The idea that you could tell a story in 30 seconds is astounding. I don’t know why they don’t get more props, people in advertising. Done well, a good television commercial is a story, right? But 30 seconds is insane. Making someone laugh is really easy. Making people cry is really hard. And as a society, we venerate people who can make us laugh, but we’re sort of indifferent to those who can make us cry – which is crazy…

Malcolm Gladwell in conversation with Paul Holdengraber at The New York Public Library. Pair with Gladwell on brands.