business is marketing, not some separable element. if you work, you're working for a marketer. as with any facet of socioeconomic life, the problem isn't marketing so much as it is the perceived prevalence and acceptability of exploitation and dishonesty, and how that influences our individual and collective behaviors.

marketing, at its core, is bringing to market a useful product or service and exchanging it with others who find it more valuable than the cost. this core is net-positive, but on top of that is plenty of leeway to create net-negatives.

we have norms and shared ethics for a reason (to rein in negatives & benefit from positives).