Consuming Kids part 1 of 7

August 5, 2010 on 4:57 pm | In Marketing | 25 Comments


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. Featuring: Dan Acuff | Enola Aird | Michael Brody | Nancy Carlsson-Paige | Josh Golin | Allen Kanner | Velma LaPoint | Diane Levin | Susan Linn | Robert Reiher | Michael Rich | Gary Ruskin | Nick Russell | Juliet Schor | Betsy Taylor | David Walsh

25 Comments

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  1. the best part is we can CHOOSE NOT to live this way!

    Comment by trx1961 — Thursday, August 5, 2010 #

  2. @cashox3 it’s true

    Comment by missedagain — Thursday, August 5, 2010 #

  3. @BillyBawb i have managed to get there myself, unlike most of the kids who will be immersed in this and will not have any time for politics, philosophy and other natural life sciences etc, which are essential to their growing up – if a kid doesnt ask the right questions as he grows up, he won’t really grow up at all… anyway, please …. just THINK, use your brain, and not your ego (balls, stomach…) and fight your fears dont give into your weaknesses, lessons for all to learn, including me..

    Comment by cashox3 — Thursday, August 5, 2010 #

  4. @BillyBawb AGAIN, look at the documentary, i dont believe you did – when you hear the words “kids are buried in this marketing brand world” what time does it leave them to develop other cognitive functions, seriously do you not even see the most basic aspect of the dangers lurking here that you yourself have been brainwashed – im no hippie, not a nut job, not and anti-corporationist, not into any weird sideline philosophy .

    Comment by cashox3 — Thursday, August 5, 2010 #

  5. @mickeymoo26 AGAIN, look at the documentary, i dont believe you did – when you hear the words “kids are buried in this marketing brand world” what time does it leave them to develop other cognitive functions, seriously do you not even see the most basic aspect of the dangers lurking here that you yourself have been brainwashed – im no hippie, not a nut job, not and anti-corporationist, not into any weird sideline philosophy .

    Comment by cashox3 — Thursday, August 5, 2010 #

  6. @Heavymetalgamer28 hmm, there may be a bit of that, but its not really that, its mainly that the system we have is the only one we know and we are only pushing it to the natural limits of its evolution – had we seen the evils in it at an earlier stage, we may have chosen a different route – also just want to point out that at the moment the extremeness of the consumerist kids attitude is really only this bad in the states, and to be honest, i worry for you + hope that we never get it that bad

    Comment by cashox3 — Thursday, August 5, 2010 #

  7. @mf91007 we had a tv back in the 80’s and 90’s, today tv is soooo much more aggressive than it was back then + all the viral advertising, internet ads, billboards by the thousands – nobody can probably even remember or have the faintest clue as to what leading a normal non-consumer induced life would be like – its demoralizing, to me that is.

    Comment by cashox3 — Thursday, August 5, 2010 #

  8. @missedagain how does saying this advance the discussion here – ?

    Comment by cashox3 — Thursday, August 5, 2010 #

  9. @BillyBawb and you are obivously so removed from reality that you have lost sight of the truth – as obviously you are as brainwashed as the rest of them… quite clearly, no point in denying it – and we are not nutters, you are simply on the wrong track, have lost sight of your natural human roots and are buying into self (egotistical) emancipation, which as i see it is the cause to so many problems on this planet – its not because its the only life you know that it is the right one…

    Comment by cashox3 — Thursday, August 5, 2010 #

  10. @baigandine and now on a more personal note, i didnt not want ALL the toys i saw, and though i may have wanted some things i didnt get, i feel my parents did the right thing, when i look at the spoilt attitude of so many people / kids and adults alike – the plundering of natural resources and so many other banes of our time have arisen through our competitive, neglecting, irrespective and unreasonable all consuming attitude – you may still have a soul, but perhaps your ego is somewhat inflated

    Comment by cashox3 — Thursday, August 5, 2010 #

  11. @baigandine yes but maybe your family had other values, which balanced things out, also perhaps you think you are balanced, but may also be more superficial than other people, that in itself isnt the way forward – i just said perhaps, so please dont take it personally / im responding to a general comment

    Comment by cashox3 — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  12. @Eceoes I think of the good old days when feminists and leftist didn’t get their panties in a wad over the most innocuous little things in the media like Dora the Explorer wearing a dress. I do agree there are some things that I would draw the line at ( like the new slutty Barbies and other sexually charged items), but marketing to kids has been around since the time of the radio and comic books. This is just hysteria reminiscent of the comic book burnings back in the 50’s.

    Comment by hamstergeisha76 — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  13. ITS ALL PROGRAM,ANY PROGRAM PROGRAMS THE MIND.

    Comment by daddeybo1 — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  14. I had a friend of mine growing up. He didn’t have a TV at home even though he was pretty much just as well off as we all were and we all thought it was weird. However, he was noticeably more grateful about the things he received than we were. I guess never being exposed to all those commercials really does have an impact.

    Comment by mf91007 — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  15. What’s the harm in advertising fun sugary cereal with catchy characters to kids? *obesity rises to record levels with no signs of slowing down* when were too fat to breed nobody will be around to buy this shit anymore, good riddance.

    Comment by brosephjames — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  16. Kids are a worthless burden.

    Comment by missedagain — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  17. I want to be in Marketing.

    Comment by mickeymoo26 — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  18. Shut up, hippies, and let the kids be kids. You people are no different than crazy religious nutters that think children are victims of a nefarious “gay agenda”. Marketing to kids is just a bugaboo of deranged leftists who want to destroy childhood.

    Comment by BillyBawb — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  19. I grew up wanting all the toys I saw on TV cmmercials, and I hardly consider myself consumerized or victimized. I still have a soul. It’s really not a big deal.

    Comment by baigandine — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  20. Totally agree with this, TV is why kids are so damn materialistic today and it’s just to keep us in line and keep us entertained and distracted while the elite are going around doing their evil deeds.

    Comment by Heavymetalgamer28 — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  21. thank you for putting this doc on youtube, it sucks that the distributors have not made this available to the public

    Comment by Fatima74 — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  22. This was disturbing but useful to watch. Wow money really does move the world, people will do anything, it is disgusting!

    Comment by walkcordatus — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  23. So far off to a great start on a very important topic. In fact, I was just ranting about it the other day.
    However, I do have to question the clip of the kid throwing a tantrum. When you watch the entire ad, it couldn’t be more targeted towards single, adult men. Maybe I am missing the point, and it was only intended as a humorous example to highlight nagging.

    Comment by harkael — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  24. they also make products that break easily, so that consumers keep buying new ones…

    Comment by worIdcitizen — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

  25. such films get less views, people, spread the word!!!

    let’s do it!

    Comment by worIdcitizen — Friday, August 6, 2010 #

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