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Advertising, in one form or another, reaches almost every corner of the globe. Companies,  organizations,  citizens and governments use advertising to promote products, services, and ideas to convey information, beliefs and values. lt is present almost everywhere and in different forms. Advertising takes place in traditional media such as newspapers, television andradio, as well as new ones such as social networks, blogs, and websites, on smart phones, mobile applications and devices, product placement in films etc. Artificial intelligence (Al), coupled with the capabilities for massive storage of personal data and digital trails left by users online and point of sales, is used to analyse the behaviour of customers, to predict and shape their needs, preferences, likes and dislikes. Algorithms are used  to mine data and generate  personalized  advertisements. AI has enabled advertisers to automatically micro-target individuals, sometimes down to minute details; reaching the customer with tailored ads based on genre, age, social strata, sexual orientation and personal likes, etc. This reality is magnified when people knowingly or unknowingly give up or trade their data to enjoy 'free' services offered by digital companies and applications. 

Companies or governments depend on advertising for successful campaigns. Advertising helps them to reach their markets or target population to generate the needed demand or behaviour change they seek. The process of advertising largely relies on people’s motivation and unconscious desires more than on their critical and rational thought. However, media and information literacy (MIL) can help to stimulate people’s critical and discerning competencies about how to engage with advertising.

Generally speaking, there are two types of advertising: commercial advertising; and public service announcements, sometimes called social marketing. Commercial advertising typically involves the promotion of a person, product, service or company in order to generate sales (e.g. commercials and print ads for clothing companies, soft drinks, movies, digital communication services, etc.).

Public service announcements involve the promotion of messages and services that benefit the general public (e.g. health and safety messages, literacy promotion, etc.). Both forms of advertising constitute a primary source of revenue for traditional and digital communication companies. The revenue that  content  providers  receive  from  advertising is used to pay for operating costs and the development of content (e.g. television programmes, website material, enhanced digital services, magazine articles, radio programmes, etc.). Without this revenue, most private media and digital companies, which form a part of a central advocating mechanism for sustainable development, dialogue, diversity, and the democracy and freedoms we enjoy, could not survive. At the same time, advertising can reduce our agency and conscious, rational decision-making, and stimulate unsustainable consumerism with questionable values. Several modules in this MIL Curriculum highlight the importance of having media and information literate citizens to demand the transparency of media institutions  and digital communications companies. MIL also helps people to understand the necessity for viable content production and supply, especially journalism in local languages where factors like small size or poverty of audiences mitigate against advertiser interest or subscription payments for such information.

The information or messages conveyed through advertising can affect social and cultural values, diversity and equality. For instance, there is a wide body of knowledge about the image of women and men in advertising. Contemporary femininity and womanhood are represented in advertising primarily through women’s roles in the home or society as wives and mothers. In some countries, women are also sexualized in advertising. Masculinity in advertising, on the other hand is portrayed as macho, in leadership roles, powerful, influencers, etc. Such content reinforces gender stereotypes and thus perpetuates gender inequalities. This analogy could also be applied to racial discrimination and other social issues. See Module 6 for more on representations in media and technology. Given the prominent role of advertising in our societies today, educators and learners should understand what goes into the creation of effective advertising and be able to evaluate advertisements as sources of information. Furthermore, it is important for people to learn about the mechanisms that allow citizens to provide feedback on ads to industries and to government officials.

Advertising can have a negative effect upon the independence of media and digital communication companies. Pressure from  advertisers  may lead to journalists and information or digital professionals avoiding writing or publishing about controversial topics. It can drive out public-interest or public-good content in favour of entertainment that attracts a particular audience. Unless there is a clear wall between the editorial and the business sides of the media and digital communication companies, which is less and less the case, then the business interests can impact content and news coverage without this being overt.

While advertising opportunities have expanded with the explosion of media and digital technology, the industry continues to be regulated by specific codes intended to help maintain public confidence. Generally speaking, these codes operate at the national level and are created by governments and the advertising industry. The codes are designed to help ensure that advertising is truthful, fair and accurate. In many countries, advertising councils and consumer affairs groups can be contacted by consumers if they have any questions or concerns about industry practices.

ln many countries, the local private advertising base is not sufficient to sustain all the media entities that exist. Therefore, at times, media companies must also depend on other revenue sources such as subsidies, sponsorships and content sales. If we understand information as a public good, then there is a case for both direct and indirect support via public policy towards news media institutions. In some countries, there is tax relief in others there are subsidies to help community media cover the cost of transmitting broadcast signals.

There is always a risk that direct state funding, as necessary as it may well be in the face of market failures for news services to part of the public, will enable ‘media capture’. Such capture entails compromise of editorial independence, and strong systems are needed to prevent this. Likewise, allocation of government advertising needs to be prevented from being a tool to reward or punish due to content. Transparency and independent oversight are needed.

MIL is crucial to empower citizens, especially children and youth, to critically view, listen, feel and read ads that are tailored to their feelings and motivations to act as desired by the advertising.