Whole Kids Project

Action Alert: Tell BusRadio to Stop Promoting 90210 to 6 Year-olds

I just received this alert from the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood:

BusRadio, which hopes to "take targeted student marketing to the next level" by forcing children to listen to its commercialized radio broadcasts on school buses, has sunk to a new low. The company is advertising the highly sexualized new television show 90210 on BusRadio.com, its website for children as young as six.  

Tell Bus Radio: Stop promoting 90210 to six-year-olds. 

BusRadio.com - the company's website for students that  is promoted throughout BusRadio's broadcasts on elementary, middle, and high buses - is urging children to tune in to tonight's premiere of 90210, a show that the CW Network calls a "sexier" and "more provocative" update on the popular series from the nineties. [1]  A trailer for the show on the BusRadio website teases several sex scenes, while a banner ad featuring the stars of the show in sexualized poses links to the show's website.[2] The show is exploiting preteens "currently smitten with Hannah Montana and the Jonas Bros" through merchandise such as backpacks, school supplies, and clothing. [3] Media reports also suggest the show will feature a significant amount of product placement.[4] 

BusRadio sells itself to school districts as an age-appropriate alternative to FM radio, but the company's definition of "age-appropriate" frequently differs from that of parents. Seminole County, Florida recently terminated their relationship with BusRadio when the company refused to stop playing songs from albums with parental warnings for explicit lyrics and content. Advertisers on BusRadio's elementary school broadcasts include the highly sexualized Bratz brand. Another elementary school advertiser, Answers.com, tells students to do their homework by looking up their answers on the Internet and mocks a student for carrying around books. BusRadio broadcasts encourage young students to visit its BusRadio.com website where inappropriate media, including Mature-rated video games and now 90120, are promoted. 

We believe no child should be held captive by BusRadio and we will continue to organize parents and educators around the country to keep advertising off of school buses. But we also think it is important to protect those students who are unfortunate enough to ride buses with BusRadio from this kind of sexualized advertising.  

Please visit http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/621/t/6914/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=25409 to tell BusRadio to stop advertising 90210 to young children.

 

Thanks,

The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood
www.commercialfreechildhood.org

 

Support CCFC.  We rely on our members because we will not compromise our commitment to children by accepting corporate funding. Between now and September 5, donate $75 or more and receive a signed copy of Diane Levin's and Jean Kilbourne's So Sexy, So Soon.  To make a tax-free contribution, please visit https://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/621/t/6725/shop/custom.jsp?donate_page_KEY=3839

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[1] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gU7EjzF1RJk.

[2] http://www.busradio.com/movies.

[3] http://commercialfreechildhood.org/news/2008/08/90210.htm.

[4] http://www.pantagraph.com/articles/2008/08/16/freetime/doc48a0c098adc53549467084.txt.

FTC Falls Short in Protecting Kids From Junk Food Marketers

Michele Simon has a thoughtful post on the FTC and junk food marketers over at the Daily Kos:

Most importantly, the FTC should be calling on the food industry to stop marketing to children, period. If a child under the age of 8 does not have the cognitive capacity to understand that she is being targeted commercially, then how can any marketing to young children be ethical? Even older kids, while they can understand "persuasive intent," are still unable to resist the power of marketing. It's entirely possible that the FTC recommendations, if followed, could result in more, not less food marketing to kids. The agency is essentially encouraging the nation's most aggressive food marketers to keep it up, as long as it's for the "right" foods, however that gets defined.

Kids should not be taught to eat carrots and oranges because SpongeBob or even Elmo says so. Rather, they should eat when they are hungry, just as adults should. We cannot depend on marketers to make kids eat right. If the food industry just stopped targeting kids with billions of dollars worth of sophisticated unhealthy food messages, parents’ jobs would get a whole lot easier.

Hat tip to The Corporate Babysitter!

Today Show Video: So Sexy So Soon

Here is a video clip from the Today Show interview with Diane Levin and Jean Kilbourne,  the authors of So Sexy So Soon:

Action Alert: Protecting Children from Indecent Programming Act

I received this alert from NationalCoalition.org:

The verdict has been handed down—CBS will face no penalty after MTV thumbed its nose at parents during the 2004 Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit recently threw out a $550,000 fine the Federal Communications Commission levied against CBS after Janet Jackson’s infamous “wardrobe malfunction” exposed her breast to over 90 million halftime viewers—many of whom were children.

“The last thing a parent expects to see when they sit down with their family to watch the Super Bowl is a strip tease,” said Rick Schatz, president and CEO of the National Coalition. “The Super Bowl has long been a family event that is enjoyed by viewers of all ages. To feature a halftime show that includes nudity and lewd behavior is unconscionable.”

While the half a million complaints received by the FCC after the Super Bowl demonstrated viewers’ disgust, the Third Circuit opened the door to future indecent programming.

“Unfortunately, this ruling will likely set a precedent that will negatively affect the quality of future entertainment on broadcast television,” added Schatz. “Parents must be more vigilant than ever in monitoring the shows viewed in their household.”

Although this ruling is a disappointment, a legislative response is in motion. Senator Jay Rockefeller has introduced the Protecting Children from Indecent Programming Act (Senate Bill 1780), which would allow single words or images that are considered to be indecent, obscene, or profane to draw civil penalties.

To help pass this legislation, we ask you to do three things:

1. Contact Senator Harry Reid, Senate Majority Leader, and ask him to bring this legislation to the floor for a vote.

2. Contact Senator Jay Rockefeller, thank him for introducing the bill, and ask him to help move the bill forward.

3. Contact your two U.S. Senators and ask them to vote “YES” on Senate Bill 1780.

We thank you in advance for helping to protect the eyes of our children. There is still much to be done…but together we will make our voice heard!

Please take a few moments to contact Senators Reid and Rockefeller through the links above. You can find your Senators' email addresses here.

Action Alert: A Free and Safe Wireless Internet Service

Last week I told you about the FCC's plans to auction off unused airwaves to create a free, nationwide wireless Internet service.  The auction has one stipulation: the winning company must provide filters to make the service porn-free.

The ACLU and "free-speech" activists want the FCC to remove the porn-free requirement claiming the porn-ban condition constitutes censorship.

The National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families has established an online petition so that we can let the FCC know that Americans want the family-friendly requirement maintained.

Please take a moment to add your signature to this petition.

High School Girls Had Pact to Get Pregnant

From WBZTV.com in Boston:

There's a stunning twist to the sudden rise in teen pregnancies at Gloucester High School. 17 students there are expecting and, according to a published report, most of them became that way on purpose.

Time Magazine is reporting that nearly half of the girls confessed to making a pact to get pregnant and raise their babies together. None of the girls is older than 16.

Principal Joseph Sullivan has not returned calls from WBZ to confirm the report.

Sullivan told the magazine that the pact wasn't the only shocking incident.

"We found out one of the fathers is a 24-year-old homeless guy," he told Time.

Last month, two top officials at the high school's health center resigned in a fight over contraceptives distribution.

Medical Director Dr. Brian Orr and chief nurse practitioner Kim Daly support confidentially giving contraceptives to students. They were outraged about resistance from Addison Gilbert Hospital, which administers the state public health grant that funds the school clinic.

Normally, the school has about four pregnancies per school year.

According to Time, school officials started looking into the spike in pregnancies after an unusual number of girls came to the school clinic for pregnancy tests. Some came by several times.

"Some girls seemed more upset when they weren't pregnant than when they were," Sullivan told the magazine.

Click the links above to read the entire story.

My goodness.

One thing that I don't understand from the article- why did the author bring the contraception issue into this?  This doesn't have anything to do with the teens access to contraception- from what I gather from reading the article is that these girls purposely set out to get pregnant. They didn't get pregnant because they didn't have access to contraception.  It's a non sequitur argument.

FCC to Consider Porn-Free Wireless Internet

I received this update from the National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families:

As you may have heard, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin was set to auction off unused airwaves at a June 12 meeting to establish the first-ever free nationwide wireless Internet service. The winning wireless company, however, had to abide by one stipulation: the free service must also be porn-free.

While the vote was put on hold to research issues of interference, it is likely the proposal will be added to the July meeting agenda.

“This could be one of the greatest family-friendly technological advances we have seen in a long time,” said Rick Schatz, president and CEO of the National Coalition. “What a wonderful way to give children access to the Internet while also guaranteeing their safety.”

The National Coalition has worked with Chairman Martin and members of the FCC for years to help protect children from objectionable content not only on the Internet but also on broadcast television and radio.

“We continue to be encouraged by Chairman Martin’s commitment and conviction to do all he can to protect the eyes of the innocent,” added Schatz. “This is just one more example of how his strong leadership will impact the nation.”

As expected, however, free speech activists are arguing the FCC is censoring material by filtering out all pornography.

“The Chairman is not trying to take away adults’ right to view porn,” commented Schatz. “But he is looking to protect our children, for which we are very grateful.”

The National Coalition will continue to stay abreast of this issue and update you as information is released. Be sure to watch for upcoming email alerts on ways you can encourage the FCC and make your voice heard in this critical issue for children and families!

We'll keep an eye on this as well.  No doubt there will be an intense 1st Amendment debate.  If you would like to stay informed on this issue I encourage you to sign up for free email alerts from the National Coalition.

Is Your Child Addicted to the Internet?

I just received this from the National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families and thought I would share it.

From an article by Luke Gilkerson of Covenant Eyes, an Internet filtering and accountability product for families and organizations:

So how can you, as a parent, know if your child is developing an Internet addiction?

• Have you noticed an increased amount of time on the computer? Does your child seem to crave more and more time online?

• Is there an air of privacy around Internet use? Maybe you've walked in on your teen with the computer screen turned away from the door. When you come close to the computer, do you notice your teen quickly shifting what is visible on the screen? Do they shut off the computer or screen altogether? Do you often find the door to the computer room locked?

• Are they defensive and protective about their time online? Maybe you've confronted them about the amount of time they spend online and have been met with anger or frustration.

• Are they neglecting time with family, chores, or school work?

• Have you noticed personality changes? Do they seem irritable until they get online? Do they seem to have a sense of "well-being" while on the computer? Do they seem restless, moody, or depressed if their Internet use is cut short? Internet addictions have a way of engulfing someone emotionally.

• Is there a change in sleep patterns? Have you ever caught your teen on the computer late at night or early in the morning? Often the largest bulk of free time to use the Internet is at night.

• Have you noticed physical symptoms such as dry eyes, migraine headaches, backaches, eating irregularities (skipping meals), neglecting personal hygiene, etc.? These can be signs of too much time spent at the computer.

Where do you start if you think your child has a problem? While these are all possible indicators of an Internet addiction, in the end the best way to know if your child has developed an addiction is to engage in open and honest communication with your teen. As one expert writes, "A warm and communicative parent-child relationship is the most important nontechnical means that parents can use to deal with the challenges of the sexualized media environment" (Patricia M. Greenfield, Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology).

Be practical about avoiding Internet addiction. Keep the lines of communication open about the expectation of Internet use. Set guidelines early and stick to them. Put the computer in a more central and open location so you can more easily monitor how it is used. Teach responsible online behavior: show your children the great benefits of the Internet while showing them how to balance their time—online and off-line.

FCC Commissioner Questions Marketing Aimed at Kids

Lisa from the Parents for Ethical Marketing has a thoughtful post on a recent speech delivered by FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein.  Here is an excerpt from his speech:

In case you don’t know it already, many parents are feeling inundated by an array of media that are flooding their children’s minds with inappropriate material. Too many parents feel like they are losing control, and they’re frustrated by a seemingly relentless march of coarse material that is too violent, too sexual, too commercial or too unhealthy for their children. Messages or images their children are not ready to hear pop up in too many places for parents to easily control, from insensitively timed commercials during otherwise family-friendly programming to Internet ads and spam coming over the computer.

There is growing concern about unhealthful messages and images as well. . . . Many studies show the damaging effects of advertising on children’s food choices. Some of your companies have taken important steps, but there is far more to be done.

For parents, it’s like a game of whack-a-mole, with an increasing number of moles jumping up faster and faster. Too many parents suffer from a sense of exhaustion or futility. I suspect many of you share these concerns on a personal level, but many of you also work for powerful media companies that are helping this mole population to proliferate. . . .

I believe I speak for millions of parents when I say we’re overwhelmed, fed up and looking for help from the government and the industry alike. 

Read Lisa's entire post here.

Parents for Ethical Marketing plans to contact Commissioner Adelstein's office to find out how PEM members can participate in the FCC's rule-making process.

Please visit PEM and sign up for their action alerts and news bulletins. This is a great way for you to get involved and influence children's programming and advertising.

Action Alert: Stop the Marketing of Violent PG-13 Movies to Preschoolers

From the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood:

Burger King Iron Man toy giveaways for preschoolers.

Indiana Jones Lunchables.

Incredible Hulk toys for children as young as three.

The Dark Knight Cheerios.

This summer’s violent PG-13 blockbusters are being marketed to young children.

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) could stop this onslaught but they won’t. The Federal Trade Commission has urged the MPAA to develop an “explicit policy, incorporating objective criteria” to “ensure that PG-13 movies are not marketed in a manner inconsistent with their rating,” but the MPAA has refused.

Please take a moment to visit this link to tell the MPAA to stop the marketing of violent PG-13 films to young children.