3 ms·

> wouldn't the ad itself have to be harmful to mental health? No, the mere presence of the advertisement is sufficient harm to a person without capacity to und

> wouldn't the ad itself have to be harmful to mental health? No, the mere presence of the advertisement is sufficient harm to a person without capacity to understand the difference between what they need, what they want, and what other people want of them.

dvngnt_ 3y ago
I'm certainly against ads, but I'm not convinced that an ad is inherently damaging to mental health. seeing an ad for 5 gum probably won't harm a developing teen. seeing a celebrity live a lifestyle you will never have and look 'better' than you ever will might. though using revanced and the IG equivalent certainly is a QoL improvement, but I don't think my doctor will prescribe pihole to improve my mental health
- munk-a 3y ago
  At this point I'm pretty convinced that ads are damaging to mental health (at least the ones we see today). Modern advertising normalizes consumerism, drives down our attention span, and overloads us with blinking lights and exciting sounds causing us to, IMO, existing in a much higher general state of stress than previous generations. I'm no mental health professional but I suspect this period of advertising will be looked back on in a similar way to leeching and leaded gasoline.
  - dvngnt_ 3y ago
    the potential is there but everything said could also be said about a generic post on IG or a sponsored post which is a different type of ad not tracked here. IG is a cesspool but not because of the ads. look at a generic reels post and view the comments
    - johnnyworker 3y ago
      To me that just condemns a lot of social media stuff too, instead of absolving ads. By now people are so used to it being done to them, they do it to each other. Where "it" is being bombarded with sophistry and stuff that sounds/feels good, but means nothing or is flat out wrong if you take a second to actually parse it. That is the saddest part for me, that people become their own abusers and celebrate it, like drug addicts, hissing at anyone who would dream of spoiling the party. To steal from George Carlin, if a modicum of thought were introduced into all that parroting and back patting, it would completely collapse.

dvngnt_ 3y ago

I'm certainly against ads, but I'm not convinced that an ad is inherently damaging to mental health. seeing an ad for 5 gum probably won't harm a developing teen. seeing a celebrity live a lifestyle you will never have and look 'better' than you ever will might. though using revanced and the IG equivalent certainly is a QoL improvement, but I don't think my doctor will prescribe pihole to improve my mental health

munk-a 3y ago
At this point I'm pretty convinced that ads are damaging to mental health (at least the ones we see today). Modern advertising normalizes consumerism, drives down our attention span, and overloads us with blinking lights and exciting sounds causing us to, IMO, existing in a much higher general state of stress than previous generations. I'm no mental health professional but I suspect this period of advertising will be looked back on in a similar way to leeching and leaded gasoline.
- dvngnt_ 3y ago
  the potential is there but everything said could also be said about a generic post on IG or a sponsored post which is a different type of ad not tracked here. IG is a cesspool but not because of the ads. look at a generic reels post and view the comments
  - johnnyworker 3y ago
    To me that just condemns a lot of social media stuff too, instead of absolving ads. By now people are so used to it being done to them, they do it to each other. Where "it" is being bombarded with sophistry and stuff that sounds/feels good, but means nothing or is flat out wrong if you take a second to actually parse it. That is the saddest part for me, that people become their own abusers and celebrate it, like drug addicts, hissing at anyone who would dream of spoiling the party. To steal from George Carlin, if a modicum of thought were introduced into all that parroting and back patting, it would completely collapse.