What about advertising for cancer screening? That type of advertising is shown to be cost effective and saves lives [1].
So advertising can be a good thing and a literal cancer-preventer to society.
So advertising can be a good thing and a literal cancer-preventer to society.
> [advertising is] a malignant mutation of an idea that efficient markets need a way to connect goods and services with people wanting to buy them.
Example: The Merriam-Webster for example defines "advertisement" as, literally, as "1 : a public notice".
Still,
> but I think the most common understanding of what it is would.
... is probably the reason for their "especially" paragraph and examples, right below the definition.
I understand that dictionaries are not encyclopedias, but a little more is warranted IMO.
However all “good” ADs are less effective than they could be when the population experiences a nearly unavoidable torrent of “not good” ADs.
People are savvy and broadly know the difference but on a subconscious level likely begin to perceive PSAs with more skepticism than is warranted when so much advertising masks itself as helpful advice when in reality it is selling a service based on nonsense statistics or bad faith argument.
I think some kind of pushback from society against the worst forms of advertising is needed.
The vast, vast majority of the time and the vast, vast majority of money spent on ads is nothing like this.