Advertising Rules Mr. Royko's decision not to endorse the Mexican restaurants is
solid because he is following his own beliefs and ethics. People should make
their own decisions of a product. Also, if he did endorse the restaurant by
eating the taco he would be being dishonest to the viewers of the commercial. In
his decision to not endorse the restaurant, Mr. Royko is following his own moral
ethics. Often people watch television commercials and see products being
endorsed by celebrities such as Shaquile O’neal endorsing Taco Bell. The
viewers are lead to believe that the famous support these products and that by
buying them will make them a popular person too. Often the celebrities that
endorse products only do so for the money and do not stand behind them with any
guarantees or actually using the product themselves. In a basic sense, the
celebrities are lying to the people that they are trying to sell the product to.
When television viewers see Shaquile O’neal biting into a taco, they are lead
to believe that he eats there and likes the food. This advertisement also leads
the viewers to think that if a superstar like him eats there that the food must
be good and so they decide to go there based on the thought the Shaquile
O’neal might think that the food is good even though he never says so. The
thought never comes to mind that maybe they should talk to someone that has
eaten there and ask them how the food tasted or if they wold recommend going
there. In Mr. Mike Royko’s case he does not wish to endorse the Mexican
restaurant chain because he does not like Mexican food and also does not want to
imply to the television audience that he is recommending it to them. He would
rather not do the restaurant commercial and not make the money than to do it and
give a false impression to the audience of the commercial. People should rely on
their own standards to make the choice about a product and not the image of
someone else that does not have the same taste or desires that he or she does.
When thinking about advertising a product, people should also think about their
own moral beliefs and ethics. The product should be something that they would be
willing to back and support without having any reservations about it.