If you know us very well, you know that we try hard to keep our children from watching t.v. in the traditional sense. I have often said that it was less about the programs and more about the commercials. Don’t get me wrong, I love Disney, my kids watch dvds from “Little Einsteins” to “Spongebob Squarepants” and “Spiderman.” They have even seen “Lord of the Rings.” The catch is that I am in control of what they watch, and I’m not stuck arguing over whether or not they can have this toy or that toy because the child in the commercial for said toy was so happy to have it. So imagine how validated I felt when I saw this story on the local news last night:
“How Marketers Target Your Kids”
My favorite part was at the end, when she said
“And that may be what it all boils down to; parents must be advocates for their kids by shielding them from too much advertising and talking to them about the messages that are influencing them, perhaps for life.”
Of course, just the other day they were left to their own devices when they came with me to my friend’s house, and they went into the basement, turned on the television, and watched Cartoon Network for an hour.
We still have a long way to go.
