Advertising Tropes/Quotes

"What is the difference between unethical and ethical advertising? Unethical advertising uses falsehoods to deceive the public; ethical advertising uses truth to deceive the public."

—Vilhjalmur Stefansson (1879-1962)

"Advertising is the rattling of a stick inside a swill bucket."

—George Orwell

"All over the place, from the popular culture to the propaganda system, there is constant pressure to make people feel that they are helpless, that the only role they can have is to ratify decisions and to consume."

—Avram Noam Chomsky

Charlie: "So you're in advertising?"
Insider: "Yeah."
Charlie: (punches him in the face) "Sorry, that was a reflex action."
Insider: "That's alright."
Charlie: "Well, in that case..." (punches him in the face again)

—Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe

"As you know, Advertised Products have promised to give us clearer skin, lovelier hair, smoother complexions and closer shaves than any other people in the world. And, although these may seem like fantastic claims, just think what Advertised Products could claim if the Federal Trade Commission wasn't watching!"

—Mad Magazine, "The Museum Of Madison Avenue"

Ads are the cave art of the twentieth century.^[1]

—Marshall McLuhan, quoted in Wired

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↑ They show what people thought was important at the time they were made, and preserve the culture of the time, warts and all, for future generations.

[1] They show what people thought was important at the time they were made, and preserve the culture of the time, warts and all, for future generations.

[1]