The regulatory pyramid meets the food pyramid: Can regulatory theory improve controls on television food advertising to Australian children?

Abstract

This article examines whether responsive regulation has potential to improve the regulatory framework which controls free-to-air television advertising to children, so that the regulatory scheme can be used more effectively as a tool for obesity prevention. It presents two apparently conflicting arguments, the first being that responsive regulation, particularly monitoring and enforcement measures, can be used to refine the regulation of children's food advertising. The second argument is that there are limits to the improvements that responsive regulation can achieve, since it is trying to achieve the wrong goal, namely placing controls on misleading or deceptive advertising techniques rather than diminishing the sheer volume of advertisements to which children are exposed. These two positions reflect a conflict between public health experts and governments regarding the role of industry in chronic disease prevention, as well as a broader debate about how best to regulate industry.