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What If We Made Advertising Illegal? (simone.org)

submitted 2 weeks ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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The idea feels like sci-fi because you're so used to it, imagining ads gone feels like asking to outlaw gravity. But humanity had been free of current forms of advertising for 99.9% of its existence. Word-of-mouth and community networks worked just fine. First-party websites and online communities would now improve on that.

The traditional argument pro-advertising—that it provides consumers with necessary information—hasn't been valid for decades.

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[–] [email protected] 12 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

If you just made it criminal to misrepresent what you are selling then it would be progress. Any measure of truth in advertising would be a plus. None currently exist.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

I get the impression that misrepresentation is banned... And that's why ads are often not about the product, but instead showing emotional images, playing catchy music (with brand-related lyrics), making related jokes. When what you can truthfully say is no better than the competition, you have to take a different approach...

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 weeks ago

Bless your heart.

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