The consumer goods giant, which owns brands such as Clairol, Pringles and Tampax, pulled all of its advertising for 48 hours following the start of the Allied invasion of Iraq.
It has since returned to the air, but Robert Steele, president of P&G North America, has told a conference that it is avoiding advertising during news programming. He said that the company is shifting its spending to other types of programmes. The company spent $2.2bn (£1.4bn) on advertising last year, only topped by General Motors, which also withdrew advertising from news programmes in response to the invasion to liberate Iraq.
P&G is also facing a lawsuit from the celebrity hairdresser Vidal Sassoon, who is claiming that the company has sabotaged his name and brand.
The company bought the Vidal Sassoon range of haircare products during the 80s. The suit is alleging that P&G has withdrawn big-budget media for the brand, and has cannibalised his products for its own brands, especially Pantene.
It states: "The lawsuit seeks to restore the squandered integrity of a legendary name and expose the treachery of a ruthless, callous mega-corporation. If not thwarted by this lawsuit, the Sassoon legacy will be shattered by P&G's campaign of systematic destruction."
Sassoon is claiming hundreds of millions of dollars in damages.
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