Busting Ads.

A year ago, I saw my first Adbusters Magazine and I really had no idea what it was all about. I consider myself pretty socially aware but for some reason, Adbusters confused me and it actually bored me. I wonder whether I had been so indoctrinated by media advertising that to pick up a magazine that opposes it and has no advertising in it whatsoever was somehow so completely foreign that it actually shook me out of my indoctrinated state and into a new but strange state of awareness? Or maybe the guys at Adbusters have simply managed to sharpen up their message and make things clearer now? Anyway, I'm just reading the latest addition now and it all makes perfect sense. I recommend this magazine to anyone interested in beating down socially irresponsible and environmentally polluting advertising. And as a designer, I'm trying to become more aware of how I can have a positive impact through design and not put myself in a position where I'm part of the destructive force of the media either. Interestingly, the Adbusters crew are also starting their own Blackspot Coffee Shop, set to rival Starbucks but rooted in authentic, local culture.