I was amazed to read in last Sunday’s newspapers, that an agency plans to take legal action against measures taken by the organizers of The Chillies to prevent scam (a euphemism for fraud)! While I have little interest in being embroiled in this controversy, I thought I should, as a senior industry person, reiterate that unless the industry genuinely acts to preserve the credibility of the Awards, the Chillies will be doomed. Few will want to participate in or be associated with an awards contest that is not fair, transparent and credible.

Our agency decided not to participate in the Chillies last year due to mishandling of an issue vital to the credibility of the contest by the organizers, and the delay on the part of the Trustees to resolve the issue in a timely manner. The scam issue is a critical one for the credibility of the Awards, and there is absolutely no way that credibility can be preserved if bogus ads are allowed to participate and win.Agencies in the industry have been divided about scam, some maintaining that scam exists elsewhere and is acceptable or seeking to allow scam and disguise it with even softer euphemisms such as “proactive ads”. The organizers have thus been ambivalent on the issue.

They took some practical steps in 2008 to weed out scam entries and achieved good results, throwing out a number of bogus entries. In 2009 in the guise of “fine tuning”, they introduced a “points system” to detect scam! Unless a bogus entry was indicted by a jury on several counts and achieved a certain threshold of minus points, it passed through. This was akin to a drunken driver being declared fit to drive, unless he defaulted on several other counts such as missing license, missing insurance, no lights etc.

The latest controversy and stand-off seems to arise partially from harsh penalties being applied to detected scams including the forfeiture of an award won for a scam ad. Marion Jones forfeited her Olympic medals for lying about drug-taking, so anyone winning deceitfully must be prepared for the consequences. Unfortunately, the organizers have focused on the punishment as a deterrent rather than steps to ensure better prevention. The rule-making Blueprint Committee should be single-minded in the enforcement of scam screening and not compromise it with a flawed “points system”. Prevention is better than cure. Law and order enforcement is better than punishment.

The Chillies can be salvaged from legal battles and doom if the organizers act genuinely, stand steadfast on fair-play, listen to all voices and act wisely in setting the rules of the game. Not least, the organizers in the communications industry leaders must learn to communicate and win the support of the majority of the industry whose interests it is duty-bound to serve.

(From the blog of Nimal Gunewardena www.nimalgunewardena.com. Gunawardena is Chairman & CEO Bates 141 Strategic Alliance)