Should the government bail out advertising?

[Force Commander]

I guess we all want a piece of the pie.

That’s the message from broadcast veteran Bob Pittman (pictured) in a recent article for Fortune magazine posted at CNNMoney.com. The man who’s been called the “father” of MTV, and often lauded as one of the best programmers in radio history, says one of the things missing in President Obama’s $800 billion stimulus package is advertising. “To get people spending again, and the economy moving, the government needs to provide help for businesses in America to advertise their products and services,” writes Pittman. “Having looked at advertising from both sides, I developed a healthy respect for the power and necessity of strong advertising to any business.” While Pittman acknowledges that some consumers today literally cannot spend due to job loss or other financial constrictions, he believes there’s a larger group who hold the key to America’s financial recovery: those who can spend, but aren’t. “They’re sitting on the sidelines and waiting, even though they have the money and security to be spending,” says Pittman. “How do we stimulate them to spend again? With advertising. It’s a mistake to think of advertising as merely a cost — it’s an investment. Incentives for advertising need to be an important component of any plan to stimulate our economy.”

[Mike]

The government (which is funded by fellow citizens) shouldn't be bailing out anything.

Not businesses

Not banks

Not irresponsible people who have kids they can't support

Not drug abusers

Not no one, not no how.

I am against welfare of any sort. I can see it in tough economic times as a TEMPORARY measure, but for businesses, no way. If the advertising industry is failing, find another business model. Adapt or die.

One reason why advertising has been faltering in general is the fact that people are starting to become resistant to it as it becomes more and more obnoxious, annoying, and pervasive. I own my eyeballs and eardrums, not marketers. It's almost like the situation with penicillin and bacteria, the more over the top advertising gets, the stronger resistance becomes.

[AmpedNow]

One reason why advertising has been faltering in general is the fact that people are starting to become resistant to it as it becomes more and more obnoxious, annoying, and pervasive. I own my eyeballs and eardrums, not marketers. It's almost like the situation with penicillin and bacteria, the more over the top advertising gets, the stronger resistance becomes.

This is partly true, but more so because the average attention span is getting shorter. :30s are just too long now.

Also, because of internet migration, advertisers are becoming more directly targeted at certain demos. If you have a Myspace or Facebook, you see this all the time.

[sportsvoice]

Also, because of internet migration, advertisers are becoming more directly targeted at certain demos. If you have a Myspace or Facebook, you see this all the time.

Actually, I don't, thanks to Firefox and the AdBlock plugin.