Reviews • Preface • Excerpt • Behind the Scenes

by Jerry Kirkpatrick, Ph.D., Professor emeritus of International Business and Marketing, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona)

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“. . . In Defense of Advertising is a very enjoyable and intellectually stimulating read. Not only does the book provide a number of powerful practical arguments, truly indispensable for anyone trying to take a hard-hitting stand against the opponents of marketing, but it also puts the somewhat neglected discussion of advertising in the very forefront of the battle for a free market economy. . . . [The book] has passed the [test of time] quite successfully.”

—Juliusz Jablecki, Journal of Ayn Rand Studies, Spring 2008.

“I was surprised at how much enlightening content Kirkpatrick was able to pack into a short book . . . In Defense of Advertising gives us, perhaps for the first time, a proper moral, not merely ‘practical’ justification for advertising, just as Ayn Rand did for capitalism and egoism . . . This is a book well worth reading—one that fully lives up to its advertised claims.”

—Don Hauptman, The New Individualist, June 2007.

“Scholarly . . . easy to read . . . rich with information and supported by numerous references.”

—Joyce Faulkner, ForeWord Magazine, May-June 2007. Read review.

“Brilliant job of combining philosophy, ethics, and economics to defend the need for advertising. . . . should be required reading for economics and advertising students . . . great book to use as a reference for term papers. This is a must read for people studying or working in advertising.”

—Stephanie Rollins, ReaderViews.com, March 2007.

“This book constitutes a thoroughgoing philosophic analysis and defense of virtually all aspects of advertising.”

—George Reisman, author, Capitalism: A Treatise on Economics

“A unique, well-crafted, and timely book defending the existence of advertising to its many and varied critics. . . . If you buy [Ayn] Rand, you must clearly buy Kirkpatrick's dismantling of the critics. . . . well worth the read for any academic, practitioner, or researcher interested in advertising, the philosophy of science, marketing's background in economic exchange, or simply for its fine writing.”

—David I. Gilliland and Naveen Donthu, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Spring 1995

“Congratulations on producing an interesting and passionate defense of advertising. . . . Well done.”

—Shelby D. Hunt, Jerry S. Rawls and P. W. Horn Professor of Marketing,
Texas Tech University, March 1995

“The author combines his knowledge of marketing with Randian philosophy and Misesian economics to create a truly powerful and compelling case for advertising. The general reader will benefit from the author's ability to distill the criticisms of advertising and his responses to them to their most fundamental form while the specialist in marketing, economics, and philosophy will gain a working knowledge of the other disciplines as they relate to advertising.”

—Mark Thornton, The Freeman, June 1995. Read review.

“Kirkpatrick presents a compelling defense of advertising as an institution in this intellectually challenging book. . . . His analysis combining reason, ethical egoism, and laissez-faire capitalism is solid. . . . an important advancement in the theory of advertising and its relationship to society.”

—Geoffrey P. Lantos, Journal of Consumer Affairs, Summer 1995

“ . . . a highly sophisticated theoretical thesis . . . [that] stimulates the reader to reflect on many social, economic, and moral issues.”

—William Forlenza, Southern Business and Economic Journal, October 1995

“Every advertising professional is required, at some point, to come out in defense of his or her activity—even within each one's confines of family or circle of friends—and this book In Defense of Advertising provides us with all the thoughts we need. In fact, it is well worth reading even for purposes other than mustering defensive arguments, for this is a book which gives us a better understanding of what we do.”

—Roberto Duailibi, President, DPZ Propaganda, São Paulo, Brazil.
From the Foreword to Em Defesa da Propaganda, Portuguese
translation published in Brazil in 1997

“For those who study advertising and ponder its social and economic effects, [this book] provides an intriguing and well-articulated challenge to what has become the common wisdom in these matters. . . . Kirkpatrick charges all of us to rethink our assumptions and [he] provides the historical and philosophical ammunition to do it.”

—Mary Alice Shaver, The Journal of Media Economics, 11(2) 1998

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