Jean Kilbourne (Books)

Jean Kilbourne Books

Jean Kilbourne is internationally recognized for her groundbreaking critique of women's imagery in advertising and her studies of alcohol and tobacco advertising. In the late 1960s, she began exploring the links between advertising and public health issues such as violence against women, eating disorders, and addiction. She pioneered the concept of media literacy as a preventive measure, a radical idea at the time that has since become mainstream. Her work is lauded as crucial for understanding advertising's impact on American culture, and she herself is described as a most compassionate teacher.

Can't buy my love : how advertising changes the way we think and feel

368 pages
13 hours of reading

4.1(978)Add rating

Many advertisements these days make us feel as if we have an intimate, even passionate relationship with a product. But as Jean Kilbourne points out in this fascinating and shocking expose, the dreamlike promise of advertising always leaves us hungry for more. We can never be satisfied, because the products we love cannot love us back."When was the last time you felt this comfortable in a relationship?"; An ad for sneakers."You can love it without getting your heart broken."; An ad for a car."Until I find a real man, I'll settle for a real smoke."; A woman in a cigarette ad.Drawing upon her knowledge of psychology, media, and women's issues, Kilbourne offers nothing less than a new understanding of a ubiquitous phenomenon in our culture. The average American is exposed to over 3,000 advertisements a day and watches three years' worth of television ads over the course of a lifetime. Kilbourne paints a gripping portrait of how this barrage of advertising drastically affects young people, especially girls, by offering false promises of rebellion, connection, and control. She also offers a surprising analysis of the way advertising creates and then feeds an addictive mentality that often continues throughout adulthood.