The global economy would fracture, is what would happen. A good chunk of the top performing stocks would disappear, affecting banking, retirement, housing, just everything. Most of the communication channels people use today would disappear. The online tools even non-ad-businesses use to function would stop, so those businesses would grind to a halt. News would disappear. Products would stop getting made. (US) Politicians would freak the hell out because now they don't know how to get elected. It would be a categorical economic and social disaster.
What if we made advertising illegal?
911–920 of 1001 posts
Re: What if we made advertising illegal?
#912Entrenched incumbent big businesses (others than those selling advertising) love this proposal
Re: What if we made advertising illegal?
#913Impossible in the United States under the constitution. To put plainly, this would be a colossal first amendment violation, abridging the freedom of speech and freedom of the press.
Yeah not really. Advertising has been and is currently banned in many forms and situations. Freedom of speech and freedom of the press is not unlimited. https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=be04fd64-b899...
Re: What if we made advertising illegal?
#914I can’t stop thinking about this article. I spent a long time in ad tech before switching to broader systems engineering. The author captures something I've struggled to articulate to friends and family about why I left the industry. The part that really struck me was framing advertising and propaganda as essentially the same mechanism - just with different masters. Having built targeting systems myself, this rings p…
> The part that really struck me was framing advertising and propaganda as essentially the same mechanism
You might enjoy reading about– or a book written by– Edward Bernays.
Re: What if we made advertising illegal?
#915For me personally advertising doesn't work. I've never bought or done anything because of an advert. If all ads stopped tomorrow nothing would change for me. Advertising clearly works out it wouldn't be such a big industry, I just don't get it though.
Re: What if we made advertising illegal?
#916Earlier quoted context omitted.
> How do you even define advertising? Almost everyone can tell when they’re being advertised to. And almost everyone can tell when they advertise. Effectiveness of such bans would depend on enforcement, the definition is clear enough.
> the definition is clear enough. It really isn't though. There's so many different forms that we can't reduce it to "I know it when I see it" territory and depend on case-by-case enforcement. Do we ban outdoor billboards? Product placement? Content marketing? Public relations? Sponsor logos on sports uniforms? Brand logos on retail clothing? Mailing lists? I do love the idea, but doubt its feasibility. Implementatio…
Outdoor billboards, product placement, sponsor logos on sports uniforms - yes
Content marketing, public relations, mailing lists - no
"we don't have to destroy all advertising at once to make a positive difference"
Re: What if we made advertising illegal?
#917This idea isn't uncommon because it's beyond the Overton window, it's uncommon because it is silly and unworkable. * Total fantasy to think you wouldn't fall afoul of free speech, both legally (in the US) and morally. In fact, the author touts as a benefit that you'd stop populists being able to talk to their audience. This is destroying the village of liberal democracy in order to save it! * Absolutely zero thought…
> * Total fantasy to think you wouldn't fall afoul of free speech, both legally (in the US) and morally. Some limits exist on advertising exist in most countries. Do they respect free speech? > * Absolutely zero thought has been given to how to police the boundaries. Giving a paid speech? Free gifts for influencers? Rewards for signing up a friend? Absolutely zero thought is never given on policing boundaries on anyt…
> In my country, advertising alcohol is forbidden. Somehow I still manage to find interesting new beers to try year after year
This is interesting. Alcohol companies a well known to bypass this prohibition by all possible means (product placement, influencers,...) and yet I find real benefits in it. It would possibly be similar if advertising was forbidden for everything
Re: What if we made advertising illegal?
#918The crime is broadcasting without a license.
We are all guilty, making waves, swamping the spectrum with antagonistic signals that often interfere with each other.
We have too many signals in our society. The resulting noise, the cacophony of lies, are echoed and amplified and evolve into perpetual crosstalk and distortion.
Too many signals transmitting too frequently with too much power.
We can't really outlaw advertising.
But we could limit and license spectrum, like we do with radio frequencies. We could legislate the broadcasting and publication of information, based on that extended simile: regulating 'antenna power' and the airwave spectrum... Holding any broadcaster responsible for the public welfare of their listeners.
We share the infosphere. These channels are theoretically owned by us, the aggregate public. Certainly we are all swimming in the same ocean.
We might want to agree on some boundaries, and even licensing, for broadcasters.
Re: What if we made advertising illegal?
#919Unfortunately, the next question becomes “is consumer reports considered an ad” etc.
It becomes a question of what truly is an ad?
That said I appreciate this sort of thought; it would even be nice for it to be implemented, but whether it could be enforced is another question. At that point it then becomes a question of who you allow to advertise.
For a long time, hedge funds were not allowed to solicit investments publicly under rule 502c of reg D.
I could see grounds to restrict things further; I’m sick of restless leg syndrome drug treatment ads…
Re: What if we made advertising illegal?
#920Earlier quoted context omitted.
Probation only moves the activities underground. Not focusing on ad tech specifically but removing all advertising would mean finding other ways to get your message out which is advertising. The only way to stop it is to stop communication in form and function. Limiting certain types of advertising or changing tax codes to not allow dedicating expensive could shape it in a way that meshes with society. Trying to rein…
Google and Facebook sure, you could even make the argument that their non-adtech businesses would be collateral damage, but Amazon and Microsoft have substantial non-advertising related businesses. I'm curious why you lumped them in?
Amazon makes a lot from Amazon ads in their own search results. Also Amazon prime. Microsoft from bing / Windows ads. Just in news/search they made over 10 billion. Microsoft / Amazon most the bulk of their money in the cloud.