ABSTRACT

Many consumers fail to identify online sponsored content as advertising. This is an ethical problem because consumers need to know when they are exposed to advertising so they can raise counterarguments. To enhance transparency, guidelines have been issued that prescribe sponsorship disclosures. However, the actual use of these disclosures is limited and inconsistent. To better understand this ethical practice, the aim of the present qualitative interview study is to provide an overview of practitioners’ considerations to use disclosures (or not) for online sponsored content. We conducted a qualitative interview study, in which we interviewed 18 practitioners representing four stakeholder groups. The study reveals a diverse, complex, and conflicting set of considerations categorized as follows: moral responsibility toward consumers, own business interests, and perceptions regarding disclosure guidelines. We interpret our findings in light of previous studies in which advertising professionals talked about ethics. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

摘要

许多消费者未能将在线赞助内容识别为广告。这是一个道德问题，因为消费者需要知道他们何时会接触到广告，以便提出反驳。为了提高透明度，已经发布了规定赞助信息披露的指导方针。然而，这些披露的实际使用是有限的和不一致的。为了更好地理解这种道德实践，本定性访谈研究的目的是概述从业者对在线赞助内容使用披露（或不披露）的考虑。我们进行了一项定性访谈研究，其中我们采访了代表四个利益相关者群体的 18 位从业者。该研究揭示了一系列多样化、复杂和相互冲突的考虑因素，分类如下：对消费者的道德责任、自己的商业利益，以及对披露准则的看法。我们根据之前的广告专业人士谈论道德的研究来解释我们的发现。讨论了对研究和实践的影响。