CELEBRITYENDORSEMENTSINJAPANANDTHEUNITED.docVIP

PAGE  PAGE 28 CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS IN JAPAN AND THE UNITED STATES: IS NEGATIVE INFORMATION ALL THAT HARMFUL? R. Bruce Money* Marriott School of Management Brigham Young University Terence A. Shimp Moore School of Business University of South Carolina Tomoaki Sakano School of Commerce Waseda University * Corresponding author: 617 TNRB, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602;  HYPERLINK mailto:moneyb@ moneyb@; phone: (801) 422-4535; fax: (801) 422-0108 Forthcoming in Journal of Advertising Research, Vol. 26, No. 1 (June), 2006 The authors acknowledge funding for this research provided by the Centers for International Business Education and Research at Brigham Young University and the University of South Carolina  Abstract This research involves a comparative study conducted in the U.S. and Japan to investigate whether the form of negative information about a celebrity (other- or self-oriented) results in differential evaluations of the brand endorsed by the celebrity. Surprisingly, we find that both Japanese and Americans view endorsed products more positively in the presence of self-oriented negative information, a possible suspension of the famous fundamental attribution error in human judgment. Implications for advertising practitioners are discussed. CELEBRITY ENDORSEMENTS IN JAPAN AND THE UNITED STATES: IS NEGATIVE INFORMATION ALL THAT HARMFUL? “Perfect [endorsers] without flaws may warm the heart of the brand manager, but they tend to leave audiences cold. If you want your [endorser] to connect, give him some problems, preferably the self-inflicted kind.” -Brandweek (Lanahan 2005) The rapid advance of media technology and its expanding reach have elevated celebrities and the products they endorse to an unprecedented level of worldwide recognition. Celebrities’ product endorsements transcend national borders, and flow both from the United States to other countries as well as from other countries to the U.S. The percentage of commercials wor