Is there a lemmy community, for example, where people discuss shopping strategies which minimize the risk of the purchase decision being influenced by Brand Image or Flashy Packaging? Or similar topics. Maybe what product categories have cheapest products that are bad, so you can’t apply an objective criterion while making the purchase decision, and are more vulnerable to advertising. Maybe how shopping background music is evil because it takes up mental capacity. (I’m feeling slightly autistic right now, science at least shows music makes you buy more, the rest is just my guess.) You know, that kind of thing.
Questions I would ask people interested in this (feel free to answer them anyways): Do you think making a list of every company that has ever advertised to you so that you can hold it up to yourself when making a purchase decision and only buy from their competitors, makes sense and would be worth your time? Do you love shopping lists because they make you think of the generic product beforehand, and then let you objectively decide based on price which one to buy? Do you agree with the sentiment that, like an AI in a Robert Miles video / Sci-Fi Movie resisting being turned off, I should want to resist something that will change my opinion or state of mind? Do you get a negative gut reaction whenever you see that people are studying advertising, which means most of their job is making this manipulation more efficient? Would these hetorical questions make good advertising for the hypothetical Advertising Hate Club?
The fact you are even thinking about all this critically is a great step.
Being aware of advertising and what it does to you individually and what it means socially is more awareness that 90 percent of the population who just passively accept it as a normal part of our world.
Keep asking questions … always keep asking questions … even if you never find the answers … asking questions is always better than just passively accepting the unacceptable things in our world.
The only caution to all that is … always be wary of those who give you the simple answers … especially easy answers to complicated questions. Life is a complicated process and it seldom leads us to easy simple answers.