Why agencies are vital in closing the gap between brand actions and words
When social movements take hold, it’s important that agencies help to make change happen when brands declare their call to action, writes Carat Australia’s Nicola Watkins.
“Procter & Gamble is right. Now is the time to be anti-racist. It’s also time to match words with action.”
Richard Wilson’s call-to-arms highlights the discrepancy between P&G’s words against racism and their advertising investment in highly partisan platforms such as Fox News, who are often called out for their amplification of hate-speech. This ethical dilemma is not solely of P&G’s making, nor is it unique to America. Australian Agencies must do more to understand the impact our advice, and our investments, have on amplifying potentially destructive polarisation within our society.
An agency’s traditional role is shielded from these discussions under the guise of remaining ethically agnostic. However, as society evolves, our role to facilitate effective and efficient connections between brands and people might not be ‘apolitical’ for much longer.
