Children & Commercialism pt1

You are watching TV with your children and they see a commercial for the latest toy that features their favorite character. They will more than likely become excited and say: "I want that!" Research shows that this is how product makers want kids to react.

According to a national survey commissioned by the Center for a New American Dream, children aged 12 to 17 will ask their parents for products they have seen advertised an average of nine times until the parents finally relent.

Watching television commercials may seem like a harmless activity for children. However, companies use commercial spots and other advertising methods to promote new products to young consumers.

The Institute of Medicine reports that advertisers spent more than $10 billion targeting youth through TV ads, coupons, contests, and packaging designed for children. Exposure to an abundance of advertising can make parent and child shopping trips stressful experiences and may affect the future spending habits of children. Below are some tips to help children make smart choices in a consumer culture.

Limit TV time. According to CommonSense Media, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving media directed towards children, the average American child views 40,000 commercials each year on broadcast TV. That amounts to approximately 100 commercials per day! If you are watching TV with your children and they insist that they want a toy or product shown in a commercial, consider having a conversation with them. Tell them that you wonder if the product is really as wonderful as the commercial claims. You may also want to ask them if they currently have a toy that did not live up to its expectations or was not as fabulous as the commercial implied. This type of dialogue may help children make better purchasing decisions. If you are interested in how the amount of television and other electronic media exposure affects children, you may want to visit the web site for the Center for Screen-Time Awareness at www.screentime.org.

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