Жарнамалық мақала: Жасырын жарнама және журналистикалық этика мәселелері

Advertisement disguised as editorial
An advertorial is an advertisement in the form of editorial content. The term "advertorial" is a blend (see portmanteau) of the words "advertisement" and "editorial." Merriam Webster dates the origin of the word to 1946. In printed publications, the advertisement is usually written to resemble an objective article and designed to ostensibly look like a legitimate and independent news story. In television, the advertisement is similar to a short infomercial presentation of products or services. These can either be in the form of a television commercial or as a segment on a talk show or variety show. In radio, these can take the form of a radio commercial or a discussion between the announcer and representative. The concept of internet based advertorials is linked to native advertising; however, whether the two terms are synonymous is contested. Advertorials, especially those that are not clearly disclosed, are the subject of controversy in journalism ethics and marketing ethics. Researchers have found that they often mislead readers who are unaware of their origin, co opting and damaging a publication's reputation. As many as two thirds of readers confuse advertorials for reporting, according to a 2016 study.

Advertorials on television are longer than typical television advertisements. They are usually played on cable and satellite channels, which are less expensive than broadcast television. This was given further credence to reports on paid news that appeared in 2015 18 in selected Indian news papers and channels connecting the dark links between the two largest political parties BJP and Congress, black money and payments made to media channels to paint them in a better light. In 2018, a sting operation nicknamed "Cobrabost 136" by Cobrapost, an Indian investigative journalism agency showed videos of meetings held with the 15 largest media companies, who agreed to publish / telecast communally and politically motivated and misleading information as a campaign in return for payments, routed through advertising and PR companies.

In the United States, locally produced daytime television rose in the mid 2000s as local television stations (especially those with the NBC and Fox Networks, where NBC gave up the most programming time) saw network time on weekday mornings after 9am returned to local control and saw new national talk shows either fail or not attract the right demographic to a timeslot. Beginning with Daytime on Media General station WFLA TV in Tampa, Florida in the early 2000s, a new format featuring the structure of a traditional locally produced daytime show with the usual format of light talk, health features, beauty tips and recipe segments which was popular up to the early 1990s (when expansion of newscasts became a much less expensive, more dependable form of revenue) came into use. Some of these shows, such as WKBW TV's AM Buffalo in Buffalo, New York, seamlessly made the transition from a traditional local talk show to a paid program with little notice. This type of program usually features light talk designed to draw in mainly a female audience, and then presentation of products, services, and packages by local businesses; for example a basement waterproofing system might be discussed by the representative of a company in that business with the hosts, along with perhaps a special offer for viewers. Like in Australia, to prevent any conflict of interest concerns with their counterpart local newsrooms, the hosts of advertorials have no communication with those personalities in the news department on air, nor do they even mention any breaking news stories or perform a handoff to the newsroom for further details. In U. S. newspapers, for example, ExxonMobil purchased an advertorial positioned next to The New York Times op ed page every Thursday between 1972 and 2001.

On radio, advertorials can feature discussions between an announcer or a DJ and the representative of a business. The discussion may feature testimonials from customers or a personal endorsement from the announcer. The products featured can range from mobile phone/cable/satellite providers, insurance, financing, auto servicing, travel agencies, and upcoming concerts or music releases.

The "cash for comment affair" was an Australian scandal that broke in 1999, concerning paid advertising in radio that was presented to the audience in such a way as to sound like editorial commentary.

In the United Kingdom, the Advertising Standards Authority requires advertorials to be clearly marked as such. In one case, the Scottish newspaper The Herald published a feature titled "Professional Brief" that had been submitted by Glasgow based French Duncan Chartered Accountants. According to a complaint, it did not clearly indicate that it was a paid advertisement. The newspaper argued that, because it was a "sponsored column" and it was indicated that the opinions expressed were those of the author, it did not have to refer to it as an advertisement. The ASA responded that, because payment was given in exchange for the publication of the columns and because the content was provided by the marketers rather than the newspaper, they considered the columns advertisements and required that they indicate as much. For magazines in the United States mailed at the publication rate, the Postal Service has regulations as to how to mark editorial and advertising. Domestic Mail Manual states that under 18 USC 1734, "if a valuable consideration is paid, accepted, or promised for the publication of any editorial or other reading matter in a Periodicals publication, that matter must be plainly marked 'advertisement' by the publisher. When a single item of paid editorial or other reading matter occupies more than one page, it need only be marked 'advertisement' on the first page. The word "advertisement" may be included in a statement that explains why the material is marked 'advertisement.' Such a statement must be prominent on the first page of the material and the word 'advertisement' in the statement must be in bold or italicized print or otherwise emphasized so that it can be plainly seen. Editors or publishers who print such matter without plainly marking it 'advertisement' are subject to a fine of not more than $500."