Advert Overload

Consumerism itself in the Information Age is clearly a new breed, requiring the advertising industry to shift constantly with the tumultuous world market. Not only are consumers receiving increasing amounts of information faster (and from all over the world), their access to specific information about any product is daunting and can instantly undermine erroneous claims that would previously go unchallenged; for example the health benefits (or side-effects) of certain medications. Presently advertisements seem more like brief distractions meant to create awareness of a brand or label the grab the attention of the target demographic, and less concerned with providing information about the product. This is to capture the attention of a generation with a drastically reduced attention span. After all, if the consumer is not interested, he will simply change the channel. The rest is up to the consumer, who, if compelled by the aesthetics (catchiness, shock or entertainment value) of an advertisement, will work out the details for himself. Noting this trend, one may wonder just how obsolete advertising is becoming when many consumers can simply "google" the product and instantly know what to buy. Is advertising evolving fast enough to retain its relevance in this age of information at your convenience?