Russian radio advertisements

[david-us.livejournal.com]

I listen to a lot of Russian radio stations over the internet - mostly "Echo of Moscow."

Is there some kind of "law" in Russia that requires radio (and television) stations to clearly state when something is an advertisement? Especially on the radio, they always seem to declare, quite clearly, "Реклама!" before the beginning of any advertisement. I find that kind of humorous. In the U.S., the advertisers often try to trick the viewer/listener into thinking that they are not watching an advertisement. Further, there are some commercials that are specifically designed to deceive the viewer/listener in this regard. 

Comments

[wolk-off.livejournal.com]

+1.

Clear designation of ads as ads is required by Russian federal law, as it already is stated here.

Even the harmless and small niche music magazine that I publish, is required to mark all advertizement as such; in our case, we put a musical note sign on all ads, and the magazine's masthead says that the musical note sign marks advertizement.

There really is nothing very humorous or funny about that. And it's not only Russia; many European countries have the same law pattern.

[david-us.livejournal.com]

I guess what I found humorous, is the way they proclaim it as advertisement. Particularly, on the radio, usually it's a booming voice that is shouting, "РЕКЛАМА!!".

On occasion, in the U.S., they will inform the listener/viewer that something is an advertisement, but this only happens if the advertisement is particularly long. Sometimes they'll have 30-minute programs on T.V., which are usually on very late at night, that are usually dedicated to selling you some piece of exercise equipment, for example. Or, they'll have a 30-minute segment on the radio this is trying to sell you some new vitamin that works miracles for your health. Almost always, there is a very subtle announcer, who uses a very muted tone, "The following is a paid advertisement."

They don't scream, "ADVERTISEMENT!!!" as if they are almost proud of it.

I guess that's what I found "humorous."

[wolk-off.livejournal.com]

Yes, this makes sense. Partially it's intentional: they want this part be funny and therefore attractive for the audience. Many Russian radio and TV ads are intended to be funny, though their creators fail in most cases. The advertizing section jingles, though being not ads per se, follow this pattern in most cases; though I prefer the Ekho Moskvy styling -- "Несколько сообщений от рекламодателей" ("[here's] a few messages from [our] advertizers").