3 September

I think societies are just a whole lot of stories. And those stories are made up of all of our desires and beliefs. Marshall McLuhan used to say that social scientists should stop worrying about not having much research money, and study ads instead. Advertisers and marketers spend tens of billions every year, researching how people are feeling, what they're desiring etc. They also help shape those desires and beliefs. Watching how something is marketed will give you precision insights into what's really going on out there, in peoples' hearts and minds.