Market Creep

Two skirmishes on the anti-commercialism front:

1. The rise and purpose of "sourcing" magazines like Lucky, Cargo, and Domino, members of the immensely profitable and popular "magalog" category which is concerned "shamelessly, unapologetically, how-to-buy; it’s stuffed with 'actionable' suggestions, to use a term that marketers swiped from the legal profession. In the magalog, the how-to-buy and the aspiration merge."

2. The non-profit organization Commercial Alert's attempt to get broadcasters to inform us when shows are so heavily laden with product placements that they are, in fact, actually advertisements. In a move which will surely be followed by attemps to get him shitcanned, a member of the Federal Communication Commission has endorsed CA's initiative.