Entries from June 2009 ↓

Dear Mr. President:

As the nation celebrates the first Mother’s and Father’s Days since your inauguration, we appeal to you as a fellow parent to help us protect our children from an onslaught of marketing that undermines good parenting and hurts young people.

You have rightly observed that for all the benefits that the media and marketing industries have brought us, they have also contributed to an “overall coarsening of our culture.” They deliver a steady stream of messages that sexualize children, glorify violence, promote unhealthy eating, and encourage materialism. Marketing to children is an intrinsic component of the culture of greed that has given rise to the current economic crisis and against which you have spoken so eloquently. If we are to replace the culture of greed with a more balanced approach to the economy – and, indeed, to life itself – we must rescue our children from the excesses of marketing.

As parents, we are determined to do our part to protect our children. But we cannot do it alone. Since the 1980s, when children’s television programming was deregulated and Congress restricted the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) authority to regulate marketing to children, corporations have waged a campaign of “cradle to grave” marketing to train children to be loyal consumers for life. The limited resources of hard-working mothers and fathers are no match for multi-billion dollar industries using rapidly evolving technologies to bypass parents and target children directly, not just on television, but through the internet, cell phones, mp3 players, video games, and even in schools.

We need your help. We urge your administration to direct the FTC and Federal Communications Commission to evaluate their current policies and regulations to determine whether or not they provide adequate protection for 21st century families. Such a review should include a thorough examination of the depth and breadth of marketing to children and new trends in immersive and interactive advertising. A comprehensive investigation would be in keeping with your administration’s commitment to transparency and to giving parents tools to help them safeguard their children. It would also give policymakers the information necessary to evaluate whether our current system – which relies primarily on marketers to regulate themselves – is working. Thank you.

Sincerely,

(YOUR NAME HERE)

Want to write a powerful letter like the one above? Well, it’s your lucky day. Visit Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood and sign and send it in two seconds flat.

Don’t just bitch about the problem – solve it.

CLICK HERE

This story ran last week without photographs (sorry BB Mama). The photographs are imperative to the story, so I’m rerunning it. Visit Black Belt Mama’s Blog.

I need to first make something very clear. I’ve never burned a bra (they cost too much money to do that and I need mine); and I’ve never gone more than like two days without shaving my arm-pits (and that was when I had ACL surgery and wasn’t allowed to shower).

I took several women’s studies classes when I was at the University of Pittsburgh. I had some great ones (mostly the literature ones), and I had some not-so-great ones.

One of the not-so-great ones was led by a total whack job woman who was further encouraged in her wackiness by a chorus of crazy female students. I hated the class and felt like it was this giant complain-o-rama about men. I also got berated on a daily basis by a group full of women students lacking basic hygiene skills who told me that because I did my hair and put on make-up, I was catering to men and making myself a sex object.

They considered me putting cherry chap-stick on, catering to men and becoming a sex object. Whatever. I skipped a lot of that class. Talking back to the girl who snorts insults at you while she very publicly sucks her thumb doesn’t exactly feel fair in the grand scheme of things.

My Dad has always classified me as a “feminist” but he seriously has no idea how far off base he is in calling me a “feminist” considering some of my classmates in those classes.

I grew up swearing I would never have kids, and that I was going to be some high-powered lawyer and eat people alive who got in my way. I spent my college years in writing and communications classes. In one of my classes, I spent a semester researching how women were portrayed in advertising, particularly in men’s magazines. I found ads for watches that featured a lifeless woman on the ground with a man’s shadow standing above her. It was eye-opening and disturbing and I told anyone about it who would listen, but I wasn’t exactly the type to swear off lipstick, burn my bra, and start rowdy protests. I’m not that kind of girl.

If you ask Mr. BBM about me and my “feminist ways,” he’ll tell you I’m a “true feminist,” that I will fight for and speak up about women’s issues, but that I won’t be pigeon-holed into a liberal feminist agenda. Yes, I believe you can be a feminist and still be pro-life. I am.

I spent my years after college baffled at who I had become. Instead of going to law school, I got my Master’s in Education. Instead of being the high-powered single girl, I got married at the age of 23. And then, after only working in the real world for two years, I got pregnant and left my career (where I was making more than my husband) to stay at home full time and raise my daughter.

Fast forward to present time, where I am now staying at home raising two daughters, and teaching at the university level. Today, I had three young women do their final speech on how women are portrayed in the media. It was a brilliant speech. They divided it into three sections: women in the 50’s, women now, and the problems associated with the pressure society puts on women.

They talked about the typical 1950’s housewife. They discussed Marilyn Monroe and then they moved into a visual showing the difference between models back then and models now. Some of the pictures were disturbing. When the speech was finished, it was followed by a Q & A session. After listening to these girls, rattling off statistics and facts and hearing them pour their hearts and souls into their presentations, I was shocked to hear some of the questions coming from the audience.

A lot of the guys felt like they were under attack, despite the fact that the girls said their speech was not to blame any individual person or group, but rather to bring attention to the way society portrays women in the media. Even some of the girls got worked up in the audience. “Well, don’t these models have a choice to not be that thin? Well don’t they have a choice to not have eating disorders?”

I was shocked.

The presenters hadn’t done any blaming, only pointing out various facts and stats, and they were being eaten alive by an audience hungry to throw the blame back on them. I stepped in and redirected at times, but when all was said and done, I was sad and disappointed about it.

I’ve frequently heard women say that today’s women don’t care about women’s issues the way women did 30 years ago. I obviously had a couple students concerned about it enough to create an entire presentation on it. But the opposition they were met with was downright shocking.

Is there no one out there who cares that high fashion ads are using women in violent ways to get their point across?

The above ad is for a shoe by the way, not gang rape, in case you weren’t clear. Spain and Italy banned the ad saying it is no way was related to what they were trying to sell and that it was violent towards women.

And this one below? If you said shoes, and not stuffing some dead girl in the trunk of a car, well, then you would be right. You can read more about this ad here.

And then there’s this one. Obviously advertising a man’s suit. . .

Visit the site where I found this one for even more disturbing ads.

I think that we’ve become so used to seeing violence against people, and women in particular, that these images don’t have the same kinds of effects that they used to have on people. And personally, I think that’s a terrible shame.

As a Mom of two young girls who I don’t want ever exposed to this kind of stuff, I think it’s time that we started a little movement of our own. Companies who put out ads like this need to be contacted and told that their ads are disgusting, and that the public doesn’t want to see stuff like this. It’s simply not healthy.

To contact the US Dolce & Gabbana offices, you can write or phone here:

Dolce & Gabbana USA Inc.
148, Lafayette Street
New York, NY 10013
Tel.+1-212-750.0055

Loula is a company based in Melbourne, but you can email them at: Email: hello@loula.com.au.

To contact Duncan Quinn, you can write or call here:

8 Spring St.
NY, NY 10012
(212) 226-7030

According to a review I read online, the man himself actually mans the store quite often.

If you aren’t bothered by these ads, or if you’d like to see more of what I’m talking about and what my young women in class were talking about today, then watch this:

There any many sites out there drawing attention to this kind of garbage and taking a stand against it. All one needs to do is google “violent ads women” and you’ll find them no problem.

Will you join me in being outraged?

Will you join me in doing something about it?

This is a continuation of the interview with Shaping Youth Director Amy Jussel. Read Part I if you missed it.

Using the tactics of industry insiders, Shaping Youth is embedding innovative programs that promote healthier, positive values by using the power of the media turned on itself. Shaping Youth’s programs are deployed via the digital sphere using film, web, and hands-on counter-marketing games in train the trainer format.

6) With the mention of the Vatican in your blog as well = do you feel that a lot of parents use religion as a weapon when it comes to sexual curiosity for teens and that teens in turn rebel because of it? Why or why not?

Actually, I think ANY time self-righteousness trumps reality (whether it’s about junk food, kids’ choice of friends, religion, academics, you name it) the pendulum can easily swing into the exact opposite direction you’d hoped it would go.

We’ve all experienced the “forbidden fruit” factor on some level. I’d like to think people would know enough not to use god-fearing zealousness to quell sexual curiosity as it can twist minds in a big way making the ‘sex is dirty’ correlation early on. Pent up and tamped down public perceptions of adherence to church doctrine has become an age old stereotype in itself…Think about the ‘good catholic school girl’ wink and nudge remarks or the recent reports of Utah being the #1 state in the nation for online porn.

Whenever you put two rigid platforms together with something squishy in the middle it’s gonna ooze out the sides, guaranteed…Whether it’s graham crackers and frosting or adolescent angst. Clamping down with hardfast absolutism and dogma usually leads to reverb on some level…I mean, c’mon, look at the statistics of where ‘abstinence only’ education has left us. I think we’re doing a disservice to kids by plopping them in a sex-saturated media culture and then doing the ‘just say no’ preach-n-teach bit. It’s insanely hypocritical.

5) With the recent shows and movies “The Secret Life of an American Teenager” and “Juno” – do you think the image of teenage pregnancy has been made out to be heroic or noble? If so, why do you think that is?

Ironically, I’m working on a post about this right now, as it’s a pervasive plotline that keeps rearing its head in a weird sort of fixation on the age ‘15’ for some reason too…The L.A. Times’ “Teen Baby Mamas” slideshow gives you a snapshot of ‘fiction 101,’ the sex ed factor, and the tweaked out ‘morality’ message that seems to more often than not revolve around a simplified version of ‘yes girls, you CAN get pregnant the first time.’ —Not exactly a brain twister, ya know?

This is where I wish Hollywood would get their act together on the sex ed front, because USEFUL medical and health education information COULD be embedded into a plotline.

Kaiser Family Foundation proved this in their partnership with ER, Grey’s Anatomy, etc. so it’s quantifiable. To me, if it’s been proven media cues ARE being ingested and retained then youth advocates should have the ammo needed to hold industry accountable at a network level to “get it right” when it comes to health content, accuracy, and responsibility.

Instead there’s a huge chasm between ‘perception vs. reality.’

I’m not saying girls don’t get pregnant at 15, I’m saying it’s NOT the norm…same goes for casual sex and the ‘everyone’s doin’ it’ emblematic (and unrealistic) portrayals of baby mamas served up with whopper doses of sensationalism. (whether it’s Jamie Lynn Spears, Bristol Palin, or Shailene Woodley in Secret Life)

It becomes particularly damaging if you look at the chicken and the egg scenario of kids at this formative age trying to wrap their heads around “what’s normal” among their peers. When media is framing this with a tweaked out lens using a ratings game motivation, then we’ve got a scenario where kids are taking behavioral cues from ‘media as super peer’ and actually deciding FOR us what’s “normative.” Unhealthy and bogus beyond words.

As for motivations?

The “Secret Life Smacks Down Gossip Girl and 90210” article is a classic example of who’s vying for the numbers game. Some say, ‘yah, well, it’s an opportunity for teaching moments…But how many people are using the Teen Pregnancy Prevention ‘discussion guide’ versus gossiping at the lunch table about which character’s doing what with whom?

Media and marketing producers are doing a pretty lousy job of self-reining when they could easily use this power responsibly to ‘tell it like it is,’ and even sneak in some education into the mix. I don’t call smacking a pregnancy prevention PSA on a show cluttered with sex, sex, and more sex being ‘responsible.’ As I say so often, “the price we pay to mine their childhoods will ultimately cost us all.”

Check out Shaping Youth’s Blog.

This is an interview with Amy Jussel, the Founder & Executive Director of Shaping Youth, a nonprofit, nonpartisan consortium dealing with media and marketing’s impact on kids. The interview was conducted by a student.

Using the tactics of industry insiders, Shaping Youth is embedding innovative programs that promote healthier, positive values by using the power of the media turned on itself. Shaping Youth’s programs are deployed via the digital sphere using film, web, and hands-on counter-marketing games in train the trainer format.

1) Do you feel that in school, girls face more peer pressure than boys do? If so, how and why?

Unequivocally. The diva-driven branding of ‘popular’ girls hasn’t helped either, with consumption cues about what you have over who you are. Girls hear hurtful snipes on everything from body image and appearance to what brand they’re wearing just running the gauntlet past the social stratosphere of the lunch table. That’s just not right.

I strongly feel our media culture is complicit in creating this tummy churn, as it not only normalizes, but practically sanctions ‘bullying’ in ‘mean girl’ hipster characterization. Even in these sappy happily-ever-after sitcoms where the bully gets her come-uppins in the end, the drama and fear-factor is signaling ‘what matters’ to girls, and positioning the chaos as an ongoing reality. The entire lexicon of terms like ‘thinspiration,’ ‘frenemies,’ ‘robo-student,’ ‘ho-wear’ or ‘hoochie mamas,’ reflect the pressure-cooker cues of media defining girls before they can define themselves.

Way back when Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girlshit the bookstores well over a decade ago, there was lots of talk about ‘odd girl out’ and ‘relational aggression’ and I remember thinking Mary Pipher summed it well when she said, “At adolescence, girls become ‘female impersonators’ who fit their whole selves into small, crowded spaces.”

But now in the digital age it’s taken on a whole new speed with cellcams and bodysnarking (mean comments about outfits, hair, and other appearance based ‘what were you thinking’ snipes) which can turn those ‘slam books’ of yesteryear into a public forum potshot.

Cyberbullying is a very real problem (far more than stranger danger) and can be pretty harsh with ‘reputation management’ an ongoing challenge. I Highly recommend the Adinas Deck Cyber Bullying Kids
films to help girls this age navigate this chaos.

(Read a review of Adina’s Deck. Read more about the impact of Cyber Bullying.)

So yes, I feel it goes well beyond peer pressure into the acceleration and commodification of childhood. The coarseness of entertainment culture, from ‘tear ‘em down’ polling in reality shows to embarrassment and humiliation as sport seems to be shaping behavioral norms, right when girls’ bodies and emotions are changing at the most rapid rates of their lives. They sure don’t need another thing to worry about when some are petrified of navigating the transition from elementary to middle school…will I find my classes, what if I can’t get my locker open…toss in the ‘Gossip Girl’ factor and it’s overwhelming!

Don’t get me wrong, boys are getting hammered by peer influences too, and sadly, ‘gaining’ on girls with eating disorders, depression and lack of satisfaction with their appearance. I mean, c’mon, when Disney-licensed kiddie cologne is being marketed to boys (ages 4-11!) they’re starting ‘em young with grooming cues.

Read the Boy Cologne story.

I wrote a post less than a year ago called “Buffed Boy Body Image and the Teen Scene Hottie Factor” all about “roid rage” and “Bigorexia” and the pressure to fit into a heightened sexual culture that’s pummeling the 10-14 year old boys with cues from billboards, gaming, and music messaging to porn and peers.

If you want Ivy League data, researchers like Alison Field from Harvard Medical School (professor of pediatrics and lead researcher on the GUTS study which stands for Growing Up Today) could tell you more, but I know we see it in our work with kids ongoing…(especially in our ‘Dare to Compare, Gross Out Game for Good Nutrition’ where boys will self-identify as ‘fat’ or ‘chunky’ just the way girls berate themselves with narrowcast ideals) Not pretty.

2. Do you think schools should do more to educate young girls – (between the ages 10 and 14) about certain subjects, such as sex, date rape, assault, etc.? If so, what should be done?

I think knowledge is power, but fear is the reverse…so we have to be careful not to add more layers of angst in this fragile preteen time. Yes, there’s a need for comprehensive information, but I’d prefer it took the form of an empowerment message (self-defense, self-care, pragmatic prevention) over a victim-based identity predator/prey mode.

I definitely think media opportunities can be used to open windows for dialog on dating violence, inebriation/date rape, and such, but at 10-14 you don’t want kids to be scared of their own shadow or walking through life in a high state of anxiety ‘code red/orange’ alert…that’s exhausting! As for school as a venue, I think it could even be part of P.E., after-school enrichment, a campus ‘club,’ YWCA, etc.

Personally, at this young age, I really like the idea of using hands-on physicality under the guise of health/fitness and body control for self-defense, turning it into a ‘life skills’ game like we do at Shaping Youth. That way you can weave in some ‘what if’ role-play without being heavy-handed.

Staying calm without panic, and keeping my wits has saved my hide many a time in every single one of those settings you mentioned, and leveraging ‘brains over brawn’ is just plain smart. First tip I taught my daughter very young was how to shake off a slow moving car using the ‘pivot and pass it’ maneuver. The element of surprise seeing you run straight AT them (and PAST them) forces the driver to either put the car in reverse and drive backwards to pursue you, or waste time circling around as you bolt into safety.

True confessions, I was the token female security guard (graveyard shift!) in college trained to have instinctive/fast reaction time for street survival skills’ (no weapons, no objects) just keen environmental awareness…If you think about it, that’s the best preventive tactic for girls there is; anticipating the next move before it happens.

3) Do you think that providing your teenage daughter with birth control is giving her the okay to become sexually active? Why or why not? At what age do you think parents should have “the talk” with their daughters and why?

I think that’s a very personal and individual choice, just like the decision of when to have “the talk.” It depends on the child’s maturity and development (and your own!) as well as regional influences and exposure.

Most kids start getting the sex ed primer basics in 5th grade now it seems, but we all know ‘media as super peer’ has been pumping sex chatter a mile a minute, so the level of ‘exposure’ is in surround sound. I asked my 13 year old daughter if she’d feel I was sanctioning sex if I handed her a condom. She looked at me incredulously and said, “Um, no…But…can we just not talk about this?”

4) Based on your blog regarding “Influences, Accountability and the Global Cost to Youth” – do you feel that the media is making celebrities out to be experts about sex? When they guide teenage girls down the wrong path, what should parents do to prevent it?

I think the obsession in our culture with celebrity and sex has been a driver for a considerable amount of toxicity, as girls are sold heavy doses of materialism wrapped in the concept that power comes from fame and appearance, most often associated with being a model, actress, pop star, or diva.

As far as celebrities cast in the role of ‘sexpert’ I think that’s really more of a ratings game, as evidenced by Tyra’s ‘shock and awe’ findings on her audience poll, and to the sensationalism of the talk show formats in general. It’s entertainment, not reality. And as we all know, even the ‘reality shows’ aren’t reality.

Whether it’s Dr. Phil, Dr. Laura, Dr. Ruth, or the big “O,” entertainers should have accountability and responsibility for what they’re putting out there on the sexuality circuit when it comes to accuracy.

As for parent prevention and how to steer clear of vapid values and the trashy party girl scene of celebutantes?

I think it ultimately comes down to how we instill critical thinking skills rather than play dodgeball with the media messages. Deconstruct it, defuse the energy. Show and tell the motivation of selling sexualization and insecurity for profit…

Same goes for appearance based cues, I use tons of media literacy tactics for this age, whether it’s online (MyPopStudio.com) or talking about retouching (Dove’s Evolution spot for ‘real beauty’ and the same company/Unilever using the Axe cologne and magazines http://demo.fb.se/e/girlpower/retouch/”>“Bomchikawawa” girls).

For books for girls this age, our ‘tween club’ read All Made Up: A Girl’s Guide to Seeing Through Celebrity Hype to Celebrate Real Beauty
by Audrey Brashich and of course Packaging Girlhood.com (all authors are on our Shaping Youth advisory board) and for a hands-on rallying cry for taking back your own identity, I love the work they’re doing at Courtney Macavinta’s Respect Rx.

I did a whole series on ‘all things girl’ that details cool orgs, blogs, and ways to empower girls rather than consume them…counter-marketing the toxic cues. (e.g. Hardy Girls, Healthy Women, The Girl Revolution, 5 Resolutions to Transform the Beauty Industry, etc.) Here’s that post with all the roundup to the links at the end.

To be continued . . .