LBC pulls out 'spelling bee' ads

MANILA, Philippines - A parcel delivery and money remittance firm has pulled out its “spelling bee” television advertisement after Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Jesli Lapus called attention to the wrong message it sent to viewers, especially young children.

Javier Mantecon, sales and marketing director of LBC Express Inc., informed Lapus in a letter dated May 19 that while they believe their “spelling bee” TV commercial complied with the standards set by the Advertising Standards Council (ASC), they have already ordered the pullout of the advertisement.

“As our company gives value to our education and highly regards the efforts of your department in raising educational standards in our country… We have voluntarily instructed our advertising agency to immediately discontinue airing the… commercial,” Mantecon said.

Last May 14, Lapus wrote LBC Express president Santiago Araneta, calling attention to the commercial he said conveyed a wrong message to its viewers.

The said commercial showed a student who spelled the word “remittance” as “L-B-C” declared as correct by judges of a spelling contest.

In his letter to Araneta, Lapus said there are other positive approaches that can be used to promote company recognition. “The method used in this particular LBC advertisement may have unintended adverse consequences on the education of young televiewers,” Lapus said in his letter.

Lapus also told AdBoard chairman Charmaine Canillas that said the commercial may even “militate against our efforts to improve the quality of education.”

“We respect the advertiser’s right to promote the product or service that it offers but we believe that this type of advertisement would tend to confuse young viewers,” Lapus said. “Mass media, particularly television, exerts a very strong influence on the minds of the young.”

Lapus asked the LBC to replace the ad with one that conveys positive messages.