#11
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Re: An Interesting Example of Markets, Information, Responsibility
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The amount of research required to know about these topics is way beyond most people. sux but it's true. [/ QUOTE ] I sincerely doubt that. The amount of research required to purchase the best washing machine for me was beyond me, but I paid Consumer Reports to do it for me and got great results. Agency is a beautiful thing. |
#12
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Re: An Interesting Example of Markets, Information, Responsibility
I think you are reading way too much into a simple advertisement. Its no different than the product being advertised as being "super tasty" or "more filling", etc.
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#13
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Re: An Interesting Example of Markets, Information, Responsibility
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The amount of research required to know about these topics is way beyond most people. sux but it's true. [/ QUOTE ] If someone didn't know what a "polyphenol" was (like me for example, they could spend all of 4 seconds looking it up on wikipedia. Like so. They would then see a handily written article that explains in relatively simple terms what a polyphenol is and why it is good for as well as providing other links both to other relevant wiki articles and outside references for more information. Maybe this person is skeptical about the wikipedia article and then spends another half a second typing "polyphenol" into google, where they will find among the first few hits links to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Medicine.net, and Cancer.gov. Finding this information might have been difficult in the 1800's, but there's no excuse now. |
#14
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Re: An Interesting Example of Markets, Information, Responsibility
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[ QUOTE ] The amount of research required to know about these topics is way beyond most people. sux but it's true. [/ QUOTE ] If someone didn't know what a "polyphenol" was (like me for example, they could spend all of 4 seconds looking it up on wikipedia. Like so. They would then see a handily written article that explains in relatively simple terms what a polyphenol is and why it is good for as well as providing other links both to other relevant wiki articles and outside references for more information. Maybe this person is skeptical about the wikipedia article and then spends another half a second typing "polyphenol" into google, where they will find among the first few hits links to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Medicine.net, and Cancer.gov. Finding this information might have been difficult in the 1800's, but there's no excuse now. [/ QUOTE ] How does that help you on the subway while you're trying to interpret an ad? |
#15
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Re: An Interesting Example of Markets, Information, Responsibility
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Jerry Seinfeld has a comedy bit about this. "Now with 20% more retzin!" [/ QUOTE ] "Finally we're gettin some more retzin!" "Ever catch yourself reading ingredients in a drug store? Oh, .03 tetrohydrozline...that's a good amount of that. They know we don't know. " |
#16
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Re: An Interesting Example of Markets, Information, Responsibility
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] The amount of research required to know about these topics is way beyond most people. sux but it's true. [/ QUOTE ] If someone didn't know what a "polyphenol" was (like me for example, they could spend all of 4 seconds looking it up on wikipedia. Like so. They would then see a handily written article that explains in relatively simple terms what a polyphenol is and why it is good for as well as providing other links both to other relevant wiki articles and outside references for more information. Maybe this person is skeptical about the wikipedia article and then spends another half a second typing "polyphenol" into google, where they will find among the first few hits links to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Medicine.net, and Cancer.gov. Finding this information might have been difficult in the 1800's, but there's no excuse now. [/ QUOTE ] How does that help you on the subway while you're trying to interpret an ad? [/ QUOTE ] I get teh intarwebs on my phone. But regardless, is there any particular reason you have to interpret it RIGHT NOW? Is the ad presenting a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that will evaporate in 10 seconds? |
#17
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Re: An Interesting Example of Markets, Information, Responsibility
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] The amount of research required to know about these topics is way beyond most people. sux but it's true. [/ QUOTE ] If someone didn't know what a "polyphenol" was (like me for example, they could spend all of 4 seconds looking it up on wikipedia. Like so. They would then see a handily written article that explains in relatively simple terms what a polyphenol is and why it is good for as well as providing other links both to other relevant wiki articles and outside references for more information. Maybe this person is skeptical about the wikipedia article and then spends another half a second typing "polyphenol" into google, where they will find among the first few hits links to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Medicine.net, and Cancer.gov. Finding this information might have been difficult in the 1800's, but there's no excuse now. [/ QUOTE ] How does that help you on the subway while you're trying to interpret an ad? [/ QUOTE ] If the ad caught my attention, as it seemed to do so for the OP, then I would be inclined to learn more about it. The guy I was replying to was making it seem as though this information might as well be buried in the ark of the covenant. My point was that's not case anymore. edit- my pony too slow, once again. |
#18
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Re: An Interesting Example of Markets, Information, Responsibility
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I don't get why you find this disturbing. Advertising is there, in part, to inform the consumer of why they should buy your product. "Chock-full of healthy polyphenols" is a perfectly legitimate way to achieve that end. And I don't know about you, but I certainly need someone to explain to me what's healthy and what's not (at least in the realm of polyphenols). [/ QUOTE ] |
#19
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Re: An Interesting Example of Markets, Information, Responsibility
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What I find disturbing is that (apparently) consumers are so concerned about food quality that they MUST have food with no transfats at all costs (borne by others, in fact) and when it comes to the potentially beneficial properties of their food an advertisers education via sloganeering is required. [/ QUOTE ] I'm assuming that food safety is important enough to you to research it. With this in mind, prior to the last several years, when trans fats became the hot new media topic, did you have any idea what they were? |
#20
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Re: An Interesting Example of Markets, Information, Responsibility
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[ QUOTE ] I don't get why you find this disturbing. Advertising is there, in part, to inform the consumer of why they should buy your product. "Chock-full of healthy polyphenols" is a perfectly legitimate way to achieve that end. And I don't know about you, but I certainly need someone to explain to me what's healthy and what's not (at least in the realm of polyphenols). [/ QUOTE ] [/ QUOTE ] Asked and answered above - it's not that I object them saying "it's got the following good thing in it", it's that they have made it clear that they don't expect to people to bother to figure out why/if that thing is actually good. For what it's worth, I'm not saying that Lipton is doing something "illegitimate" by advertising in this way. I am merely dismayed that consumers are (apparently) so lazy that they are expected to take advertisers word at face value. |
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