Sure, measurement before the Internet involved social science instrumentation rather than log analysis; but that does not mean it was not careful, rigorous, and even cutting edge for its time.
There are lots and lots of people who don't want precise analytics.
Why don't some people want precise analytics? Because if you aren't sure if something worked, then you can't be at fault for it not working.
Measuring closely what works and what doesn't is of course better, but there are plenty of people who are scared about losing their jobs who would prefer not to track.
My objection is to the idea that growth hackers are the first people who have ever tried to use data to drive marketing decisions. They aren't.