ET Now ordered to take down ad after ASCI finds its leadership claim misleading

The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) has ordered ET Now to withdraw its advertisement with leadership claim in Budget news coverage. The ad was found to be misleading and in violation of ASCI’s code.

The ad was reviewed by ASCI’s Fast Track Complaints Panel (FTCP), which ruled that the claim violated Chapter I, Clauses 1.4 and 1.5 of the ASCI Code. The panel directed ET Now to withdraw the misleading claim by March 21, 2025.

As per the order seen by Adgully, FTCP observed that the advertisement prominently featured the ‘Budget for Viksit Bharat’ logo, which could mislead viewers into believing that the leadership claim was specific to Budget coverage. The 15-week data used to support this leadership claim included all types of programming and did not specify Budget-related content. Since CNBC-TV18 had higher viewership on Budget Day and during Budget Week, FTCP observed that ET Now’s claim was misleading and is likely to lead to widespread disappointment in the minds of viewers.