kids as consumers
Kids as consumers have increased in the past years due to advertisements and their aggressive approach to selling their products. The media advertises products in a kid-directed fashion especially with their food items. In the food advertisements marketers sell their products by poking fun at adults, providing extras with their item by adding a toy or kid friendly itemand children themselves in the commercials on television selling the product. A set media diet for children is important while trying to set a good healthy physical diet for them. The problem with advertising today is the way it is directed at children. The kids watching television are being influenced by the products being sold and
it is becoming a problem for their health.
This problem is explained in research by Meredith Melnick’s in her study “Fast food ads targeting kids with unhealthy food and how it works.” In her study she explains as fast food marketing has increased, so too has the number of children who request to eat at fast food restaurants. Advertisements are not looking at the health of the children eating their food. Instead they are looking at the profit they are making off of the consumer. McDonald’s targets kids by putting a small toy in a happy meal, having a playground for the kids while they are eating and having a fun playful character (Ronald McDonald) who is a happy clown. All these things help McDonalds become a fun place to go, but it is detrimental to the health of young children. As Schor points out, “Rates of obesity epidemic levels. Diagnosis of attention deficit disorder and attention deficit hyperactive disorder has risen dramatically” (pg. 13).One of the way marketers try to sell their products to kids is to arouse their interests by poking fun at teachers, parents and adults. Juliet Schor’s explains in “Born to Buy,” the setting in a starburst commercial is a classroom with a nerdy teacher. When the kids open the candy, a party forms throughout the classroom and when the nerdy teacher turns around the class gets quiet and dull. Schor, says, “As the dynamic repeats itself, the commercial makes the point that the kid world, courtesy of the candy, is a blast. The adult world, by contrast, is drab, regimented, and boring,” (pg. 53).Now that this commercial is being seen, kids are going to think that to be fun and daring eating Starburst is the right answer because
that is how it is portrayed on television. I think that the media itself can be blamed for the unhealthy eating habits of children. They are advertising unhealthy items to kids in a “fun” way so they are interested in purchasing their products. As mentioned earlier, McDonald’s provides a toy in their happy meals, which is another way to sell products to
kids. Putting something extra in a meal such as a toy is targeting kids because kids want to play with the toy so they purchase the meal. A variety of fast food restaurants participate in this act. Another clever way marketers can grab kid’s
attention is having a child their age or around their age selling the product in the commercials they see. A Tyson chicken nugget commercial has children saying how much they hate vegetables. Children watching commercials like the Tyson commercial might agree with hating vegetables just because it is on television and think it is okay.
Another way to target kids is through anti-adultism. There are solutions to this method. The parents can take control and limit their children’stime watching TV so they don’t see and become interested in as many ads. Children can be exposed to different channels that don’t have advertisements for a cheeseburger with a free toy. Schor says in “Born to Buy,” “Indoor confinement has reduced children’s levels of activity and exercise, undermined their social worlds, and eroded their autonomy. It’s an important part of why media and consumer culture is so influential in their lives.”(pg. 205). The problem can only be solved if the parents are aware that their child is being exposed to numerous food advertisements and that advertisements now are targeting kids in a variety of ways. I would like to be a part of the solution by doing research. I would like to prove that advertisements are manipulating. All the marketers are trying to do is take your money and make profit. I would want to educate these people buying fast food for their children and even themselves every week with nutritional facts, putting a calorie count of the items on the menu for every food
takeout joint, and pictures of the grease and fat in the foods. Adding the calories, carbs and sugars to the menus or providing a picture of the amount of grease in the food could decrease the amount of interest in people. Knowing
the number of calories; parents may be more concerned with their child’s health. If we do nothing, then nothing will be done. Marketers will continue to target kids because that is how they are raking in their profit.
Reducing the amount of media exposure to children is important for the parents to do in that the advertisements are targeting the children and grabbing their attention in the purchasing of their product. Marketers target these children to make more money, which is leading to unhealthy interests in kids. Children need to be put on a healthy media diet to prevent them being interested in so many unhealthy foods.
it is becoming a problem for their health.
This problem is explained in research by Meredith Melnick’s in her study “Fast food ads targeting kids with unhealthy food and how it works.” In her study she explains as fast food marketing has increased, so too has the number of children who request to eat at fast food restaurants. Advertisements are not looking at the health of the children eating their food. Instead they are looking at the profit they are making off of the consumer. McDonald’s targets kids by putting a small toy in a happy meal, having a playground for the kids while they are eating and having a fun playful character (Ronald McDonald) who is a happy clown. All these things help McDonalds become a fun place to go, but it is detrimental to the health of young children. As Schor points out, “Rates of obesity epidemic levels. Diagnosis of attention deficit disorder and attention deficit hyperactive disorder has risen dramatically” (pg. 13).One of the way marketers try to sell their products to kids is to arouse their interests by poking fun at teachers, parents and adults. Juliet Schor’s explains in “Born to Buy,” the setting in a starburst commercial is a classroom with a nerdy teacher. When the kids open the candy, a party forms throughout the classroom and when the nerdy teacher turns around the class gets quiet and dull. Schor, says, “As the dynamic repeats itself, the commercial makes the point that the kid world, courtesy of the candy, is a blast. The adult world, by contrast, is drab, regimented, and boring,” (pg. 53).Now that this commercial is being seen, kids are going to think that to be fun and daring eating Starburst is the right answer because
that is how it is portrayed on television. I think that the media itself can be blamed for the unhealthy eating habits of children. They are advertising unhealthy items to kids in a “fun” way so they are interested in purchasing their products. As mentioned earlier, McDonald’s provides a toy in their happy meals, which is another way to sell products to
kids. Putting something extra in a meal such as a toy is targeting kids because kids want to play with the toy so they purchase the meal. A variety of fast food restaurants participate in this act. Another clever way marketers can grab kid’s
attention is having a child their age or around their age selling the product in the commercials they see. A Tyson chicken nugget commercial has children saying how much they hate vegetables. Children watching commercials like the Tyson commercial might agree with hating vegetables just because it is on television and think it is okay.
Another way to target kids is through anti-adultism. There are solutions to this method. The parents can take control and limit their children’stime watching TV so they don’t see and become interested in as many ads. Children can be exposed to different channels that don’t have advertisements for a cheeseburger with a free toy. Schor says in “Born to Buy,” “Indoor confinement has reduced children’s levels of activity and exercise, undermined their social worlds, and eroded their autonomy. It’s an important part of why media and consumer culture is so influential in their lives.”(pg. 205). The problem can only be solved if the parents are aware that their child is being exposed to numerous food advertisements and that advertisements now are targeting kids in a variety of ways. I would like to be a part of the solution by doing research. I would like to prove that advertisements are manipulating. All the marketers are trying to do is take your money and make profit. I would want to educate these people buying fast food for their children and even themselves every week with nutritional facts, putting a calorie count of the items on the menu for every food
takeout joint, and pictures of the grease and fat in the foods. Adding the calories, carbs and sugars to the menus or providing a picture of the amount of grease in the food could decrease the amount of interest in people. Knowing
the number of calories; parents may be more concerned with their child’s health. If we do nothing, then nothing will be done. Marketers will continue to target kids because that is how they are raking in their profit.
Reducing the amount of media exposure to children is important for the parents to do in that the advertisements are targeting the children and grabbing their attention in the purchasing of their product. Marketers target these children to make more money, which is leading to unhealthy interests in kids. Children need to be put on a healthy media diet to prevent them being interested in so many unhealthy foods.