It’s pervasive, especially in the early days of marketing antidepressants to the general public.
Example, probably the most the most recognizable anti-depressant ad ever (at least in the US): https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=twhvtzd6gXA @ 0:20
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ok, I concede that one. They used the term "imbalance of chemicals". To be fair, though, that was a "vintage commercial" and undated. And everything else is not disputed: how to recognize the symptoms of depression. However, I don't fault Big Pharma for not figuring out how to explain the neurochemistry of SSRI's in a 30 second TV ad.
Well that’s kind of the point. The name SSRI is itself a marketing term. For every such drug, the mechanism of action is still unknown.
That's quite a statement. I mean, sure, the entirety of why selectively inhibiting serotonin reuptake might affect psychological outcomes may be a bit fuzzy at the end, but there is a pretty solid theory here isn't there? The drugs work by selectively inhibiting serotonin reuptake. This leads to more serotonin signaling. Sure it gets a little fuzzy from there to how this mechanism affects mood disorders with various competing theories, but "unknown" is quite a stretch here.
the mechanism that many drugs use, such as nitrous oxide aren't fully known. the wikipedia page for SSRI doesn't seem to look like marketing. a drug doesn't have to be fully understood in order for it to be effective.