Ted Audio Collective.

Audio Collective.

This is Design Matters with Debbie Milman,

from Design Observer.com.

On this program, Debbie Millman talks with New York Times magazine columnist Rob Walker about why his beat is

consumerism, what's so great about the snuggie, and about his fantasy branding project.

I would love to hire like the brightest, sexiest minds in branding

to help me spread the message of be happy for what you have.

Here's Debbie Millman. Some may know Rob Walker as the Consumed Columnist for the New York Times magazine,

where he writes about consumers and business.

But since 1992, Rob has also been chronicling where he was when he learned that someone,

anyone of interest, had died.

Each era of this death diary can be found in his annual zine called Where Were You?

He is also one of the creators of the Hypothetical Development Organization, which tells the

fictional stories of fictional places like the Museum of the Self and the Loydering Center.

More on that later.

His most recent book is buying in the secret dialogue between what we buy and who we are.

Rob joins me today in our recording studio

at the School of Visual Arts in New York City.

It's also the first day of classes of our spring semester

and you might hear some activity in the background.

Welcome to Design Matters, Rob.

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