'Which half?' Accounting for ideology in advertising

It may be a bit of a stretch to apply Wanamaker’s – or maybe Lord Lever’s – maxim ‘I know that half of the money I spend on advertising is wasted, the trouble is I don’t know which half’ to the problem of accounting for ideology in advertising but there are stronger reasons for doing so than might be supposed. The questions of effectiveness and ideology both signal a real accounting challenge, one that involves measuring qualities and values rather than quantities and costs. Invoking the ‘which half’ maxim is also meant to nudge attention back towards the internal dynamics and practices of the industry when for too many years to adopt a ‘critical’ perspective has meant to concentrate primarily on the externally visible texts and products of the industry.