Growing up in a world of hyper-specific targeted advertising, it seemed wild to me that Tom Burrell would make his career pointing out the obvious, “black people are not dark-skinned white people.” But back in the 1960s ad agencies were stodgy and boring I guess. Although I haven’t watched Mad Men. Maybe if I had I would have been less surprised.
Burrell created his own ad agency that tapped into diversity and built an empire catering to undeserved markets. The Planet Money episode provides much more detail than I will. Listen to it yourself. It is a personal favorite of mine and I get a brief hit of dopamine whenever I see Burrell’s name out in the wild.
Happy Birthday Tom Burrell.
The Keasy Depot 