"Advertising"

An overview of how marketers' and advertisers' ways of manipulating us have evolved into what media analyst Douglas Rushkoff calls the "postmodern techniques of persuasion." Excerpted from his 1999 book, Coercion: Why We Listen to What "They" Say .

Douglas Rushkoff's Web Site

More of media analyst and FRONTLINE correspondent Douglas Rushkoff's views on the media and marketing can be explored here at his personal site. Check out his blog, read his essays, and learn about his other work, including nine books and his previous FRONTLINE documentary, "The Merchants of Cool."

Advertising Age's Madison+Vine.com

Here's a peek at the advertising industry's biggest trade journal - subscription required to dig deeper.

AdAge.com

Another big trade journal of the industry. Free registration required.

Luntz to Republicans: How to address the environment

Read political consultant Frank Luntz's advice to Republicans on how to reshape the way they present their case for being good custodians of the environment and having a common sense, caring environmental policy. [pdf file] Luntz is featured in FRONTLINE's report, "The Persuaders."

"The Decline of Brands"

In this November 2004 piece for Wired, New Yorker staff writer James Surowiecki looked at why brand loyalty is now nearly nonexistent. "The truth is, we've always overestimated the power of branding while underestimating consumers' ability to recognize quality."

Lovemarks.com

"What makes some brands inspirational while others struggle?" That is the question posed by ad executive Kevin Roberts and it's answered at this web site by roughly a thousand consumers who have nominated their own favorite brands that have inspired them to "loyalty beyond reason." Nominate your own favorite brand here, and see what other people have chosen as theirs -- from ABBA to Zippo. And read more about the meaning of a "Lovemark," the title of Roberts' new book. Roberts is featured in FRONTLINE's report, "The Persuaders."

Reveries

Marketing pros and the people who study them flock to this online journal, with a collection of original essays and links to articles from other publications.

Adland

With almost 20,000 viewable commercials in one place -- including an entire archive of Super Bowl spots -- this is a self-described "commercial-laden delirium of heaven and hell for advertising addicts 'round the world." Free registration required.

Rob Walker's "Ad Report Card" for Slate

More viewable ads with pithy commentary from critic and journalist Rob Walker.

"How Advertising Informs to Our Benefit"

John E. Calfee, resident scholar of the American Enterprise Institute and author of Fear of Persuasion: A New Perspective on Advertising explains how the public benefits from competitive advertising.

PR Watch

The Center for Media and Democracy, a liberal watchdog group, publishes this quarterly newsletter on the intersection of public relations, government, and special interests.

The Living Room Candidate

Haven't seen enough political advertising recently? This archive of presidential TV ads goes all the way back to 1952, when Dwight Eisenhower became the first candidate to focus his campaign on tv spots instead of speeches.

Claritas

A market research company, Claritas offers some services for free, including Census data and "You Are Where You Live," a do-it-yourself narrowcasting tool. Plug in your ZIP code to find out which consumer groups dominate in your neighborhood.

Perception Analyzer

The company that makes political consultant Frank Luntz's dial technology knows its stuff. As a way of marketing its product (which helps marketers), it has its own blog about, yes, marketing.

"It's an Ad, Ad, Ad, Ad World"

Part of Wired's 10-part series on Google on the eve of its public offering, this piece focuses on the success of Google's AdWords program.

"Ads that Annoy Also Succeed"

Wired's Media Hack reveals myths and facts about the effectiveness of Internet advertising.

Electronic Frontier Foundation: Privacy/Web Marketing

An archive of resources and notable cases.

Center for Democracy and Technology: Privacy issues

A helpful information center for Internet privacy, it has updated news links and sections on spyware and online profiling.

Commercial Alert: Search Engines overview

The consumer advocacy organization offers a range of background information on its 2001 complaint with the FTC about paid results in search engines.