Pringle On Air: “We Are All Tribal”

Hamish Pringle, director general of the IPA, was heard on Radio 4 yesterday defending advertising from accusations that it caused depression and exploited vulnerable people.

Taking part in the consumer discussion programme You and Yours, Pringle came up against Oliver James, clinical psychologist and Tony Cook, co-founder of the GetEthical website. James claimed that, among other things, exposure to images of beautiful people, such as those which frequently appear in adverts, was known to cause depression, especially amongst women. Meanwhile Cook, who suggested that advertising should be strictly informative, said that at present advertising sought out vulnerable people who may be dissatisfied with their lives, and persuaded them that by buying a particular brand they could gain identity and happiness.

Pringle defended the business he has been in for over two decades, denying that deliberate efforts were made to reach “vulnerable people”. He claimed that in fact people were not easily led, but sought out brands in order to define themselves because “people are tribal, they like to belong to a team”. He also pointed out that without advertising, not only would the 90,000 or more people employed by advertising in the UK be made unhappy, but that evidence from other countries suggested that the reduced competition would cause prices to rise.

IPA: 020 7235 7020 www.ipa.co.uk

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