1980’s: Advertising self-regulation through the decades

Throughout the 1980’s, the Committee of Advertising Practice continued to grow and expand its remit.  In 1985, CAP welcomed the Association of New Zealand Advertisers (ANZA) as a member. Prior to this, CAP had consisted of solely agency and media members, with no advertiser representation. Advertising was still dominated by traditional media such as TV, print, and radio advertising and complaints largely centered around advertisements from these platforms.

By 1985, there were 11 Codes in place, covering:

• baldness or hair loss,
• marketing of cigarettes,
• driving,
• finance,
• alcohol,
• people in advertising,
• petrol consumption claims,
• slimming or weight loss,
• youth organisations,
• reproduction of bank note images, and
• farm safety

The commitment of the industry to the concept of self-regulation was clearly set out in the Committee of Advertising Practice 1985 annual report by then Chairman, Ross George:

“It is again, precisely because the industry knows that the reputation of advertising lies in its own hands, that self-regulation works effectively.

Consumers need to have confidence in advertising, need to feel comfortable about the manner and the tone of voice in which it addresses them, need to feel assured that it is socially responsible. The participating bodies know this and hence the self-imposed restraint of voluntary self-regulation.”

In 1988, the Advertising Standards Council (ASC) was formed. Advertising complaints had previously been considered by a sub-committee of CAP, the ASC provided an independent adjudication panel which was a mix of public and industry members, including a public member Chair and weighted towards the public members through the Chairperson’s casting vote.

The constitution of the Advertising Standards Council included two main objectives:

1. To seek to maintain at all times and in all media a proper and generally accepted standard of advertising, and ensure that advertising is not misleading, either by statement or implication;
2. To encourage media voluntarily to cooperate in any self-regulation that may be necessary from time-to-time.

The first meeting of the ASC was held on 28 March 1988, formally launched by then Minister of Consumer Affairs Hon. Margaret Shields and attended by inaugural members:

• Laurie Cameron CBE QSM – Chair
• Dame Vivienne Boyd DBE – public member
• Anne Knowles – public member
• Martyn Turner – industry member
• Morrie Hill – industry member
• Peter Fabian – industry member

Three advertisements were considered at the first meeting, all of which related to advertisements under the Code for Advertising Alcoholic Beverages.

To support transparency in the ASC’s complaints process, it was agreed that all advertising complaints resulting in Code breaches would be published through the ASC’s media members. The first release was published in September 1988, with resulting media coverage on the ASC’s decisions. Today, decisions are released publicly on the ASA website and are regularly featured in the media. This is an important tool for self-regulation, both for transparency in the ASA’s process and encouraging compliance with ASA Codes.

The 1980’s represented a period of significant transformation for CAP, with the shift to an independent complaints adjudication panel and the publication of Code breaches through media members.

This post is part of our advertising self-regulation through the decades series. Learn more about our history and read the rest of the series on our 50th anniversary page.