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This can be said of anyone who is taking part in an abusive activity, and it's equally untrue every time it is said. Advertisement is a very high-end job in the
by alxlaz 8y ago
This can be said of anyone who is taking part in an abusive activity, and it's equally untrue every time it is said. Advertisement is a very high-end job in the grand scheme of things. People who work in advertising have many career choices at their disposal, it's not like it was the only available job to people in their district and social class, the way mining jobs were in mining towns a hundred years ago. It's a choice that they made, and continue to make every day.
The advertising industry isn't the way it is because it has a will of its own. It ended up like this because a bunch of people shaped it to be like this, and even more people agreed that this is how things should be.
I can understand people who are just starting out in this activity getting a free pass -- they don't really know how things are going in this field, so it makes sense to be a little lax on accountability.
But after that? Why avoid responsibility after that? Or is "making a difference" something we're only allowed to say if you're making a good difference in the world?
- esotericn 8y agoI agree with most of what you've said, but I'd add: > People who work in advertising have many career choices at their disposal This is a rhetorical trap. If someone has no options left but to abuse their fellow man in order to survive - that doesn't make it respectable. Inevitable - sure. Something we should tolerate? No, we should call it out, and work to eliminate the circumstances that lead to that sort of thing happening.
- alxlaz 8y ago> If someone has no options left but to abuse their fellow man in order to survive - that doesn't make it respectable. Respectable as an activity, no, but understandable -- yes. From the comfort of your own home after a light lunch, it's easy to say that you should refuse to participate in the advertising industry, even if that means starving on the streets. The people who choose advertising over seeing their kids grow up without a childhood certainly don't deserve the kind of wrath and disrespect that we (justly!) show to those who engage in this dubious kind of activity so that they can get a bigger yacht.
- esotericn 8y ago> From the comfort of your own home after a light lunch I don't think this sort of ad hominem attack is productive; it instantly puts people on guard and stifles debate. I may be mistaken, but as far as I'm aware, you know nothing about me or my background. That out of the way; I think the idea that people work in advertising because otherwise they'd be homeless and starve is a falsehood. It might be true in some cases, but there are literally millions of counterexamples.
- alxlaz 8y agoIt wasn't an ad hominem attack -- I didn't mean you specifically :-). I'm sorry if that wasn't more obvious in the post. It's the same as "You generally want to double-check before you run rm -rf" -- I mean, you probably do, too, but it's meant as a general statement. Edit: other than that, I obviously agree that's an extreme (and rare) case. I just want to emphasize that it's worth keeping the exceptions in mind. The advertising industry is what it is, and everyone who chooses to work in it is responsible for what they do -- but that's true of every mentally-able adult, that doesn't mean everyone is also truly free to make a choice.
- esotericn 8y agoSure. On the latter point - I strongly disagree that people don't have a choice, but I think this is outside of the scope of the comment thread. It's the sort of thing I wouldn't mind discussing over a pint rather than in front of a screen. :P
- alxlaz 8y agoIndeed -- perhaps it's best saved for when we have a pint nearby.