Consuming Kids
Consuming Kids throws desperately needed light on the practices of a relentless multi-billion dollar marketing machine that now sells kids and their parents everything from junk food and violent video games to bogus educational products and the family car.
Drawing on the insights of health care professionals, children's advocates, and industry insiders, the film focuses on the explosive growth of child marketing in the wake of deregulation, showing how youth marketers have used the latest advances in psychology, anthropology, and neuroscience to transform American children into one of the most powerful and profitable consumer demographics in the world.
Consuming Kids pushes back against the wholesale commercialization of childhood, raising urgent questions about the ethics of children's marketing and its impact on the health and well-being of kids.
Not gonna change when we have a system that treats us as commodities. Anyone who believes that a more humane, more just capitalism is possible are delusional ngo, ngo's
I hate documentaries these days, all they do is remind me of how insane and insipid we are, as we let lunatics walk all over us
Great Documentary!!
THis is a terrific documentary. A very well made and comprehensive look at corporate America's savage greed and disregard for the welfare of kids. I don't see how anyone could watch this and not feel heart broken at how bad we've allowed things to get since the fateful congressional move to deregulate advertising to children in the early 80s. Every parent and educator should see this film!
I used to watch TV and my children were always besides. And they used phrases from adds even subconsciously. About a year ago I made up my mind to give up watching TV. I acted radically and donated it to a hospital. And wow! The real life started! We got a lot of free time for our hobbies and closer communication. TV is like a bad dream that goes away when you wake up. I strongly recommend everyone to choose the way my family had. You will wake up and commercial won't raise you kids!
I grew up in the Reagan administration... one could say I'm an 80's kid, bombarded with all the ads, marketing, tv programs, etc yet it has not affected my imagination (some would say I have too much of it), it has not affected my social skills to the extreme this documentary make it out to be, it has not affected my educational abilities (I have certifications in Art studies, Cuban Social/History studies, and education. I also got a Bachelor's degree in Special Ed - ESE educator. Currently I'm working on a Medical Biller/Coder certification), marketing has not affected my love life (I've been with the same man for over 9yrs now so I definitely don't have issues with commitment), nor has it affected me as being a productive individual for my society... *sarcasm* oh yea deregulation had such a huge impact to my childhood and life *sarcasm*. >_>
The point is, it is truly up to the parents to make sure the development of children is molded to make them creative, productive, well-sound adults in the future. My mother made sure that I and my siblings were busy with after school programs/activities... and that we weren't so easily influenced by others. She definitely made sure that I especially was given extra class assignments so that my learning disabilities wouldn't get in the way of my independence. Most of my childhood I spent it doing free, unsupervised play and reading, barely watched tv programs, and those that I did watched were educational... I did watched the typical 80s' cartoons, but those were mainly during the morning before going to school and after doing all my homework. I was also forced to learn responsibilities at an early age... something that isn't enforced upon kids today. I would be shocked to find any kid today who is able to do his/her own laundry, broom and mop the house and make ones own breakfast by the age of 6.
Unfortunately, parents today are lazy and expect everyone else to be miracle workers for them and raise the kids for them. Sorry but the whole notion of "It takes a village to raise a child" only works if the village is healthy and well educated.. things that lack today. I take the motto "If you want something done right, do it yourself." more seriously and to heart. After all no one knows the child better than his or her own parents.
Another problem is people have too much expectation of what they ought to have and be. If people lower the cost of their lifestyles and limit expectations (and not have impossible expectations) they would have more time for their kids and themselves. I learned at a very young age to ignore what others say I ought to be... I'm a happier person because of this.
I don't allow my limitations whether that be my learning disabilities, my financial status, or my overall social status or neighborhood dictate who I am or shape my values. Just because I live in a poor, under valued city with unruly, under educated people doesn't mean I should be like that too. The same is true to the whole thing that I have to be married with a bunch of kids with a shitty job by the time I'm in my 30s. >_> I make my own path, and my own future. I'm definitely will be teaching that to my own kids. To make them question all the garbage that society throws at them, including questioning their own teachers and to challenge ideas so they can have a more individual identity. Some of my favorite students were the ones who questioned what I taught them. It got me to think and be a critical thinker... thus passing that passion and love to use my brain unto those students.
Holy crap America, wtf are you doing to your kids. No wonder most people in NY cant find Canada on a map.
The UK Gov regulated the kids ad's, but allowed product placement.
I wish they used these advertising techniques to teach the curiqulum in schools(interactive games, things to provoke discussion or interest on FB etc). Then I'd be able to remember calculus instead of the advertising jingles from years ago.
People commenting that, really, it's entirely the parents' fault for not being more proactive, not playing a bigger role in influencing their kids, and simply not removing these sources of manipulation from their lives are overlooking a huge aspect; such a simple-minded twist on this complex issue makes me wonder whether such opinions are paid for by marketers or expressed by people working in the field--after all, these kinds of games are right up their alley.
Yes, responsible parenting is key, but what these people fail to recognize is just how pervasive and far-reaching these tactics really are, and how even the best parents have been themselves indoctrinated into this consumer mindset from birth (a vicious cycle) and, consequently, are barely able to recognize the brunt force and scope of marketing and manipulation efforts, so that we are in no way whatsoever able to control and counter the ubiquity, intense research and careful planning we are all up against, not just as children.
Are people making such easy claims familiar with Edward Bernays and the power of propaganda and the depth of manipulation in all public spheres?
Are these people familiar with the studies demonstrating that "turning off" certain sources and gearing one's child towards what most parents assume are educational material are also now playing into the hands of corporate marketers who now control even the pop-educational niche and the guilt that drives parents to many such products and how such actions have little power against the potency of enculturation?
And do we really want our kids to be hermits or outsiders to circumvent such forces? How ignorant does one have to be in order to buy into the idea that such actions by marketers are OK, it's wholly the parents' fault, and banning advertising to kids is a wicked step against free speech?
It amazes me that anyone can justify such behaviour and perverted thinking! Notice that such individuals always elevate themselves as great parents while assuming a patronizing attitude towards anyone who dares complain about the deeds of advertisers, essentially calling them bad parents and inducing guilt for wanting advertisers to play a less massive role in our lives. Their position is akin to someone living in a neighbourhood which has been willingly filled with covert/undisclosed pedophiles, and blaming the parents for allowing their neighbourhood to be overrun with pedophiles once they realize what's happening, and calling these very parents incompetent once their child becomes a victim. Makes very little sense.
And people are surprised that I had our cable disconnected in 2000?
What actually shocks them is that neither of my sons asked more than twice to have it back, and over the years since then, they have only told me twice each that they missed tv much at all. But then, that surprised me, too.
the video linked to has been removed by youtube =/
how do you read the transcripts?
Simple. Do NOT buy those products!
(When we buy) = More Sales = More productions!
Lastly, raise the awareness to other people about how it is affecting the lives of people :)
Sharing is Caring! (Peace)
Great educational documentary! :) (I'm more aware than before)
What's so funny is all that same "evil" research being done on kids is being done on all of you. Click the ad to the right and I'm sure you'll be helping some company sell data about you to a marketer. Anyone who knows anything about marketing knows that you can't sell people things they don't want (at least not beyond that first trial purchase). The whole purpose and intent of that research is to discover what people what so that companys can provide it. One reason the whole educational gaming sector took off is because... people WANTED it for their children. I think one of the ladies hit the nail on the head early in the documentary, but missed the true point. The crux problem is not marketing to kids, the real problem is marketing without an awareness of how media shapes and defines the VALUES for these young kids. In an older generation, marketing is a reflection of society, but translate that same marketing to a younger generation and it becomes the definition of society, because they are still learning and growing and haven't yet come to define themselves. I think we should continue marketing to children, but transform it into a vessel at re-enforces good values- the ones the parents should already be teaching at home. But the first and foremost responsibilty is on parents, so if you think its trash then don't feed it to your kids, seek out alternative media, play activities, etc. And when marketers see the trends rising in those spaces, they'll change their tone. (i.e. growth of Organic movement). And though the documentary points out that children aren't with their parents all of the time (probably too much of the time) that blame shouldn't fall on the media, it should fall on the people you entrust your children to (i.e. advertising should not be in schools). Then again maybe, just maybe our society's whole concept of child-rearing and parental responsibility and accountability should be challenged, because maybe it does take a village to raise a child..
....Thank Reagan for this and all we suffer today in the name of corporate money hungry soul-less THUGS!!!!
I have children in the house and no TV! I homeschool my kids so they are not exposed to 70% of this craziness put there. I thank God for that. Getting rid of the TV is very empowering. Try it.
I love the comments saying its up to us to protect our children from the bombardments of ads directed at them. I say its our television and we are tired of all the damn ads period.
Sorry Divine, but advertising is nowhere near the same as exercising free speech. Full stop.
hello,
i'm currently studying marketing communication and i'd like to say that i really enjoy this documentary.
it had the great point of asking a real question, about a situation, that could have great consequences.
i agree to all the documentary but i don't change my mind. i still love marketing
@DA in reply.
Having read your reply, I realize my arguments clearly did not express enough moderation. I agree with your views on parenting. I didn't mean to suggest that we should rely entirely on acting as masses of people, and ignore one-on-one communication, individual responsibility and thought. Of course we should tailor the teachings, advice and parenting to our own specific case. I too have been parented well enough, I suppose, that by an early age I knew about commercials and fads, useless products and non-values promoted artificially, and didn't take as much interest as others. This must have come from my parents because all the other kids around me were doing it.
Your psych profile is also somewhat accurate! I do feel fundamentally powerless when it comes down to brass tacks, and I don't fully comprehend what people are saying when they talk about willpower and the ability to suddenly coax the determination to succeed alone against the tide.
I would not go so far as to say I believe nothing around me is my fault, or that I would not entertain independent thought and action. You misread my argument, I was more along the lines of increase our chances by working together, without ignoring the "individual level". A nice proper balance.
I don't expect Big Government to ease my life, rather little government of local communities. And I'm pretty sure that if all parents thought like you and parented we'd be more or less where we are today. This is were you are seriously mistaken. It isn't enough to teach your own kids right and hope your neighbors catch on and their neighbors and so on. The backdrop WILL NOT disappear simply by doing that. That IS part of the solution, the fundamental goes-without-mf-in'-sayin' base, it's true. But it won't be enough.
My message remains. Don't you people think it worthwhile to stand up for what we hold to be true? Why should there be this level of conflict in society, are you so blind that you think it normal or character-building that you and your children have to wade through lies and poisons as a matter of daily life?
Or are you afraid that without these hardships there won't be any left and the world would turn into slobs? That we'd "loose incentive"? :D Be serious.
So I hope we're clear as crystal that teaching your kids right doesn't make the world a better place AS FAST AS teaching them right + organizing to change the negative influences.
I teach parenting classes, and clearly, I'm not in peril of running out of parents to teach to, if Leeroy is any indication. Sigh. Leeroy, I have *never, ever* yelled at my kids about McD's. Ever. That said, we rarely eat fast food of any kind. When the kids were younger, they could earn a trip to McD's once a week by behaving in church. They're in early elementary school now, and they know enough about basic nutrition, cooking, and critical thinking to know that 1) McD's is garbage, 2) actual food tastes much better, and 3) *anything* you see on TV is probably a lie (not just commercials!) masquerading as some kind of truth.
Your "logic" is permissive parenting, very poorly disguised as caring. What you're suggesting is that you believe nothing around you is your fault. In reality, what you believe is that you're powerless. The television controls you. Your children control you. It sucks to be you, Lee.
Personally, I set firm but loving limits for my children, because I expect them to be bombarded with messages that go against the morals and values I uphold for their entire lifetimes...and I know I have a very short span of time (before puberty) to truly influence them. In other words, it's, like, my job to teach them. To teach them what's healthy to eat, what's healthy to watch on TV, etc.
The saddest thing about your post, Leeroy, was your addendum. You know what? If more parents thought like me and actually did their job -- namely, *parented* -- the backdrop *would just drop away.* The media culture survives -- nay, thrives! -- because of people like *you,* who expect Big Goverment to spare them the pain and inconvenience of independent thought and action. *If you people would stop buying McD's, they would go out of business!!* But it's much, much easier to blame someone else and give in to your whiny child than it is to learn how to cook and learn how to parent and learn how to think, isn't it? Pity.
Addendum: In my opinion policing your children to be untainted by the media culture of today is like desperately trying to alter the foreground against a huge unflinching backdrop of profit-driven billion-dollar marketing machines. It's disfunctional, painful even, certainly not clever.
We must bear in mind what an ideal society would be like, not just compromise Band-Aid™ after useless Band-Aid™. Therefore we must hack away at the backdrop!
I have to agree with Ron's remark that Divine Comedy's position is naive. (I know, convoluted.)
Upon reading Divine Comedy's points it seems apparent to me the personal and individual level his views stem from.
In my opinion if one looks back into history even for just a bit, it's obvious that the influence of national, trans-national and global factors has shaped the individual lives of the multitudinous many... in far more profound ways than their individual everyday decisions. Things like local culture, legislation, leading all the way up to factors like wars, famines or climate changes have undoubtedly affected human lives at least as much as their own choices.
I am inclined to liken marketing to this kind of implacable influence. In my view, sure - it IS theoretically possible to put your foot in the door as a parent and control your kid, but this effort is against the grain. The grain runs in the direction dictated by giant corporations in their quest for making profit off of children's studied weaknesses. Furthermore, it takes only the "weakest link" in the kid's entourage to thwart your attempts. If it's up to each parent to yell at their kids to stop nagging about Happy Meals and Xboxes, all that amounts to is an impressively stressed society. As a parent, why fight alone at the symptoms-end of the problem?
The best way to deal with this is fighting the root of the problem, together - changing the determining factors to our universal benefit, the actual causes of poor value systems, short attention span and dwindling creativity and lucid reasoning abilities.
Perhaps regulation is a first step, perhaps propaganda for the alternative, good habits and activities is the next (anti-smoking attitudes and organic food interest are now hip). Whatever the course of action I think it's a better idea to acknowledge we are a society, a global organism even. Thus we must take control and express ourselves in large groups as well as individually.
The power of the crowd is the wave of the future, let's hope we harness this power to change the very landscape of educating children.
@ 1.35 Hang out with the bus driver? CREEPY!!!
That was to fast. Thanks!