Day 2: What Would Don Draper Do?

Today we discussed how companies put their advertisements in movies and TV. It's an interesting topic because we have all noticed how advertising has changed recently due to the ability to skip commercials. More and more of the advertising is placed into movies and TV within the content rather than as a separate commercial. This seemed to annoy some of the students in the class more than others. I find is annoying mainly when I notice it because it takes me out of the story I am watching. It also concerns me because the ability to advertise becomes more important than the actual content. Movies that sell cars, toys and phones more easily will more likely be green lighted, which makes for less variety in our entertainment. However, with all that said, I don't really think it is unethical. If we put up with ads in our movies and TV then they will continue to make them that way. If people gravitate towards entertainment that does not embed ads, maybe there will be a market for that. We are a society that puts such an emphasis on the bottom line that it seems that we are getting what we deserve. The only way I can see to avoid this sort of product placement in our entertainment is to reward those who don't do it. Perhaps premium cable will make it a point of being above product placement to draw in those who are willing to pay for it. That's what we used to have to do to avoid the ads, maybe that's what we'll have to do again.