Ads cleverly promote addictive products. A former smoker and a recovering alcoholic, she saves her harshest criticism for cigarette and alcohol advertisers. She recalls that she took up smoking as a teen as a form of rebellion against the system. And she accuses tobacco merchants of preying on this impulse, trying to yoke their smokes to an attitude of self-reliance, of bucking the system. Also, although major brewers such as Anheuser-Busch state that their advertising is aimed only at adults, research has shown that teens are fully aware, for example, of Budweiser's frogs and lizards ads.
Advertising debases human relationships.
Although ads for cars and ice cream that drip with sexual innuendo sound laughable, Ms. Kilbourne trots out a variety of examples to back up her point. Advertising debases women. Ms. Kilbourne, a former model who said she was never comfortable with her beauty, said advertisers prey on women's needs to form relationships to make their sales pitches. Advertisers are selling products as a way to deal with disappointment in relationships. You can get commitment from products, particularly addictive products.