Infomercials Do Not Exploit Viewers

In response to Howard Rosenberg’s comments on infomercials (“How Howard Rosenberg Would Change TV in ‘95,” TV Times, Jan. 1), I would like to point out that infomercials today have become an established and mainstream staple of American television. I do not believe they, as Rosenberg states, “attempt to exploit that naivete of some viewers by pretending to be what they aren’t--actual programs,” nor do I agree with his contention that infomercials have “insufficient” disclaimers to alert viewers as to the real intent of what they are viewing.

NIMA International (formerly the National Infomercial Marketing Assn.) serves as the industry’s “watchdog” to ensure that a strict set of standards is followed by infomercial producers and marketers. Since NIMA’s inception in 1990, association members (who account for approximately 80% of all infomercial programmers), have been obliged to adhere to the association’s marketing guidelines. The NIMA marketing guidelines require members to run prominent labels within their programming to indicate that the viewers are, in fact, watching a paid advertisement. These labels appear at the beginning and end of these programs and, most important, before each ordering opportunity.

As recently as five years ago, infomercials were greeted by most advertisers, broadcasters, cable-casters and television viewers with sentiments generally ranging somewhere between skepticism and disdain. Since the NIMA marketing guidelines were established, infomercials have become a highly credible form of programming responsible for more than $1 billion in annual product sales, and they have become a key marketing tool for many leading advertisers around the world.

Rosenberg also says that there is a “fat chance” that local stations and cable networks will demand more responsible behavior from infomercial producers. While television stations are partners with infomercial marketers and serve as the gatekeepers to the public for this type of programming, infomercial marketers have done their part to gain credibility with consumers through their adherence to NIMA standards that include not only guidelines for sponsorship and identification, but also for program production, product and claims substantiation, testimonials and endorsements and ordering, prices, warranties, guarantees and refunds. Infomercial marketers follow these guidelines because they understand that their livelihoods are directly related to how credible, reliable and honest they are perceived to be.

Despite Rosenberg’s concerns, this newfound credibility with viewers has not gone unnoticed by most journalists. In the Jan. 27 issue of The Times, a Business section article by Louise McElvogue (“Infomercial the Newest Rival for Broadcast Time”) stated that “the infomercial’s image in broadcasting seems to have gone legit, judging by its high-profile presence” at the recently concluded television industry convention, NATPE.

Although the article was greatly complimentary of program-length commercials, it also stated that infomercials have caused a “blow” to the television syndication business. This is not so. Infomercials generate more than $240 million annually in revenue to broadcast stations, allowing them to secure syndicated programs through the use of this source of financing. By contributing to stations’ bottom lines, infomercials are actually helping to subsidize the syndication industry, not hinder it.

Infomercials are clearly an established and extremely popular television programming format. While they do happen to be advertisements, infomercials are interactive, informative, entertaining and provide a real service to millions of viewers on a daily basis.