10 ms·

> I'd argue that unsolicited advertising in general is immoral What does 'unsolicited' mean? Would you argue that human beings are ethically incapable of conse

by darawk 8y ago

> I'd argue that unsolicited advertising in general is immoral What does 'unsolicited' mean? Would you argue that human beings are ethically incapable of consenting to being advertised to? If not, what level of consent is required? Nobody forces you to use Google, Facebook, or watch television. > In certain cases, where spending or consuming is actually harmful to the consumer, advertising is even worse. For example, let's say I have an eating disorder and can't resist buying a certain brand and flavor of ice cream. If ads are not targeted and I'm shown ads of, say, motorcycles, I can resist those and not buy them, but if I'm shown ads of my favorite ice cream I'll be tempted to buy it, overindulge, and harm my health. Gambling ads seen by gambling addicts, alcohol ads seen by alcoholics, and so on can similarly be harmful in financial, psychological, and social ways. Sure, some kinds of advertising may be immoral. But I don't see much of an argument here for advertising in general being immoral. Often advertising is quite useful, in that it connects me with products I didn't know about that I might want. Is that kind of advertising immoral? Is it immoral when Dollar Shave Club advertises on podcasts to tell you how much you can save on razors by buying from them instead of the big companies? If so, who's being harmed?

KozmoNau7 8y ago
>"Often advertising is quite useful, in that it connects me with products I didn't know about that I might want." In other words, ads create a demand that you didn't have before. You were perfectly content without the advertised product, so why do you consider it attractive after being exposed to an ad? If it was something you actually needed in your life, you would either already own it, or you would know that you needed it, without ads. Don't confuse "need" and "want".
- darawk 8y ago
  > In other words, ads create a demand that you didn't have before. You were perfectly content without the advertised product, so why do you consider it attractive after being exposed to an ad? Before shoes were invented, demand for them 'didn't exist'. But I assume you wear them, and would be averse to eliminating them from your life, because they make your life better. > If it was something you actually needed in your life, you would either already own it, or you would know that you needed it, without ads. Do you have a smart phone? How did you find out which smart phone was good? Did the idea for a smart phone emerge unaided into your consciousness, and then you set about asking every individual on earth whether there was a company that made such a device, and then lo and behold you discovered Apple? No. You didn't. You either saw an advertisement, or communicated with someone who did. That's how you found out about nearly every product you own.
  - KozmoNau7 8y ago
    >"Before shoes were invented, demand for them 'didn't exist'. But I assume you wear them, and would be averse to eliminating them from your life, because they make your life better." I don't wear shoes because I see ads for them, I wear shoes to protect my feet from the elements and to lessen the impact from walking and running. The demand has been there as long as people have existed, because all people who ever existed have experienced foot pain and damage. It was not some novel need that people only realized because of advertisements. Please note that I am not against personal recommendations and word of mouth, unless it is deliberately manipulative and/or directly financially motivated. >"Do you have a smart phone? How did you find out which smart phone was good? Did the idea for a smart phone emerge unaided into your consciousness, and then you set about asking every individual on earth whether there was a company that made such a device, and then lo and behold you discovered Apple? No. You didn't. You either saw an advertisement, or communicated with someone who did. That's how you found out about nearly every product you own." I do have a smartphone. I found out which model to buy through reading the spec sheets and independent reviews, and by asking friends about their phones and trying them out. As a result, I ended getting a phone that wasn't bogged down by shovelware and actually had the specs I needed, most notably a long battery life. Did some of my friends buy their phones based on ads? Maybe, but now you're severely stretching the definition of ads influencing my purchases. So no, I choose not to let advertising unduly affect my purchasing habits. Of course, this all depends on your definition. If I sign up for a newsletter from a band, and they tell me they have a new album out, is that advertising? Unlike the unwanted advertising you see on billboards, in magazines and online, I explicitly opted in, and I can just as easily opt out again. So I don't consider it advertising, I consider that a subscription to a newsletter. Similarly I also don't consider a manufacturer's product page as advertising, since you have to make an active and deliberate choice to look up the information in question, it is not presented to you unasked and unwanted. I do obviously have a problem with those examples if the information is misleading or otherwise flawed.
    - darawk 8y ago
      > I don't wear shoes because I see ads for them, I wear shoes to protect my feet from the elements and to lessen the impact from walking and running. The demand has been there as long as people have existed, because all people who ever existed have experienced foot pain and damage. It was not some novel need that people only realized because of advertisements. Yes, but someone had to invent them and then tell people about them. If you invent a new product that makes the world better in some substantial way...are you going to rely on word of mouth to get it to the public? > I do have a smartphone. I found out which model to buy through reading the spec sheets and independent reviews, and by asking friends about their phones and trying them out. As a result, I ended getting a phone that wasn't bogged down by shovelware and actually had the specs I needed, most notably a long battery life. Sure, I do the exact same thing. But how did you know you needed a smartphone? You presumably weren't born into the world with a specific thirst for a small rectangle with internet access. Maybe you were personal friends of Steve Jobs, but I certainly wasn't. I found out about it via ad campaigns. And then I researched it and chose the one I wanted. Let's say tomorrow you invent a cure for cancer. Ok great, you've made it possible to substantially improve the world. But in order to actually realize those improvements, people need to know about your cure. Doctors need to be educated. Patients need to be informed. How are you going to accomplish that?

by darawk 8y ago

KozmoNau7 8y ago

>"Often advertising is quite useful, in that it connects me with products I didn't know about that I might want." In other words, ads create a demand that you didn't have before. You were perfectly content without the advertised product, so why do you consider it attractive after being exposed to an ad? If it was something you actually needed in your life, you would either already own it, or you would know that you needed it, without ads. Don't confuse "need" and "want".

darawk 8y ago
> In other words, ads create a demand that you didn't have before. You were perfectly content without the advertised product, so why do you consider it attractive after being exposed to an ad? Before shoes were invented, demand for them 'didn't exist'. But I assume you wear them, and would be averse to eliminating them from your life, because they make your life better. > If it was something you actually needed in your life, you would either already own it, or you would know that you needed it, without ads. Do you have a smart phone? How did you find out which smart phone was good? Did the idea for a smart phone emerge unaided into your consciousness, and then you set about asking every individual on earth whether there was a company that made such a device, and then lo and behold you discovered Apple? No. You didn't. You either saw an advertisement, or communicated with someone who did. That's how you found out about nearly every product you own.
- KozmoNau7 8y ago
  >"Before shoes were invented, demand for them 'didn't exist'. But I assume you wear them, and would be averse to eliminating them from your life, because they make your life better." I don't wear shoes because I see ads for them, I wear shoes to protect my feet from the elements and to lessen the impact from walking and running. The demand has been there as long as people have existed, because all people who ever existed have experienced foot pain and damage. It was not some novel need that people only realized because of advertisements. Please note that I am not against personal recommendations and word of mouth, unless it is deliberately manipulative and/or directly financially motivated. >"Do you have a smart phone? How did you find out which smart phone was good? Did the idea for a smart phone emerge unaided into your consciousness, and then you set about asking every individual on earth whether there was a company that made such a device, and then lo and behold you discovered Apple? No. You didn't. You either saw an advertisement, or communicated with someone who did. That's how you found out about nearly every product you own." I do have a smartphone. I found out which model to buy through reading the spec sheets and independent reviews, and by asking friends about their phones and trying them out. As a result, I ended getting a phone that wasn't bogged down by shovelware and actually had the specs I needed, most notably a long battery life. Did some of my friends buy their phones based on ads? Maybe, but now you're severely stretching the definition of ads influencing my purchases. So no, I choose not to let advertising unduly affect my purchasing habits. Of course, this all depends on your definition. If I sign up for a newsletter from a band, and they tell me they have a new album out, is that advertising? Unlike the unwanted advertising you see on billboards, in magazines and online, I explicitly opted in, and I can just as easily opt out again. So I don't consider it advertising, I consider that a subscription to a newsletter. Similarly I also don't consider a manufacturer's product page as advertising, since you have to make an active and deliberate choice to look up the information in question, it is not presented to you unasked and unwanted. I do obviously have a problem with those examples if the information is misleading or otherwise flawed.
  - darawk 8y ago
    > I don't wear shoes because I see ads for them, I wear shoes to protect my feet from the elements and to lessen the impact from walking and running. The demand has been there as long as people have existed, because all people who ever existed have experienced foot pain and damage. It was not some novel need that people only realized because of advertisements. Yes, but someone had to invent them and then tell people about them. If you invent a new product that makes the world better in some substantial way...are you going to rely on word of mouth to get it to the public? > I do have a smartphone. I found out which model to buy through reading the spec sheets and independent reviews, and by asking friends about their phones and trying them out. As a result, I ended getting a phone that wasn't bogged down by shovelware and actually had the specs I needed, most notably a long battery life. Sure, I do the exact same thing. But how did you know you needed a smartphone? You presumably weren't born into the world with a specific thirst for a small rectangle with internet access. Maybe you were personal friends of Steve Jobs, but I certainly wasn't. I found out about it via ad campaigns. And then I researched it and chose the one I wanted. Let's say tomorrow you invent a cure for cancer. Ok great, you've made it possible to substantially improve the world. But in order to actually realize those improvements, people need to know about your cure. Doctors need to be educated. Patients need to be informed. How are you going to accomplish that?