Due to the death of Queen Elizabeth II, media houses and publishers have suspended advertising until further notice

After Buckingham Palace announced the sad news of the death of Queen Elizabeth II yesterday, media houses, platforms, and publishers decided to pause advertising. As reported by The Drum, the leading commercial TV channel in the United Kingdom, ITV, will broadcast programs without advertisements at least until the end of Friday, and Channel 4 has confirmed that all media campaigns will be temporarily suspended, with all programming dedicated to the 70-year reign of the legendary queen.

The Bauer Media radio house and social platforms have also decided to impose a moratorium on advertisements for at least 48 hours, while Daily Mail is one of the many publishers that will not publish advertisements on its portal. A similar move has been made by outdoor agencies and companies like Clear Channel and JCDecaux, which will display portraits of Queen Elizabeth II instead of paid advertisements on their media displays.

Abuse of Death

Media houses and experts had already contacted advertisers during the announcements regarding the queen’s declining health and informed them of their next steps in the event of the queen’s death. One source explained to The Drum that they created a ‘playbook’, a booklet of advice and instructions that answers questions regarding marketing budgets, temporary campaign delays, reallocating resources, and measuring effectiveness.

Although the British public has been shaken by the deaths of royal family members (most recently Prince Philip and, of course, the tragic end of Princess Diana in 1997), none have caused such disruption in the marketing market. In this context, media and advertisers are in completely uncharted territory.

However, despite this, they are unanimous in the view that a moratorium on advertising is necessary, as any advertisements at this moment would be inappropriate. Or, as Tamara Littleton, CEO of The Social Element, stated to The Drum: ‘Never use tragedy or death to sell. Ever.’