On Wednesday night, Jerry Seinfeld won a Clio, a prestigious award given to those who excel in the field of advertising. After offering the requisite thank yous, he explained, “I love advertising because I love lying.”
What followed is four minutes in which Seinfeld breaks down the world of advertising to its basic instincts, saying, “We are a hopeful species. Stupid but hopeful. But we’re happy in that moment between the commercial and the purchase. And I think spending your life trying to dupe innocent people out of hard-won earnings to buy useless, low-quality, misrepresented items and services is an excellent use of your energy.”
Seinfeld was taking shots at himself, too: He’s been shilling for Acura as part of his Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee series. But he did point out the more soul-sucking aspects of modern advertising and make us question our existence, so there’s that.
“If your things don’t make you happy,” he explained, “you’re not getting the right things.”
Screengrab via Affan Khokhar/YouTube