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Lies We Bought

Emily Rask

Lies We Bought is a podcast that traces advertising lies and marketing deception back to where they started. Host Emily Rask spent over a decade building marketing and advertising campaigns, and now she's reading the fine print out loud (think everything from "got milk?" to "clean beauty") to show how the message got made and why we believed it. Part branding history, part consumer psychology, part 1950s wink.

If you love smart, myth-busting shows about advertising, branding, and the hidden tricks behind the stuff you buy, you're in the right place.

Pulled fresh from the oven every Tuesday at 7 AM EST. Hit follow and start questioning the receipts.

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  • 24 episodes
  • weekly
  • Avg 19 min
  • English

Episodes 24

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  • April 21 · 1 min

    THe Ogilvy Halo Effect | One-Minute What

    David Ogilvy famously said, “The consumer is not a moron, she is your wife,” and that belief shaped how modern advertising earns trust and attention. This One Minute What breaks down the halo effect and how brands use subtle signals like style, tone, and positioning to create a high class perception that makes people feel comfortable paying more. Because once something looks premium, your brain starts filling in the rest.

  • #12
    April 14 · 17 min

    Low-Fat Conspiracy: The 1994 Food Industry Scam That Made America Sick

    Somewhere along the way, we decided fat was the problem, and built an entire way of eating around that idea. This episode breaks down how that belief took hold, from early nutrition research to government policy to the food industry quietly reshaping what ended up on store shelves. Because what looked like a simple health shift turned into something much bigger, and a lot more profitable, than anyone realized at the time.

  • April 7 · 1 min

    Listerine, Halitosis, & The Fake Health Crisis | One-Minute What

    Your "morning routine" isn't a health choice - it's a series of manufactured solutions. In this episode of One-Minute What, we’re exposing Albert Lasker, the "Father of Modern Advertising" who realized that the easiest way to sell a product is to invent a problem first.Lasker didn't just meet consumer demand; he created shame. From turning floor cleaner into a cure for "Halitosis" to forcing orange juice onto your breakfast table to save a surplus crop, Lasker’s "Salesmanship in Print" changed the human psyche forever. Stop buying the "Reason Why" and start seeing the sales tool. This is your One-Minute What.

  • #11
    March 31 · 14 min

    "Bigger is Better": The Secret History of the Corporate Supersize Strategy

    You didn't want the Large fries. In this episode of Lies We Bought, we unpack the "Bigger is Better" business model. We explore the psychological traps that make "more" feel like the only rational choice, from fast food menus to the SUV loophole. Inside this episode: The Origin of "Large": How David Wallerstein invented the large fry to boost margins. The Decoy Effect: Why pricing tiers are designed to trick your brain into spending more. Unit Bias: The famous "bottomless soup" experiment and why we eat more than we need. The SUV & McMansion Era: How fuel standards and building trends doubled our lifestyle size while families shrank. "Bigger is better" isn't a natural law; it's a margin strategy. If you’ve ever upgraded for forty cents, this episode is for you. Enjoyed the episode? Drop us a review! It helps other people realize they don't need that XL soda either. P.S. This episode is the shortest one yet on purpose - because bigger isn't always better.

Showing 21–24 of 24 episodes