
In her highly entertaining book Unmarketable or Brandalism, Copyfighting, Mocketing and the Erosion of Integrity, Anne Elizabeth Moore depicts the absurdity of “our advertising-saturated, late-capitalist wonderland”. Rooted in the DIY philosophy of the punk underground, Moore describes how it became a part of the logic of mass production and corporate culture it originally opposed. The book offers a critical look at advertising agencies who use DIY techniques to reach a youth market, and at members of the underground who have helped forward corporate agendas through their own artistic, and occasionally activist, projects.
I especially enjoyed Moore’s systematic demystification of concepts we usually take for granted. Early on in the book, there is an interesting section about the use of the word “organic”:
“The definition of organic most of us are accustomed to describes living beings; refers to something that develops gradually and without force; and implies the use of agricultural practices reliant on naturally occurring pesticides, fertilizers, and other growing aids but without the use of synthetic chemicals. We think of “organic” as a synonym for natural, untrammeled, sustainable.
Yet the definition of organic used on food packaging is a technical and tautological one, describing a lack of synthetic fertilizers, toxic pesticides, or herbicides, and an adherence to a set of standards put in place by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to regulate the commercial use of the word “organic”. While the definition has been pared down from its original, the word has also become popular in packaging, advertising, and the media; it’s a promotional tool. (…)
So the schism between what we believe organic means (naturally occurring, created without using damaging substances or force, and eminently reproducible) and what it means in the commercial sphere (grown by aid only of other products also labeled “organic”) is vast. Marketers have done more than take full advantage of this schism. They have created it.”
‘Unmarketable’, Anne Elizabeth Moore, The New Press, New York, 2007
Update: Interview with Anne from Bookslut