so at what point do you concede that marketing drives content everywhere? it’s quite a vicious cycle – to keep publications afloat, ad revenue is the bread and butter. at what stage does it become the most important aspect of editorial content? when does one draw the line to say, screw the moolah, we gotta say what we gotta say? while ethics are not in question, it’s actually a fact that we write what we are paid to write, rather than want to or believe in writing. in a free market economy, while sustainability is important, one also needs to hold onto the right of free speech. if we say something too vicious (but true) we can alienate people and so the advertisers. if we choose not to write abt something we don’t agree with, then we may alienate the people that keep us going. the grey line has been crossed and we need to stop and reconsider if we would sell our souls to pay the price to keep the written word alive. An international men’s monthly announced their annual issue with a huge “in association with…” It is as if alcohol brands are now going to be associated with media and the top people in the world that media represents. everywhere, everyone has fallen prey to ad-driven content and marketing. so it all boils down to one thing: corporates hold the strings to everything: politics, media, consumer goods and therefore consumers. How far will we go? The show 24 is not far off the mark when it speaks about the government not being the enemy as much as the world;s corporate houses – after all, money is more powerful than power itself.