PTC Ranks Best And Worst TV Advertisers

In time for the holiday shopping season, the Parents Television Council has released its 2017 Best and Worst Advertisers List, which catalogs companies based on the television content they chose to underwrite with their media dollars over the past year.

“When families head out for Christmas and holiday shopping, we hope they’ll consider rewarding companies who made it onto our Best List, as those are the brands that have demonstrated a corporate commitment to underwriting TV programming that is generally safe for children and families to watch,” said PTC President Tim Winter.

“We’ve seen some companies that have been on our previous Worst Lists appear to have changed their ad buying practices, specifically, Toyota and McDonalds, and we commend these companies for improving their ad buying practices. We urge companies on our new Worst List to improve their media-buying policies.

“Year after year the networks increase the volume of inappropriate content on TV shows that kids are able to access, and advertisers are the key to TV shows that either thrive or die. Without ad dollars, harmful TV shows would either be forced to tone down explicit content or be forced off the air altogether.

“Brands should be rewarded for investing their media dollars that support a safe media environment for children; and brands should be penalized for sponsoring programs that underwrite graphic sex, violence, or profanity and then market that harmful content to kids. Families can send a powerful economic message to these companies by voting with their wallets.”

Best and Worst Advertisers of 2017

The ranking was compiled by looking at the number of ads same-industry competitors ran on shows rated appropriate for families, versus programs rated as not appropriate for family viewing. The list is arranged by industry, followed by the best and worst companies in each category:

CARS

CELL PROVIDERS

CONSUMER BRANDS

CONSUMER ELECTRONICS

CREDIT CARDS

DEPARTMENT STORES

DISCOUNT RETAIL

FAST FOOD/QSR

SOFT DRINKS