Ackerman McQueen, the NRA, and the challenge of controversial clients

Stephen Whiteside

Agencies with controversial clients can face a significant challenge if these brands get caught up in major social and political debates.

Should advertising agencies risk their own reputations by working for – and, when necessary, standing by – controversial clients?

That question has gained renewed relevance following the recent school shooting in Parkland, Florida – an event that left 17 people dead and yielded a renewed wave of protest, both in-person and online, about gun control in America.

Much of this outrage has been directed at the National Rifle Association (NRA), a Fairfax, Virginia-based nonprofit that boasts almost five million members, and leads the lobbying efforts to maximize the scope of Second-Amendment rights.

That fury, in turn, rapidly reached Ackerman McQueen,...

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