Counteradvertising was first formally introduced in the United States by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in 1972, although the concept was not new.
The FTC tried to persuade the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on the need for counteradvertising air time to balance the views expressed by commercial sponsors on television broadcasts.
The FCC did not openly accept this suggestion, however, several counteradvertising spots were produced in the 1970s.
Burt Lancaster acted as the talent for counteradvertising spots including Bayer aspirin and Chevrolet vehicles.
The momentum of counteradvertising was decreasingly significantly by 1976, because broadcasters and advertisers combated the issue.