Native advertising is something that can be either ethical or unethical. It all depends on the brand’s exact approach. The American Marketing Association, in an article discussing ways to make native advertising more ethical, defines it as “inherently confusing. They mimic their surroundings and try to avoid being an interruption.” Native advertising refers to branded content that fits in with the media it’s a part of. This is different from other forms of traditional advertising in which there is a clear break, such as a TV commercial interrupting a program or a sudden advertisement during a YouTube video. I enjoy and prefer native advertising because of how seamless it is when viewing media. Marcel Sattler stated in an article for Forbes, “native advertising doesn’t disrupt a user’s content experience…YouTube ads still use the same tactic as TV in the 1960s: When watching a certain video, an ad pops up and you’re forced to watch it, turn away or close your eyes. In any case, you’re disrupted in your experience. With native ads, the opposite is the case. The reader is already in reading mode and simply clicks on an article they find interesting. Going through content and choosing the article, they will stumble across ads suited for them.” I think it’s ethical for companies to release branded content using this method, although there are times when it could lean towards being unethical depending on the specific content. If brands want to ensure that their content remains ethical, they should consider following the advice in the American Marketing Association article.

I’m not alone in being in favor of this type of branded content. The American Marketing Association stated that “a 2018 report from Reuters found that 73% of readers prefer branded content to traditional ads.” Additionally, they explained that “Jarvis, now director of the Tow-Knight Center for Entrepreneurial Journalism at The City University of New York, says he now finds branded content acceptable, so long as it’s clear that the ad is actually an ad. But he believes that publications should follow the advice an editor gave him decades ago: ‘The reader must never be confused about the source of content.’” This is great advice because if an audience is unclear, there could be a negative impact on the brand for which the branded content is for. The AMA article lists ways to make your advertising more ethical. Their list includes following FTC guidelines, clear labeling, researching more, making the brand part of the byline, never hard-sell, and staying out of the news. I believe this list will make brands successful in their native advertising content. 

Unethical Native Advertising

Brands should be wary that the line to being unethical can get crossed because native advertising is subtle enough that some might not notice it’s an advertisement right away. The American Marketing Association described a study that found “86% of readers can tell the difference between editorial and branded content, 14% can’t—a non-negligible number in journalism, an industry that relies on reader confidence.” Although I prefer native advertising, it is crucial to consider those who don’t notice when they’re being advertised to. The American Marketing Association went on to explain that “perhaps the best example of readers feeling tricked by a native ad came in 2013, when sponsored content from the Church of Scientology was posted on The Atlantic’s website. Readers expected a piece of reported journalism about the religion and instead got a laudatory piece of content marketing. Readers were upset, causing the magazine to quickly pull the ad, apologize and change its ad policy.” The Atlantic responded well to this situation, but it does bring up the importance of ethical practices. I believe advertising a religion is quite different from a product or other type of brand. This example in particular does involve a type of religion and likely has the intent to convert audiences, therefore I find this native advertising to be unethical. Something to that degree should be made as clear as possible. As a rule of thumb, I think any brand with a chance of being polarizing such as this one might want to avoid native advertising. It can be an ethical practice that benefits users for the most part, but there is certainly a line.