Oct. 15--With dozens of Web sites allowing consumers to talk to each other about products and services, it makes little sense for a company to exaggerate claims in its advertising.

And with studies showing consumers are willing to spend more on something that comes from a company they trust, it pays to advertise ethically, experts agreed yesterday during a panel discussion at the Reynolds Journalism Institute on the University of Missouri campus.

Sponsored by AOL, The Importance of Advertising Ethics included panelists from the Missouri School of Journalism and advertising and marketing companies, as well as AOL's chief executive officer, Tim Armstrong.

Unlike the days when Americans trusted the advertising they saw, these days "consumers are totally in charge," said David Bell, an operating adviser with Pegasus Capital Advisors. "Consumers' bullshit meters have gone through the ceiling. They know when marketers are acting in a push fashion."

Web sites allowing consumers to share what products and advertisements they like and dislike would have made corporate suits squirm a few years ago. But today, the Internet presents an opportunity for companies to showcase ethics, said Wally Snyder, a distinguished visiting professor and president emeritus of the American Advertising Federation.

"The good news is that consumers want and are seeking commercial information that they can trust," he said.

Panelists also weighed the ethics of behavioral advertising, where Internet companies collect a person's Web search history to place more targeted ads. A recent study by the University of California-Berkeley and the University of Pennsylvania found that 66 percent of adult Americans don't want marketers tailoring advertisements to their interests.

But Armstrong touted it as a way to keep advertising relevant. "If you don't put relevant ads in front of your audience, you're doing a big disservice," he said.

Transparency and education are key, Armstrong said. Companies should let people know how their information is being used, and more education is needed to let people know how to change online profiles to stop unwanted advertisements, he said. That ultimately will assure people they're still in control of their online information.

Nearly 70 students and faculty members attended the panel discussion, where they viewed examples of thought-provoking advertisements. In one exercise, Tim Love, CEO of Omnicom Group, asked audience members to cross their arms, then to cross them the other way. The point was to demonstrate how change is sometimes uncomfortable.

Panelist Glen Cameron, a professor of strategic communication, pointed out that not everyone in the crowd followed instructions. That served as a lesson to companies that they need to pay attention to different points of view, including those of natural skeptics, he said. "The starting point," Cameron said, "is that all voices need to be heard."

Reach Janese Heavin at 573-815-1705 or e-mail jheavin@columbiatribune.com.

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