OneWorld is a community of over 950 organisations working for social justice. A recent poll showed that one third of Americans would like to join the six per cent that have 'really made it'. As globalisation spreads, people everywhere begin to share the same wish-lists. And the same brand names are there for whoever can afford them. Advertising generates new needs and establishes brand loyalties.
Ads alert people to both new products and new versions of old ones.
Consumption today is not only about keeping up with the Joneses. The labels you wear, the food you eat, the restaurants you frequent, the haircut you flaunt, where you go on holiday, even your spiritual cravings are social symbols. While in the old days goods informed about social status, today they signal allegiance to a lifestyle. But the proliferation of options makes it increasingly difficult to know what one wants, to cherish what one has. Consumption for the few, poverty for the many - In the meantime, the gap between the rich and the poor within and between countries continues to grow.