> Therefore I don't agree with the notion that advertising is inherently bad because it raises people's expectations for themselves.
It's more nuanced than that. They are using advertising as shorthand for commercial advertising. The aspirations they are encouraging are for products. This want is what is causing the unhappiness. They could increase aspiration for positive things, but that is not what advertisers are doing.
> They could increase aspiration for positive things, but that is not what advertisers are doing.
I maintain that it depends on what is being advertised. It can be used for good, evil, and everything in between. What percentage of advertising falls into which category is largely subjective.
If the product is good for society, then the ads for it are a good for society too.
If the product harms society, the ads for it magnify that harm.
Maybe that's what I should have said right from the start: advertising is a magnifier of whatever is already there. If the product sucks, advertising will help it fail faster. If it helps people, advertising will allow it to help even more people.
It's more nuanced than that. They are using advertising as shorthand for commercial advertising. The aspirations they are encouraging are for products. This want is what is causing the unhappiness. They could increase aspiration for positive things, but that is not what advertisers are doing.