I plead observer bias - I&#x27;ve noticed the difference in my lifetime. It wasn&#x27;t some halcyon golden era, but I was raised by people who grew up in the Depression, and they had a certain Puritan streak about material possessions.<p>And TV advertising is just a hobby horse. The first practitioners were &quot;retired&quot; OSS officers, principally propagandists. This certainly fits my desire to avoid it for aesthetic reasons. I&#x27;d just note that Prosperity Gospel really is a thing, caused (and carried) by Cable TV.