements happen. We could still do more under Montreal Protocol to fight climate change. It shouldn’t mainly focus on the ozone layer, we should also be responsible on smaller things like energy saving, waste reduction and other sustainable improvements that will benefit our environment.

Those scientists saved lives for continuously fighting for what they believe in that was right for everyone. It could be intimidating to contest powerful companies such as DuPont but they still continued and fought the battle against ozone depletion. They served as an inspiration to encourage others to use their expertise to make a difference to the world. To make a change that will benefit everyone and make people aware of their responsibility to planet earth. Together we can live in a better environment and a better world, together we can save lives.

CSR idea for my community

I have noticed that the number of bikers and runners in my community was increasing throughout the years. It crossed my mind that it could be possible to organize a small event given the time and opportunity. The event will be a short distance fun run and biking. The purpose of the event is to increase environment appreciation while helping individuals to stay fit. It doesn’t end with just a simple running and biking event, one important thing to consider is the proceeds of the event. So for the registration fees that are collected for the event, it will be used to purchase solar panels that could generate electricity to our community. Solar energy generated could be used in our facilities like our building hallways, street post lights and activity centres like basketball court, etc.

Regular running or jogging offers many health benefits. Running can:

·         help to build strong bones, as it is a weight bearing exercise

·         strengthen muscles

·         improve cardiovascular fitness

·         burn plenty of kilojoules

·         help maintain a healthy weight.

Cycling benefits:

·         Low impact – it causes less strain and injuries than most other forms of exercise.

·         A good muscle workout – cycling uses all of the major muscle groups as you pedal.

·         Easy – unlike some other sports, cycling does not require high levels of physical skill. Most people know how to ride a bike and, once you learn, you don’t forget.

·         Good for strength and stamina – cycling increases stamina, strength and aerobic fitness.

·         As intense as you want – cycling can be done at very low intensity to begin with, if recovering from injury or illness, but can be built up to a demanding physical workout.

Here are some benefits of solar energy.

Solar energy is not only sustainable, it is renewable and this means that we will never run out of it. It is about as natural a source of power as it is possible to generate electricity.

The creation of solar energy requires little maintenance. Once the solar panels have been installed and are working at maximum efficiency there is only a small amount of maintenance required each year to ensure they are in working order.

They are a silent producer of energy. There is absolutely no noise made from photovoltaic panels as they convert sunlight into usable electricity.

There are continual advancements in solar panel technology which are increasing the efficiency and lowering the cost of production, thus making it even more cost effective.

During operation solar electricity power plants produce zero emissions.

References

Better Health Channel Running (n.d.) Retrieved November 12, 2015 from

https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/running-and-jogging-health-benefits

Better Health Channel Biking (n.d.) Retrieved November 12, 2015 from

https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/cycling-health-benefits

Grenough River Solar Farm (n.d.) Retrieved November 12, 2015 from

http://www.greenoughsolarfarm.com.au/solar-energy/benefits-solar-energy

The Individual in the Organization: Fair Wage and Job Satisfaction

Fair Wage

Fair wage in our country is basically defined by paying minimum or above minimum wage. The government which sets the minimum wage does not give justice to the workers. Obviously, it is not enough to sustain life and basic needs of an individual. Life is literally difficult especially if you are born in a country with so little opportunities. I believe that our country is one of the most difficult places to live in and survive. If there is any consolation, I guess that we are just fortunate that we weren’t born in Syria, Iraq, Bangladesh or other countries that are totally in the midst of crisis as of this writing. Our country is currently being named as the “Asian tiger” because of the improvements in our economy and the credit ratings that were upgraded recently. Yes, we could take those into considerations, but as a regular employee being paid with a minimum wage, I guess nothing’s changed. Our country has a lot of untapped resources and it could provide employment if developed that could generate enormous profits which could improve the living standards of our locals. It seems like we are yet too far from those developments because our country’s famous of being the most corrupt in the world that doesn’t help solve the poverty issue.

Job Satisfaction

Sometimes hard work doesn’t pay off. Especially in countries where most companies do not measure performance based on input, output, skills and talents. Instead, it measures clocking in and clocking out of the office and those timecards serves as an evaluation for productivity which does not really make any sense for me. I’ve been working as an employee for almost 7 years and I’ve hardly noticed anyone who seemed to be totally 100% productive in their time during office hours. The setting is always that traditional inside the box mindset where you get to meet repetitive deadlines and you just do it anyway without even knowing what it is for. Most employees just clock in and gossip and do personal things all the way until time runs out and they clock out. In comparison, if I was late but I finished all my work in time, it still doesn’t count. The one who will get more productivity was the one who rendered more hours than I did even though that person did nothing at all. It obviously seems unfair but that is the way performance is measured. Aside from that, it is obvious that most people are biased. I think that topic falls on job discrimination but it also affects job satisfaction if it is always a case of being left out being under-appreciated because of workplace politics. Sometimes, politics is more effective rather than hard earned qualifications and skills acquired. We do things that we don’t want to but we do it anyway with the hope of finding that job that will truly satisfy us.

Gap’s Labor Problem

Gap is well known for the quality of its cotton clothes. Among the suppliers for whom the Gap sourced its clothes was one in El Salvador run by Mandarin International. Troubles erupted in the Mandarin plant because of violations in labour code and also when the employees started a union. Human rights were violated as women were beat down by security guards. Those female workers were underpaid and working in very difficult conditions. A representative visited the plant to investigate but only gained a very few information or evidence which is somewhat doubtful.

It is necessary to outsource manufacturing to save expenses as a strategy but it could also ruin the company’s reputation at the same time. Gap could only do so much in controlling those plants where they outsource their products so it was an option to find alternatives in order to prevent further violations on human rights and the labour code.

This case perfectly shows the imbalance and inequality of us humans. El Salvador is located on a place where many suffer from poverty. This is the moment where I look at our leaders and evaluate their stand of this issue. Leaders or specifically president of the countries could only provide guidelines and approvals of what we might do to better ourselves and our country. El Salvador obviously does not offer much for opportunities. I believe that it is the duty of profitable firms to conduct CSR on areas like this. Some people are does not benefit from the CSR to those who have the resources because they lack initiative and sympathy towards the disadvantaged. CSR is very important in addressing these needs but the people in higher power could only care less of what’s happening around them as long as their profits are consistently generated.

Addressing basic needs of the employee has a large impact to the society and to the world as a whole. One perfect example is the TV program which I’ve been watching recently, titled “Undercover Boss”. The TV program could be watched through CBS channel. I have learned a lot from this program in terms of addressing employee’s needs and having that mindset of equality as a manager, CEO or leader to be fair to their subordinates or employees. Doing simple things to meet employees basic needs have that effect of giving them purpose, meaning, appreciation and human rights. It is where they become more motivated, be loyal to the firm and be productive which contributes positively towards the economy and the society as a whole.

Here is a brief introduction of Undercover Boss:

Undercover Boss is a television franchise series created by Stephen Lambert and produced in many countries. It originated in 2009 on the British Channel 4. The show’s format features the experiences of senior executives working undercover in their own companies to investigate how their firms really work and to identify how they can be improved, as well as to reward hard-working employees.

Each episode features a high-ranking executive or the owner of a corporation going undercover as an entry-level employee in his or her own company. The executives alter their appearance and assume an alias and fictional back-story. The fictitious explanation given for the accompanying camera crew is that the executives are being filmed as part of a documentary about entry-level workers in a particular industry, or a competition with another individual with the winner getting a job with the company. They spend approximately one to two weeks undercover (one week being the norm in some editions, such as the U.S. version, and two weeks in some other versions, such as the Australian edition), working in various areas of their company's operations, with different parts and in most cases a different location each day. They are exposed to a series of predicaments with amusing results, and invariably spend time getting to know the people who work in the company, learning about their professional and personal challenges.

At the end of their time undercover, the executives return to their true identity and request the employees they worked with individually to travel to a central location—often corporate headquarters. The bosses reveal their identity, and reward hard-working employees through promotion, or financial rewards; while other employees are given training, better working conditions, or, in extreme cases, termination.

References:

Undercover Boss(n.d.) Retrieved November 12, 2015 from

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Undercover_Boss

The Ethics of Job Discrimination

 Job discrimination is very common in a workplace especially here in our country. It starts with the common discrimination of physical attributes, social status, disabilities, followed by schools attended, gender, and region and so on. As early as passing an application, there is an immediate discrimination from the people who screen those applications. It is an advantage to have a good looking photo which is not really necessary. Then they immediately look at the school which the applicant attended, if it is not a well known school then most probably the application would be dumped. Only a few that are not in the upper class had the opportunity to get a scholarship in well known universities. Some had to pay their own tuition but they have only enough to cover it and it is not an option to fail.

If we look back and look into further details we could see that most of the successful applicants came from a wealthy family or middle to upper class. The advantage that they have is that they have money to pay for expensive schools. Another advantage is having parents that have already built a network that makes them influential. Automatically, it is passed on to their children who are already given a lot of opportunity. Say for example the legacy of a family business. Another thing is company politics, let’s say my father is a stock broker and he knows his clients very well, he can easily refer me to a company and be qualified for a job. It is one awful way of getting others eliminated just because my parents know the owner and the company and the other applicants are just strangers hoping to get hired.

It is not fair and unethical to practice politics in a company or in 

hiring applicants but it seems pretty normal to people nowadays. This is one example of inequality and the result is the rich are getting richer and poor becomes poorer. If this is always the case then we can never find balance in this world and there is always this pyramid in life where it seems to be very difficult climb one step higher to the top. It is only then we realize that most of us are helpless. We are trying so hard to survive and work hard within the concrete jungle but we still struggle to grab an opportunity because of discrimination.

Other things to ponder are racial discrimination which is obviously 

a foul play and is very offensive. Another issue is gender equality, aside from “male dominating female” mindset; we should also take into account the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. They are a part of our population and they are also humans that need to work for a living and survive by obtaining the basic needs in life. They are individuals that have remarkable talents and skills that needs acceptance in this world. Equality is a must but the way we see it, most of us are living in a world where it is fair to be unfair and unfair to be fair.