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Gabriela​ ​Poveda​ ​Posada
November​ ​16th,​ ​2017
IMC​ ​Fall​ ​2017
Joe​ ​Camel​ ​Case​ ​Study
1. Even​ ​though​ ​it​ ​is​ ​legal​ ​to​ ​sell​ ​and​ ​advertise​ ​cigarettes,​ ​is​ ​it​ ​ethical?​ ​Why​ ​or​ ​why​ ​not?
What​ ​ethical​ ​principles​ ​underlie​ ​your​ ​decision-making​ ​and​ ​ultimately​ ​your
judgment?
Even​ ​though​ ​it​ ​is​ ​legal​ ​to​ ​sell​ ​and​ ​advertise​ ​cigarettes​ ​through​ ​certain​ ​channels,​ ​I​ ​do​ ​not
think​ ​that​ ​it​ ​is​ ​ethical​ ​for​ ​Joe​ ​Camel​ ​to​ ​sell​ ​and​ ​advertise​ ​cigarettes.​ ​Being​ ​a​ ​Leadership,​ ​Ethics
and​ ​Organizational​ ​Sustainability​ ​major,​ ​I​ ​have​ ​read​ ​a​ ​couple​ ​of​ ​case​ ​studies​ ​that​ ​have​ ​really
allowed​ ​me​ ​to​ ​analyze​ ​the​ ​principle​ ​of​ ​ethics​ ​and​ ​has​ ​allowed​ ​me​ ​to​ ​gather​ ​a​ ​better​ ​understanding
of​ ​what​ ​ethics​ ​means​ ​in​ ​principle.​ ​In​ ​particular,​ ​during​ ​my​ ​Business,​ ​Ethics​ ​and​ ​Stakeholders
class,​ ​we​ ​broke​ ​ethics​ ​into​ ​two​ ​categories​ ​which​ ​have​ ​helped​ ​guide​ ​me​ ​to​ ​the​ ​decision​ ​that​ ​what
selling​ ​and​ ​advertising​ ​cigarettes​ ​is​ ​not​ ​ethical.
The​ ​first​ ​being​ ​that​ ​ethics​ ​talks​ ​about​ ​the​ ​standards​ ​of​ ​right​ ​and​ ​wrong​ ​that​ ​have​ ​been
established​ ​by​ ​society .​ ​In​ ​my​ ​ethics​ ​class,​ ​we​ ​discussed​ ​how​ ​ethics​ ​is​ ​the​ ​rights​ ​and​ ​duties​ ​of
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society​ ​to​ ​prevent​ ​others​ ​from​ ​wrongdoing.​ ​When​ ​it​ ​comes​ ​to​ ​the​ ​advertising,​ ​it​ ​is​ ​unethical​ ​due
to​ ​the​ ​intent​ ​that​ ​the​ ​cigarette​ ​company​ ​is​ ​doing​ ​for.​ ​“Advertising​ ​is​ ​the​ ​attempt​ ​by​ ​owners​ ​of
goods​ ​and​ ​services​ ​to​ ​persuade​ ​current​ ​and​ ​potential​ ​consumers​ ​to​ ​continue​ ​or​ ​start​ ​purchasing” .
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Therefore,​ ​it​ ​is​ ​unethical​ ​to​ ​persuade​ ​current​ ​or​ ​potential​ ​consumers​ ​to​ ​purchase​ ​cigarettes
knowing​ ​that​ ​the​ ​product​ ​is​ ​doing​ ​wrong​ ​to​ ​them.​ ​Cigarette​ ​companies​ ​are​ ​enticing​ ​consumers​ ​to
1www.scu.edu/ethics/ethics-resources/ethical-decision-making/what-is-ethics/
2https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/f494/f5d7a08b5370f2b34afc80affcf6e37fa03e.pdf
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a​ ​product​ ​that​ ​they​ ​know​ ​will​ ​cause​ ​harm.​ ​With​ ​that​ ​being​ ​said,​ ​advertising​ ​cigarettes​ ​to​ ​society
is​ ​fundamentally​ ​wrong​ ​and​ ​unethical.
In​ ​terms​ ​of​ ​selling​ ​cigarettes​ ​even​ ​though​ ​it​ ​is​ ​legal,​ ​it​ ​is​ ​unethical​ ​for​ ​companies​ ​to
continue​ ​to​ ​sell​ ​given​ ​the​ ​fact​ ​that​ ​the​ ​“average​ ​male​ ​smokers​ ​are​ ​fifteen​ ​times​ ​more​ ​likely​ ​to​ ​die
of​ ​lung​ ​cancer​ ​than​ ​a​ ​nonsmoker​ ​and​ ​lung​ ​cancer​ ​is​ ​responsible​ ​for​ ​20,000​ ​more​ ​deaths​ ​yearly​ ​in
US​ ​women​ ​than​ ​breast​ ​cancer” .​ ​​Cigarettes​ ​are​ ​clearly​ ​not​ ​doing​ ​the​ ​greater​ ​good​ ​for​ ​the​ ​greatest
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number​ ​of​ ​people​ ​which​ ​makes​ ​it​ ​unethical​ ​for​ ​c​igarettes​ ​to​ ​be​ ​continued​ ​to​ ​be​ ​sold.
It​ ​is​ ​the​ ​ethical​ ​hierarchy,​ ​utilitarian​ ​and​ ​decision​ ​making​ ​framework​ ​are​ ​the​ ​principles
that​ ​underline​ ​my​ ​decision-making.​ ​In​ ​terms​ ​of​ ​hierarchy,​ ​in​ ​advertising​ ​​cigarettes​,​ ​a​ ​need​ ​is
created​ ​instead​ ​of​ ​a​ ​want​ ​being​ ​filled.​ ​Not​ ​only​ ​that,​ ​but​ ​following​ ​the​ ​utilitarian​ ​approach,