US federal law dictates that all ads must not be deceptive

The average American likely doesn’t notice how many ads they’re targets of per day

The average American is targeted with roughly 5,000 ads each day—but the conscious mind likely isn’t capable of recalling the majority of those. Even still, many consumers have reported ad fatigue due to the near-constant onslaught of ads.

Read the Federal Trade Commission's legal definition of a monopoly

The Federal Trade Commission and the US Department of Justice (DOJ) Antitrust Division are the regulatory agencies responsible for overseeing antitrust laws. Before deeming any company a monopoly or acknowledging monopolistic power in a market, the FTC conducts thorough research into market competition, price, and even other competitors' business practices.

Proof of 'natural' food claims are voluntary for most food products

Unlike the enforcement done by the USDA for meat, dairy and eggs, the FDA offers loose guidelines for using a "natural" food label on most foods, and following the guidelines is voluntary. As a result, many products labeled as "natural" can contain processed ingredients and synthetic additives.

Exclusionary ads can help win over customers, some marketers argue

Slogans like "if you don't like dark roast, this coffee isn't for you," also known as "dissuasive framing," can entice specific groups of customers, some marketers say. The shift comes from the perceived authenticity of a company admitting that a product is not perfect for everyone.

Roughly 350,000 billboards advertise across the US

The world's oldest form of advertising can feel antiquated in a digital age, but the place-specific signs are the basis of a $9B business. Learn the history of these ads and how they remain relevant in a digital age.

Ads follow you around the internet through cookies

A technology called “cookies” enables advertisers to essentially team up and follow your behavior around on the internet. This video explains why it seems like ads seem to follow you as you go from website to website—as well as data privacy advocates’ war against cookies.

The US FDA recently tried to regulate the expanded prenatal genetic tests

The agency proposed a new rule in 2023 to make it explicit that these types of tests are devices under existing law and clarify that that the agency could move to regulate them. They finalized a regulatory change in 2024 that added the words "including when the manufacturer of these products is a laboratory" to an existing law, but a federal district court vacated that edit in March 2025—returning the law to as it was before.

Google banned ads for loans due within 60 days and interest rates exceeding 36% or higher

In 2016, Google said it would stop allowing payday lenders to advertise on the search engine. According to the company, this decision was made to protect users from deceptive and harmful financial products.

The DEA enforces federal drug laws under the Department of Justice

Established in 1973, the Drug Enforcement Administration directs federal efforts to fight illegal drug trafficking, oversee controlled substances, and dismantle large narcotics networks both within the United States and internationally.

How is credit reporting regulated in the US?

While the three main credit bureaus and the credit scoring companies aren't government entities, they are subject to certain US government regulations, such as the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Feds crack down on sassy highway signs

Digital signs warning drivers to make good decisions have taken on some sass in recent years. No more, says the Federal Highway Administration.

The difference between marketing and advertising: Advertising is technically a type of marketing

While the terms are often used interchangeably, technically speaking, marketing is any effort to promote a product or service. Advertising, on the other hand, is any paid effort to promote a product or service. Learn more about the difference in this article.

Investigation finds 'influencer' dietitians paid to promote sugar, supplements on social media

A joint investigation by The Examiner and The Washington Post found that food, beverage, and supplement corporations and groups have paid registered dietitians on social media to promote content that goes against decades of scientific evidence on...

Not all speech in the United States is protected

This page explains the categories of speech—including defamation, incitement, true threats, fraud, and obscenity—the Supreme Court has placed outside First Amendment protection and how courts determine which standard to apply when speech is challenged.

The TikTok ban isn't just for TikTok

The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act makes it unlawful for any “foreign-adversary controlled” entity to distribute, maintain, or update any “website, desktop application, mobile application, or augmented or immersive technology application” within the US.

The spread of fraudulent stem cell treatments

All the coverage of research into promising (but often unproven) medical treatments involving stem cells has created conditions allowing some people to engage in activities regulators describe as scams. As this news article explains, attorneys general in at least seven states have taken legal action against businesses that promised (costly) stem cell treatments but allegedly engaged in fraud.

Learn what different trademark symbols mean

In the US, brands can technically use a trademark without actually filing a trademark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office—which is where the ™ symbol comes from. However, brands that have officially filed trademarks can use the ® symbol in their branding.

A 1912 congressional bill attempted to prohibit fake photos in the US

In the 1800s, photographs were held up as indisputable resources of truth. But the photography industry devised ways to alter photos, resulting in the rise of fraudulent photos—from shots with celebrities to the turn-of-the-century version of fake nudes—prompting government intervention.

Temu was ordered to pay a $2M fine for alleged FTC violations

Specifically, Temu allegedly violated the INFORM Consumers Act of 2023 by failing to provide its customers with information and tools to help them avoid and report stolen, counterfeit, or unsafe goods.

Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission allowed unlimited independent spending in US elections

The 2010 Supreme Court ruling allowed corporations and other outside groups to spend unlimited money on elections independently of candidates—while leaving direct contribution limits intact—expanding the role of wealthy donors and outside influence in American political campaigns.

The average person can only detect someone is lying 54% of the time

Scientific research shows that avoiding eye contact or fidgeting—behaviors typically associated with deception—do not reliably communicate dishonesty. Polygraph tests are considered "junk science," with the best means of detection relying on evidence and contradictions.

Fair use may shield AI companies from potential copyright violations

AI models are trained on enormous datasets built from content scraped from websites across the internet. Copyright law includes a four-factor test to determine whether copies of content fall under fair use, but the law's enforcement has been inconsistent.

Cat food, death, and heavy machinery: Learn about loopholes in the American tax code

Tax avoidance isn't the same as tax evasion. The tax code is full of legal loopholes accountants can use to lighten their clients' tax burden. For instance, large estates can be counted as farms and some cars count as heavy machinery.

Scientists still don't know why DEET is such an effective bug repellent

This chemical, used to keep ticks, fleas, mosquitoes, and other nuisance bugs away, is used by an estimated one-third of the US population and has been available to consumers since 1957. Researchers theorize that multiple mechanisms may be at work to deter bugs, including perhaps masking or confusing bugs' olfactory receptors.

Distinguishing between scientific theories and laws, and why both are on equal footing

Scientific laws describe outcomes of specific conditions, and scientific theories explain why those outcomes occur. Both are supported by observational and experimental data and can each inform one another, but neither can become the other. Instead, additional data can improve each towards more accurate descriptions and explanations of reality.

At the beginning of the 20th century, a group of young men ate standard American food—replete with food additives like borax and formaldehyde—as part of government research to better understand food safety.

The most expensive ad of all time was for Chanel No. 5 perfume and cost roughly $33M to produce in 2004—about $57M in today's dollars.

See this overview of the firework rules across all 50 states, ranging from a complete ban on non-professional fireworks in Massachusetts to states with more lax rules like Indiana.

Up to a million Girl Scouts sell about 200 million cookie boxes every spring, generating $800 million, largely because refusing a child is frowned upon

Despite being favored by 87% of Americans, Congress does not have term limits.

Telehealth demand for GLP-1s for weight loss is booming as consumers seek easier access.

Learn how to read a prospectus, the juicy document that any company must file with the SEC before going public.

Roughly 43 million US borrowers owe roughly $1.7T in student debt, the second-largest source of consumer debt behind mortgages.

Hedge funds, the private investment firms that trade a wide swath of financial assets, make money by imposing steep fees on investors and from the fund's investment performance.

The price of gas is a composite made up of several different factors, with the federal gas tax making up less than 20% of what drivers pay at the pump.

Listen to an in-depth conversation on the links between Parkinson's disease and herbicide exposure and the challenging pace of scientific investigation.

The story of Dollree Mapp, whose legal challenge over her 1957 conviction for possessing "obscene material" led to a major strengthening of the Fourth Amendment

Netflix profits when you're not watching, and its movies are designed that way—read a detail-rich critical essay exposing lesser-known Netflix takes

Mid-century modern graphic designers, known for their bright colors and bold lines in advertising, also found success with children's books.

A 2019 Facebook event called on attendees to "Storm Area 51, They Can't Stop All of Us," resulting in countless memes, the creation of a music festival, and eventually the arrests of those who did try to approach the area.

When you complete a CAPTCHA on a website to prove you are human, you may be unknowingly training algorithms for self-driving cars, whose systems require training data to help identify crosswalks, bicycles, and other outdoor objects.

Domino's Pizza's 30-minute delivery guarantee was responsible for the chain's 1980s surge, but it was discontinued after the company was found liable for delivery driver accidents.

Some coin denominations have ridges etched on their sides, partly to prevent counterfeiting, in a practice called 'reeding.'

About 12.5% of US adults experience a phobia in their lifetime, a diagnosis that hinges on the intense fear interfering with daily life and persisting for at least six months.

Studies suggest when you sleep is as important as how much you get, and syncing with your circadian rhythms may lead to less fatigue and improved long-term health outcomes

Mark Twain spent decades feuding with the US Postal Service, convinced its costs and regulations were bureaucratic overreach.

Prince's sexually explicit 1984 track 'Darling Nikki' attracted the ire of the Parents Music Resource Center, an advocacy group that inspired the Parental Advisory sticker, even though the song ends with a Christian message.

As of 2025, the most cited papers in science include a review of graphene, methods to improve image recognition, streamlining electron density calculations, and optimizing protein studies.

Learn how monoclonal antibodies, which mimic the body's antibodies, can fight diseases like Ebola.

SpongeBob exemplifies Aristotle's philosophy for living well because he understands that happiness doesn't come from external factors like money, recognition, or power.