Customer Reviews

Lies We Live By : Defeating Doubletalk and Deception in Advertising, Politics, and the Media

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I saw the author (Housman) interviewed on Fox TV and he made a lot of sense about statistics, polls, and misleading ads. I bought the book and wasn't disappointed. It should be the Bible for anyone who wants to understand information in the information explosioin.

This is a pretty useful book that gives you pointers on decoding the lies, mindgames, and doublespeak from all kinds of areas. This includes advertising, politics, media, and even car sales. That is, areas known to be populated by charlatans, influence peddlers, and con artists. Hausman's observations on these trends and especially his specific examples of chicanery in each of those areas are quite eye-opening and entertaining. But it's not exactly shocking that car salesmen and advertisers are trying to rip you off, or that politicians bend the truth in their campaign advertising. Most of us already have that figured out, and there's not much need for Hausman to introduce these problems as if we just crawled out from under a rock and should be totally shocked. Also, his occasional lapses into brutal sarcasm can be funny but tend to make him guilty of some of the behavior he's criticizing. Alas, it's hard to write a book like this, which is a media-driven exercise, and keep yourself totally detached from the bad side of media behavior that you're describing. Hausman does know this however, and instead of simply complaining then leaving you up in the air like other writers on this subject, he actually comes up with some useful solutions to the problem. The only true weakness of this book though, is that Hausman sees lies and doublespeak EVERYWHERE. If that's the case, then there's not really much reason for hope, is there? There's no need to be as pessimistic as him. Also beware of this book's low production values (at least in paperback), with illustrations that look like they came from fifth-generation copies off an extremely ancient copy machine.

Great explanation about how the media pulls the wool over the public's eyes. Hausman breaks down the various tricks used in a way that will make you wonder how you hadn't noticed them before. One of my pet-peeves is how "news" is portrayed on television and the fact that many many people are not aware of how they are being manipulated - hence, my request for others to read this book.

A great expose of how decpetion works. I don't know whether to laugh or cry, though. The writing is funny but when you see the way that deception has become such a common part of politics it's truly depressing.

The author's straightforward, witty style is clear and engaging. Most books of this type are a bit overheated and take themselves too seriously. But even though the subject IS serious Hausman manages to wrap it up neatly without bombast. It's really a great read, highly recommended. You will learn the truth, and the truth will make you mad.

This book is really awesome. I'm 14, and the title scared me at first... but then I opened it up and it's filled with pictures and illustrations of some pretty interesting (and sometimes funny) facts. It's true that we live by lives, Carl Hausman can prove it.

If you like this, you might also like George Orwell's 1984, and Manufacturing Consent by Noam Chomsky.

Hausman has a tremendously edgy wit, and uses it to dissect the voices of deception. This is a book that should be force-fed to every young person. Lies is hilarious but also disturbing.

Tired of double talk? Innuendo? Half-baked journalism and devious flim-flam speakers? Read Carl Hausman's brillant book. He highlights the extent to which misformation has permeated business, politics, medical practices, universities, presidential press conferences, and even those pre-approved credit card applications you received unsolicited in the mail, just to mention a few. He outlines what you can do to stop this onslaught of mis-information, and includes a list of publications and organizations already in place for that purpose. He presents his material in a comic way, so there are lots of laughs about this tragic trend. After reading the book, I would like to see Mr Hausman team up with Bill O'Reilly in the Factors no-spin zone. Now these two could really keep us alert. WAKE UP AMERICA!

This book tells you how to spot "marketing strategies" in advertising, politics, and the media (otherwise known as lying). The book presented some new information to me and gave me some tips on why the media is so frustrating to watch. I would recommend it because it is a short read. Half the book is filled with numbers and addresses of places.

This is a very "lite" read. There are some solid points, some interesting nuggets of information, and some patently obvious observations. Summary - read the fine print. I had hoped for something eye opening, but there was nothing there. Certainly inoffensive, but nothing new. Responding to the 14 year old revewer below, I agree, all 14 year olds should read this book.