UBS also punishes media with advertising boycott
Because the Finanz + Wirtschaft newspaper does not write to UBS's liking, the big bank has stopped placing ads in the Tamedia publication since spring 2015.
Markus Somm's comments on the SVP's advertising boycott have triggered lively discussions in the media world (Werbewoche.ch reported). As Schweiz am Sonntag now points out in its current issue, Somm's view that advertisers do not have to let the editorial team ride roughshod over them is a reality in practice. UBS, for example, has apparently been punishing Finanz + Wirtschaft with an advertising ban for a year and has not placed a single print ad since then. The reason: the line taken by Finanz + Wirtschaft under editor-in-chief Mark Dittli in the debate about "too big to fail" legislation does not suit the big bank. In February 2015, Dittli called for an increase in the equity ratio at UBS and CS. A year earlier, the business journalist had already been critical of the banks' policies since the 2008 financial crisis in a guest article. In September 2015, Dittli and Sergio Ermotti got into a heated exchange during an interview.
The head of the company himself is said to have ordered the advertising stop - Schweiz am Sonntag refers to statements made by a bank lobbyist. Dittli confirms to the newspaper that UBS has not placed any advertisements "for some time", but states that he does not know the reason for this. And the media house Tamedia does not comment on "possible disputes" with advertising customers as a matter of principle. (hae)
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