Eli5- can radio hosts lie about sponsored products or services they have “tried” or “used”? They seemed to have tried and loved every product known to man.
In: Culture
There are limits to what you can say without having to prove it, such as slander. However in general it is not illegal to lie, even in public broadcasting. In the radio hosts defense they are just actors that is acting in a commercial. And they might have tried the product once and their fondness towards the product may be biased by the advertisement money they get from promoting it.
The only requirement is that they disclose that it’s a paid sponsorship. If they’re being ethical, they probably chose to endorse a product they already know about, or it’s something they knew they’d likely use anyway, which would also have the side effect of liking everything.
They can’t lie about the product if it’s a materially demonstrable fact(like, they can’t say that a car seats 6 when there are only 5 seat belts, but they can tell you that it’s roomy and comfortable to ride in even if the only way those 5 people will fit if if they are REALLY friendly), but they can lie about everything else.
However, they can’t lie too much because it costs them their credibility, so they have to make reasonable claims about the product.
I listen to a news radio station, and the newscasters often shill for some company or other- one thing to notice is that any given individual on the news team often shills for the same few products or services (this dealership, that exterminator, etc) For less big items, it’s actually quite reasonable that the company will have sent a free sample of their service or product- after all, what’s a couple hundred dollars in product when you’re already spending several thousand dollars for the radio spot to reach tens of thousands of listeners?
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