One day, someday, there will be a definitive book written on the rise of the Kardashian Empire, and the many branches of its tree. And many question the empire called Kim Kardashian and ethics. Is it a totally unique phenomenon to history? No, it is not. For you historians and Hollywood buffs, the Gabor sisters of another era came close. They couldn’t sing, or dance or act; they became famous for being famous.
On a personal and gut-level, I have no gripe with Kim Kardashian, the most notable sister. I don’t know her of course, but this most popular and most well-known of the Kardashians seems to be a decent enough person who, through the grace of a phenomenon known as reality TV and the social media has catapulted herself into dizzying heights. I have no idea of her true net worth but
Photo Kim Kardashian/Instagram
numbers such as $85 million have been thrown about. She is not the richest on the family tree; that award goes to her stepfather Caitlyn (formerly Bruce) Jenner, but at $85 million she is doing all right.
It’s about endorsements
Those who follow the Kardashians and every move they make are following a Brand. The brand is protected, nurtured, coddled and packaged by a huge cadre of handlers. It is a private company and no, you are not allowed into the inner-most of the inner sanctum.
Your skin may crawl at the mere mention of the Kardashians but you must admire the way they have been handled and sold to the world. I know that I do. I wish Kim would endorse my ethical training! Alas, I don’t think I could pay for much more than three seconds of her time.
Kim has many advertising partners, which is another way of saying that companies will pay her for promoting their products. She makes bucket loads of money for doing this.
A couple of weeks ago one of the buckets almost crashed down on her head.
Kim and her corporation have “partnered” with a pharmaceutical company. Fair enough, so did Bob Dole once upon a time.
Kim Kardashian is pregnant, and even that part of her life is fodder for making money. She also has morning sickness which is apparently something her tens of millions of social media and reality TV friends needed to know. So someone had a brilliant idea.
Enter Diclegis
Diclegis is an anti-nausea drug made by the pharmaceutical company Duchesnay USA. It is a company specializing in products for expectant moms and their newborns. They formed an association with Kim Kardashian and her Brand.
Kim took to the social media, and with a bottle of Diclegis in hand, she posted the following on the social media:
“As you guys know, my morning sickness has been pretty bad. My doctor prescribed me Diclegis, I felt a lot better and most importantly, it’s been studied and there was no increased risk to the baby.”
It is said that after the posting, digital “likes” of Diclegis shot up something like 500 percent! A good percentage of those “likes” will translate to prescriptions, of that we can be sure. Kim’s target market includes young moms, and I wouldn’t be shocked if some of them suddenly developed morning sickness just to get in some way closer to Kim.
Here’s the problem: the FDA.
Kim is being paid by the pharmaceutical company. In her liberal use of the social media, Kim failed to disclose that the drug had side effects. From everything I have read, the drug has been extensively tested. It is safe in the sense that research indicates it will not harm the fetus. However, it is not without some side effects for the mom.
Though the FDA has demanded apologies and that the social media posts are taken down, it is a big “so what?” Apologies have not come, and the posting has done its job in any case. Still, in some women the drug can cause dizziness, heart palpitations, shortness of breath and other symptoms. Because Kim likes it, does not mean someone should take it.
An ethical lesson to internalize (literally)
My fear are for those who abuse prescription drugs, especially younger people. I don’t know if Diclegis has the potential of being abused by young pregnant women “borrowing some” from a friend. It could. I fear for people when they become so wrapped up in a celebrity that they would buy or do anything that celebrity might suggest. That fear includes people popping pills just because a celebrity they admire tells them it is perfect fine to do so.
Ethically, I have a major problem with those behind the scenes who snicker at the demand they created for a prescription drug without stressing the responsibilities of promoting the product. Kim might have been clueless. Her handlers were not.
YOUR COMMENTS ARE WELCOME!
Not to mention the ethics of not disclosing the image as a paid endorsement. We in the ad world have been talking about this instance from that angle. Brilliant as always Chuck!