Selling Youth

"Selling Youth" is a specialized book that deals with the marketing discourse of perpetual youthfulness. It examines how the advertising industry encourages people of all ages to identify as consumers of youth, creating a market environment that privileges youth over adulthood. The author, Stephen Gennaro, analyzes the historical and social changes that occurred after World War II and how these influenced the perception of childhood, youth, and adulthood. Through the practices of major advertising agencies, such as J. Walter Thompson, and their research into consumer psychology, it illustrates how advertising aimed to expand the youth market to the more profitable age group of 25 to 44 years. The book offers an in-depth analysis of the emotional and lifestyle-based aspects of consumer behavior and highlights the strategies that led to the creation of a youth market based not on age, but on feelings.