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Hoodwinked: How Marketers Use the Same Tactics as Cults
Big brands are the gods of today’s world, and the algorithm is their gospel. What makes the cult marketing vortex so attractive to otherwise smart people, and how does online manipulation render us victim to the dangerous whims of digital companies, corporations, and conglomerates? Hoodwinked reveals the new world of digital marketing where steady, seductive tactics once used by spiritual charlatans are now applied to sell everything from toothpaste to apps and even political leaders.
Companies have discovered that us consumers are lured by sophisticated and deceptive marketing techniques, like sensory marketing, cult branding, influencers, and AI programmed to induce maximum anxiety. Combined with behavior-modifying apps and persuasively designed UX that compels us to buy things we don’t need or cannot afford, goods and services like prestige education, fitness trackers, makeup, and those viral leggings from American Eagle seem like must-haves rather than luxury extras. Aided by algorithms and buoyed by the greed of social media CEOs, marketers use the same deceptive and emotionally manipulative tactics that cults do, including scarcity, an all-encompassing ideology, and a charismatic leader. Once indoctrinated, consumer-followers become ensnared in the perfect capitalist loop: anxiety-purchase-anxiety-purchase-anxiety-purchase. Then, social media appearances reinforce the cycle of purchase, performance, and panic.
Using memorable real-life cautionary tales, Dr. Einstein narrates how smart, sensible people are sucked into the cult marketing vortex and, importantly, what enables them to get out. Protection comes from understanding the scope of the problem and knowing how to spot the many pervasive tactics used. Combining industry interviews, advertising campaign analysis, and business and scholarly research, Hoodwinked offers an insider’s view into how marketers co-opt our emotions in the name of corporate profits. Armed with this information, readers can learn to spot cult-inspired marketing so they can decide how, or if, they should engage with it.
Companies have discovered that us consumers are lured by sophisticated and deceptive marketing techniques, like sensory marketing, cult branding, influencers, and AI programmed to induce maximum anxiety. Combined with behavior-modifying apps and persuasively designed UX that compels us to buy things we don’t need or cannot afford, goods and services like prestige education, fitness trackers, makeup, and those viral leggings from American Eagle seem like must-haves rather than luxury extras. Aided by algorithms and buoyed by the greed of social media CEOs, marketers use the same deceptive and emotionally manipulative tactics that cults do, including scarcity, an all-encompassing ideology, and a charismatic leader. Once indoctrinated, consumer-followers become ensnared in the perfect capitalist loop: anxiety-purchase-anxiety-purchase-anxiety-purchase. Then, social media appearances reinforce the cycle of purchase, performance, and panic.
Using memorable real-life cautionary tales, Dr. Einstein narrates how smart, sensible people are sucked into the cult marketing vortex and, importantly, what enables them to get out. Protection comes from understanding the scope of the problem and knowing how to spot the many pervasive tactics used. Combining industry interviews, advertising campaign analysis, and business and scholarly research, Hoodwinked offers an insider’s view into how marketers co-opt our emotions in the name of corporate profits. Armed with this information, readers can learn to spot cult-inspired marketing so they can decide how, or if, they should engage with it.
296 pages, Hardcover
Published February 4, 2025
39 people are currently reading
800 people want to read
About the author
Mara Einstein
16 books24 followersMara Einstein is professor of media studies at Queens College, City University of New York, and an independent marketing consultant. She has been working in, or writing about, media and marketing for more than 25 years, and been an executive at NBC, MTV Networks, and at major advertising agencies. Dr. Einstein is the author of a number of books, including Compassion, Inc. (University of California Press), which examines the growing trend of promoting consumer products as a means to fund social causes and effective social change.
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January 19, 2025In all honesty, I’m not sure how I feel about this. While this starts out looking at predatory advertising tactics, it becomes more of a comprehensive tear down of social media. I mean, I’m here for it but the focus wasn’t quite what I was expecting. I felt as we got further along the book, the advertising theme was less and less prevalent and by the end of the book, I wasn’t quite sure what I was reading.
What worked for me:
🔼 I am so here for intricately cataloged analysis of the individual and collective harm that social media does
🔼 The stuff about cults was interesting, particularly exploring the BITE model. While the book explores similar themes as Cultish (Montell, 2021), it’s a bit more comprehensive around context and incorporates more recent examples.
🔼 Section on post-secondary education in the States was eyeopening: I had no idea how insidious this was and how much students are preyed on in high school and beyond. It makes me feel even more sick about how many people are drowning in debt because they’re basically coerced to go to college.
🔼 It was genuinely horrifying to read about how invasive geofencing and tracking is in the States
🔼 I liked the section on MLMs as these have fascinated me for a long time. I was particularly heartened to see so much mention of the antimlm movement!
🔼 I learned a lot about the shady influencer stuff: although I don’t understand the draw of social media or influencers, it was interesting to hear just how insidious this type of advertising is! (And how so many people don’t seem to realize this is advertising?!)
🔼 I appreciated the view that getting humans out of cults or extremist groups is a collective societal issue, not an individual issue. Marketing, social media, and technology conglomerates need to start being held accountable for the harm they’re causing. This isn’t a game.
What I wasn’t so keen on:
🔽 There’s a very sensationalist writing style that didn’t work for me in a non-fic.
🔽 Gatekeeping context undermined credibility (what the cryptocurrency scammer was jailed for “isn’t important” but, like, why? Either tell us the whole story or don’t mention it if it’s not relevant).
🔽 Clunky wording and poor phrasing that make the content hard to decipher at times. This is especially present in quotes where the author kept in grey words and repetition that might not be jarring in speech but is awfully hard to follow when written out verbatim.
🔽 It was jarring when we’re presented compelling evidence that social media is harmful and the questionable nature of influencers and coaches and then the author goes on to both engage with and advocate for both. I noticed a lot of conflicting and contradictory points throughout (for example, in one section we’re told social media and influencers aren’t going anywhere but the epilogue opens with loads of stats about how social media is dying).
🔽 As above, I think this book goes off on a lot of tangents, so much so that by the end, this isn’t a book about advertising at all. But, while we’re presented analyses on post-secondary ed, cults, religion, social media, the author only skates over the data harvesting element of why social media is dangerous. This is kinda why I was interested in reading the book! Doesn’t dig into how TikTok is basically spyware or the ridiculous amount of data it’s hoovering up. (Although, so is pretty much any social media platform.)
🔽 I hated blaming remote working for “fewer opportunities for human interaction”. Haven’t we exhausted this dog whistle, yet? 🙄
🔽 Ends on a paltry note saying it’s “unrealistic” as ask people to stay off phones and social media and positing that all we need is more face to face contact. That just felt so staggeringly reductive to the complexity of the issues outlined in the book
There’s a lot of great content in these pages but I think it could benefit from further editing to improve its flow and cohesion. But, we desperately need more people advocating about the issues presented in this book. For her commitment to shading light on how insidious digital marketing and social media are, I’m very grateful to Einstein! I’m also really grateful I don’t use social media.
I was privileged to have my request to review this book accepted by Prometheus Books on NetGalley.
What worked for me:
🔼 I am so here for intricately cataloged analysis of the individual and collective harm that social media does
🔼 The stuff about cults was interesting, particularly exploring the BITE model. While the book explores similar themes as Cultish (Montell, 2021), it’s a bit more comprehensive around context and incorporates more recent examples.
🔼 Section on post-secondary education in the States was eyeopening: I had no idea how insidious this was and how much students are preyed on in high school and beyond. It makes me feel even more sick about how many people are drowning in debt because they’re basically coerced to go to college.
🔼 It was genuinely horrifying to read about how invasive geofencing and tracking is in the States
🔼 I liked the section on MLMs as these have fascinated me for a long time. I was particularly heartened to see so much mention of the antimlm movement!
🔼 I learned a lot about the shady influencer stuff: although I don’t understand the draw of social media or influencers, it was interesting to hear just how insidious this type of advertising is! (And how so many people don’t seem to realize this is advertising?!)
🔼 I appreciated the view that getting humans out of cults or extremist groups is a collective societal issue, not an individual issue. Marketing, social media, and technology conglomerates need to start being held accountable for the harm they’re causing. This isn’t a game.
What I wasn’t so keen on:
🔽 There’s a very sensationalist writing style that didn’t work for me in a non-fic.
🔽 Gatekeeping context undermined credibility (what the cryptocurrency scammer was jailed for “isn’t important” but, like, why? Either tell us the whole story or don’t mention it if it’s not relevant).
🔽 Clunky wording and poor phrasing that make the content hard to decipher at times. This is especially present in quotes where the author kept in grey words and repetition that might not be jarring in speech but is awfully hard to follow when written out verbatim.
🔽 It was jarring when we’re presented compelling evidence that social media is harmful and the questionable nature of influencers and coaches and then the author goes on to both engage with and advocate for both. I noticed a lot of conflicting and contradictory points throughout (for example, in one section we’re told social media and influencers aren’t going anywhere but the epilogue opens with loads of stats about how social media is dying).
🔽 As above, I think this book goes off on a lot of tangents, so much so that by the end, this isn’t a book about advertising at all. But, while we’re presented analyses on post-secondary ed, cults, religion, social media, the author only skates over the data harvesting element of why social media is dangerous. This is kinda why I was interested in reading the book! Doesn’t dig into how TikTok is basically spyware or the ridiculous amount of data it’s hoovering up. (Although, so is pretty much any social media platform.)
🔽 I hated blaming remote working for “fewer opportunities for human interaction”. Haven’t we exhausted this dog whistle, yet? 🙄
🔽 Ends on a paltry note saying it’s “unrealistic” as ask people to stay off phones and social media and positing that all we need is more face to face contact. That just felt so staggeringly reductive to the complexity of the issues outlined in the book
There’s a lot of great content in these pages but I think it could benefit from further editing to improve its flow and cohesion. But, we desperately need more people advocating about the issues presented in this book. For her commitment to shading light on how insidious digital marketing and social media are, I’m very grateful to Einstein! I’m also really grateful I don’t use social media.
I was privileged to have my request to review this book accepted by Prometheus Books on NetGalley.
November 7, 2024
This book discusses the use of social media and influencer status to help push people into buying things. There is a chapter on MLM sales and social media, too.
Overall, I don’t feel like I learned anything new, after reading a few books about cult like behavior and being mildly obsessed with MLM schemes.
I fail to see the danger in influencers pushing things they like - whether it’s something on the tiktok shop or a coffee, is it really that bad? I understand if people are blowing their life savings, harassing people they’ve started a parasocial relationship, but we all buy what’s advertised to us - and when people we love like it, it’s just human nature to want it.
Overall, I don’t feel like I learned anything new, after reading a few books about cult like behavior and being mildly obsessed with MLM schemes.
I fail to see the danger in influencers pushing things they like - whether it’s something on the tiktok shop or a coffee, is it really that bad? I understand if people are blowing their life savings, harassing people they’ve started a parasocial relationship, but we all buy what’s advertised to us - and when people we love like it, it’s just human nature to want it.
October 29, 2025
I was really excited about the premise of this book, but Einstein makes a lot of really spurious correlations without establishing a solid basis of evidence. It feels more like a ranty blog post cosplaying science. Most of the citations are news sites citing papers, not the actual papers themselves. If you've read anything about cults/NRMs, none of this will be new to you.
DNF'd at 50 pages in when the author cited the Youtube channel Illuminaughtii as a "well-researched" resource for information about cults/scammers, despite the fact that Blair Kristy's (the woman behind the channel's) video essays have repeatedly been shown to be plagiarized and incredibly low-quality.
DNF'd at 50 pages in when the author cited the Youtube channel Illuminaughtii as a "well-researched" resource for information about cults/scammers, despite the fact that Blair Kristy's (the woman behind the channel's) video essays have repeatedly been shown to be plagiarized and incredibly low-quality.
September 26, 2025
(Review refers specifically to the audiobook)
Disturbing and compelling, how involved money-makers are in our decisions from minor to life-altering. Especially interesting to me was the section on college admissions, which is where our life is right now. I wish I could say it lightened the stress load but it did not…it just made me question everything.
The audiobook would have benefited from a professional narrator, though. It often felt like a 13-hour lecture being read off the page.
Disturbing and compelling, how involved money-makers are in our decisions from minor to life-altering. Especially interesting to me was the section on college admissions, which is where our life is right now. I wish I could say it lightened the stress load but it did not…it just made me question everything.
The audiobook would have benefited from a professional narrator, though. It often felt like a 13-hour lecture being read off the page.
February 4, 2025
Having recently looked into the way we use story to inform, influence and manipulate others, I was interested to see how Mara Einstein would take on suggested parallels between the techniques of marketers and those used by cults. Technically this is a business book, but it takes an academic approach to the subject.
I found the description of the techniques used by cults to reel in and keep victims, and the parallels with some types of marketing, notably multilevel marketing (MLM) and influencers, was fascinating. For those unfamiliar with the term, MLM refers to what is effectively a pyramid scheme, but one where there is a product involved rather than just finance. Where pyramid schemes are usually illegal, MLMs aren't despite their manipulative nature.
It's worth saying that this a very US-centric book. All the examples are from US companies, most of which I'd never heard of. This isn't a negative, though - it gives an impressive insight into US culture. Many of the factors, from conspiracy theories to the parallels with religion may have some penetration in the UK or Europe, say, but the power of these cult-like tactics seems to appeal far more to the situation in the US. This comes across particularly strongly when Einstein gets onto religion, as it's a peculiarly US version of religion that puts profit at its heart that seems to tie in strongly with marketing and cult tactics.
The book did have a common flaw of business books when compared with mainstream popular science that there is a feeling that Einstein could have given a lot more of the science behind it - instead we got tons of observational reporting that sometimes was repetitious. So, for example, there was a major Nature review of misinformation which made it clear that, for the vast majority, algorithms don't shape people's viewing, pushing them to more and more extreme ideas, but rather reflect back their choices. This kind of study isn't mentioned. Even so, though, this is an important enough subject to make the book valuable, particularly for a non-US audience that wants to understand better what is happening in that country.
I found the description of the techniques used by cults to reel in and keep victims, and the parallels with some types of marketing, notably multilevel marketing (MLM) and influencers, was fascinating. For those unfamiliar with the term, MLM refers to what is effectively a pyramid scheme, but one where there is a product involved rather than just finance. Where pyramid schemes are usually illegal, MLMs aren't despite their manipulative nature.
It's worth saying that this a very US-centric book. All the examples are from US companies, most of which I'd never heard of. This isn't a negative, though - it gives an impressive insight into US culture. Many of the factors, from conspiracy theories to the parallels with religion may have some penetration in the UK or Europe, say, but the power of these cult-like tactics seems to appeal far more to the situation in the US. This comes across particularly strongly when Einstein gets onto religion, as it's a peculiarly US version of religion that puts profit at its heart that seems to tie in strongly with marketing and cult tactics.
The book did have a common flaw of business books when compared with mainstream popular science that there is a feeling that Einstein could have given a lot more of the science behind it - instead we got tons of observational reporting that sometimes was repetitious. So, for example, there was a major Nature review of misinformation which made it clear that, for the vast majority, algorithms don't shape people's viewing, pushing them to more and more extreme ideas, but rather reflect back their choices. This kind of study isn't mentioned. Even so, though, this is an important enough subject to make the book valuable, particularly for a non-US audience that wants to understand better what is happening in that country.
November 4, 2025
This is an interesting non-fiction book from a marketing professor that tackles two topics I have been obsessed with lately: social media and consumerism. As someone who has proudly deactivated her social media and also committed to a 2025 "no-buy" challenge, when I saw Hoodwinked in my local library I immediately borrowed it without a second thought. It really could have been my non-fiction read of the year, if it wasn't so boring
The topic itself was extremely interesting. I really appreciated a deep dive into all the ways marketing is manipulated to get consumers to buy, buy and buy. As someone who has been actively trying to educate myself on how to stop over-consuming, this was very welcome. I was also quite amused at the amount of Gen-Z cultural references (eg. Addison Rae) this middle aged professor was aware of. She had clearly done her research. I was so excited when I saw one of my favourite Youtubers (Hannah Alonzo) get a mention. It was probably due to Hannah that I'm so knowledgeable on MLMs, and the MLM section of the book was probably the one I found the most useful.
That being said, this book was very tedious. The entire book was so agonisingly American-centric (which, to be fair, really isn't the author's fault since she's literally American). All the cultural phenomenons that the author described in detail, such as the "college cults", all felt so specific to the USA. The influencers and the celebrities she chose to name were also very American as well. Additionally, I paid close attention to the expert opinions that she included: most of them were seemingly white Americans. This just meant that for me, this book felt a lot less inclusive and applicable to my life. Another thing I didn't like was the tendency of the author to go on huge tangents. The entire book was sort of a weird mixture of different examples of "marketing" and "cults". It felt very disorganised and it took me a while to get through.
Overall, would only recommend if this is a topic you are interested in.
Rating Breakdown
Well Researched- 4
Clarity and Structure- 2
Usefulness/Impact - 2
Originality and style - 2
Engagement and enjoyment - 2
The topic itself was extremely interesting. I really appreciated a deep dive into all the ways marketing is manipulated to get consumers to buy, buy and buy. As someone who has been actively trying to educate myself on how to stop over-consuming, this was very welcome. I was also quite amused at the amount of Gen-Z cultural references (eg. Addison Rae) this middle aged professor was aware of. She had clearly done her research. I was so excited when I saw one of my favourite Youtubers (Hannah Alonzo) get a mention. It was probably due to Hannah that I'm so knowledgeable on MLMs, and the MLM section of the book was probably the one I found the most useful.
That being said, this book was very tedious. The entire book was so agonisingly American-centric (which, to be fair, really isn't the author's fault since she's literally American). All the cultural phenomenons that the author described in detail, such as the "college cults", all felt so specific to the USA. The influencers and the celebrities she chose to name were also very American as well. Additionally, I paid close attention to the expert opinions that she included: most of them were seemingly white Americans. This just meant that for me, this book felt a lot less inclusive and applicable to my life. Another thing I didn't like was the tendency of the author to go on huge tangents. The entire book was sort of a weird mixture of different examples of "marketing" and "cults". It felt very disorganised and it took me a while to get through.
Overall, would only recommend if this is a topic you are interested in.
Rating Breakdown
Well Researched- 4
Clarity and Structure- 2
Usefulness/Impact - 2
Originality and style - 2
Engagement and enjoyment - 2
February 9, 2025
I really love how the author has broken down how companies use social media and psychology to sell products now. Seeing how companies have evolved their marketing tactics as *we* have learned to notice the typical marketing tactics is actually really fascinating.
There are so many well known examples that are broken down and they link these tactics to how cults work as well. The personality types of the influencers and how they can ‘reel’ people in with a product by creating a sense of belonging or FOMO seems too simple, yet it has happened time and time again.
By the end of the book you get into how many of these tactics funnel into religion, extremism, and conspiracy theories. Being aware of how this happens is one way to combat it from happening. This book would actually be great for older school children and young adults….. actually, adults of all ages, to read and be aware of.
This is a great book to be able to read and then take a look at your next scroll through social media through a different lens.
There are so many well known examples that are broken down and they link these tactics to how cults work as well. The personality types of the influencers and how they can ‘reel’ people in with a product by creating a sense of belonging or FOMO seems too simple, yet it has happened time and time again.
By the end of the book you get into how many of these tactics funnel into religion, extremism, and conspiracy theories. Being aware of how this happens is one way to combat it from happening. This book would actually be great for older school children and young adults….. actually, adults of all ages, to read and be aware of.
This is a great book to be able to read and then take a look at your next scroll through social media through a different lens.
April 12, 2025
As someone who is quite interested in reading anything about cults or MLMs, and who has been skeptical of social media for a long time, it all came together in this book. I think another reviewer already mentioned it is very US centric, which I think is true, but is also cause the social media speaks of have their base in the US and it’s hard to write about every country in the world.
But the core of the book is enlightening. There was crossover between other stuff I have read before but it still had many aha moments for me personally.
I know another review mentioned that it was focused on social media and I think that’s true but also necessary given that that is where the main marketing is happening in the world these days. Social media dominates how we are marketed to, so it’s only logical that is where the book would focus its attention.
Anyways I really enjoyed it and have already recommended it to others.
But the core of the book is enlightening. There was crossover between other stuff I have read before but it still had many aha moments for me personally.
I know another review mentioned that it was focused on social media and I think that’s true but also necessary given that that is where the main marketing is happening in the world these days. Social media dominates how we are marketed to, so it’s only logical that is where the book would focus its attention.
Anyways I really enjoyed it and have already recommended it to others.
February 18, 2025
I've always been intrigued by cults. What I didn't anticipate was the profound realization that came while reading it—that I, too, am ensnared in modern-day "cults" of sorts, primarily through social media and my everyday phone usage.
Mara Einstein brilliantly unravels the many layers of manipulation and control that we face in today's digital age. She deftly draws parallels between traditional cult tactics and the subtle yet pervasive ways our digital behaviors are shaped and exploited.
This book has armed me with the knowledge to better protect myself and my family from falling victim to the schemes of our current world. From recognizing manipulative patterns to actively making conscious choices in our digital lives, "Hoodwinked" serves as a crucial guide. This book is for everyone who is on social media, has a smart phone or basically does not live under a rock :/
Mara Einstein brilliantly unravels the many layers of manipulation and control that we face in today's digital age. She deftly draws parallels between traditional cult tactics and the subtle yet pervasive ways our digital behaviors are shaped and exploited.
This book has armed me with the knowledge to better protect myself and my family from falling victim to the schemes of our current world. From recognizing manipulative patterns to actively making conscious choices in our digital lives, "Hoodwinked" serves as a crucial guide. This book is for everyone who is on social media, has a smart phone or basically does not live under a rock :/
May 7, 2025
This is one of those books that started out so good but then it just fell flat for me. We live in a time where everyone calls everything cults, but this author did such an amazing job in the first half relating marketers and influencers to cult leaders and how they manipulate us into buying things. I thought it was super interesting, and I couldn’t stop reading it.
Unfortunately, it eventually got to the point where all the book did was discuss influencers, and it just became a bit repetitive for me. Maybe it’s because I’ve been a content creator for a while now, but I just feel like the book could have taken a few more interesting directions. I’m sure a lot of people will love this book, so you should for sure check it out if it sounds interesting.
Unfortunately, it eventually got to the point where all the book did was discuss influencers, and it just became a bit repetitive for me. Maybe it’s because I’ve been a content creator for a while now, but I just feel like the book could have taken a few more interesting directions. I’m sure a lot of people will love this book, so you should for sure check it out if it sounds interesting.
May 30, 2025
Interesting book, but I the author jumped around too much to be truly effective. The section on the “cult of college” felt a little out of left field; it was well researched and thought-provoking, but I wasn’t sure it worked in this book and lost some of its effectiveness.
Two quotes that will stay with me, however:
“Whoever is the best marketer wins.”
“Social media companies aid extremism, and they know it. They could very easily change their algorithms, but they don’t because it will impact their bottom line.”
It’s all about the money.
Two quotes that will stay with me, however:
“Whoever is the best marketer wins.”
“Social media companies aid extremism, and they know it. They could very easily change their algorithms, but they don’t because it will impact their bottom line.”
It’s all about the money.
September 29, 2025
(audiobook version)
A deep-dive into the tricks and psychological manipulation we're put under every day, by marketers, via social media, multi-level marketing, higher education, and more. Really interesting if you're interested in why people do what they do, or if you've ever felt like the internet knows you better than you know yourself.
The audiobook is narrated by the author, which is actually a negative in this case. The narration is uneven, like listening to a lecture being read from paper with little or no rehearsal.
A deep-dive into the tricks and psychological manipulation we're put under every day, by marketers, via social media, multi-level marketing, higher education, and more. Really interesting if you're interested in why people do what they do, or if you've ever felt like the internet knows you better than you know yourself.
The audiobook is narrated by the author, which is actually a negative in this case. The narration is uneven, like listening to a lecture being read from paper with little or no rehearsal.
July 10, 2025
The author mentions illuminaughtii as a great source to learn about MLMs. Unfortunately, there’s plenty of evidence that illuminaughtii is a serial plagiarist, which somewhat hurts the author’s sense of authority.
Otherwise an interesting enough book that seems like it could have been much shorter given that the same points seemed to be hit repeatedly (marketing uses the three big cult tactics whether that’s political, athletic brands, or in some ways religious influencers).
Otherwise an interesting enough book that seems like it could have been much shorter given that the same points seemed to be hit repeatedly (marketing uses the three big cult tactics whether that’s political, athletic brands, or in some ways religious influencers).
November 12, 2025
Well-researched piece on what tactics are used on consumers and future customers so they 'buy in' on brands and become 'brand ambassadors' themselves. These 'brands' range drastically from self-help groups, religious institutions, MLMs, lifestyle companies, marketing campaigns, to the rising star of influencers and podcast hosts. The author breaks down the monetary value and the ripple effect that these unassuming strategies have on people's wallets and their data.
October 20, 2025
Quick impressions: The book is interesting overall. The author approaches the topic incrementally, so it is easy to understand. She combines expertise, research, and testimonials to present his points. An issue with the book is that after the first half or so it gets repetitive.
(Full detailed review with additional reading notes available on my blog soon.)
(Full detailed review with additional reading notes available on my blog soon.)
July 31, 2025
Very funny and witty. The writing is nothing spectacular—though, I appreciated Einstein’s humor thoroughly—however, the critiques she makes are spot on when considering how marketing (*cough* capitalism) has shaped our world into a cesspool of advertising.
February 4, 2025
Insightful, smart, frightening. A helpful window into what’s going on around us and rapidly evolving all the time.
May 20, 2025
This took me awhile to read but totally worth it: it’s informative, eye-opening, and demonstrates the tactics through various real life examples happening even now. Highly recommend.
August 7, 2025
Ultra important subject and flag to be raised but poorly executed.
August 10, 2025
dnf page 55. plan to revisit later as the main idea is very interesting!!!
October 6, 2025
Interesting, but the author's criticisms of Section 230 show a fundamental misunderstanding of this provision.
November 2, 2025
It is a good book. But her political bias starts showing through later in the book. By the end she is in full TDS. Great start, sloppy finish.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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