We Are What We Sell : How Advertising Shapes American Life... and Always Has

For the last 150 years, advertising has created a consumer culture in the United States, shaping every facet of American life--from what we eat and drink to the clothes we wear and the cars we drive. * Includes original essays by noted cultural and advertising historians, commentators, and journalists * Provides analysis from experts in advertising and popular culture that places American advertising in historical and cultural context * Supplies a comprehensive examination of advertising history and its consequences across modern America * Presents an extensive analysis of the role of new media and the Internet * Documents why advertising is necessary, not only for companies, but in determining what being "an American" constitutes