A compilation of NFB films and excerpts is presented by an on-camera host. Designed to heighten the viewer's awareness of the "techniques of persuasion" and of the extent to which their personal lives--their tastes, values, expectations and ambitions--are shaped by an environment of commercial messages. Other ramifications of advertising are also explored in the relation between corporate interests and television programming. Films included are: TV Sale, The Bronswick Affair, Mirror, Mirror: An Advertiser's Scrapbook, Have I Lied to You Before?, An Unremarkable Birth and This Is a Recorded Message.