Children and Television Commercials;

Children and Television Commercials 1

Children and Television Commercials;

Should they be so closely tied.

Matthew Shelton

Western International University

COM 110-Effective Persuasive Writing

Kirk Fontenot

August 28, 2005

Children and Television Commercials 2

Children and Television Commercials;

Should they be so closely tied?

Are your children becoming the target of today’s “BIG BUSINESS”? There doesn’t seem to be a good time to watch television with your children. Whether its Saturday morning cartoons or Sunday night football, the constant bombardment of controversial television commercials is all around us. As father of two young children, ages three and five, I have noticed that today’s big business companies have targeted my children as consumers.

It’s hard not to notice the non-stop flood of commercials that are aimed directly at children. These commercials encourage today’s children to purchase all types of unhealthy food items, as well as toys and clothing. Not only are these food items full of fat and sugar, I can not go to a toy store or clothing store without my children asking specifically for items promoted through television commercials. My children have even asked for certain types of fast food restaurant to receive a desired happy meal toy.

Food products are the most commonly advertised item during peak hours of children's TV watching. A study of broadcasting during the peak hours of children's television watching found that 16% of the time was consumed with ads. Almost half of the ads were related to food (food products, restaurants, and beverages). The nutritional contents of the foods advertised weren't good. Almost 70% of the foods advertised were high in sugar, 40% were high in fat, and 20% high in salt. About 9% of the foods advertised were classified as healthy (low in sugar, fat, and salt). (Pediatrics for parents 1997)

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Not coincidentally, childhood diabetes is on the rise. Dr. Robin S. Goland, co-director of the Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center, told the New York Times that "With the numbers we are starting to see, this could be the beginning of an epidemic"(Thompson 1998).

In a society in which children are becoming more obese, inactive, and often unable to focus due to attention deficit disorders, it is clear that big business companies only care about their own pocketbook. Their main focus is certainly not on the health and well being of my children or the rest of the nation’s children. Advertisers in the United States have begun to realize the potential in international children’s market as well.

James McNeal in his book Kids as Customers estimates that there are about three billion children in industrialized countries: “Letting ones imagination run wild for a moment, if these children spend only half of what U.S. children spend, their market potential would be equal to around $86.5 billion"(McNeal 1992).Many other countries are strengthening their advertising laws fearing that their children may become obese like the ones in the United States. "If the [rise in child obesity] trend continues, within five years we'll be in the same situation as America is today,'' said Kim Fleischer Michaelsen, a senior child nutritionist at the University of Copenhagen who sits on the board of Denmark's National Board of Nutritional Science (Jardine, Alexandra 2005 p3).

As recent as 2005 the children’s television program Sesame Street, which is a commercial free program, has started to change their programming format to include healthy and nutritional eating habits. “C” used to stand for cookie, now it also stands for cauliflower, carrots, and cabbage. Hopefully many advertising agencies and big business companies will take note of this trend, and begin to promote a healthier lifestyle for our children. If this does not happen federal law makers may have to intervene. In several

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other countries they are strengthening their advertising laws in an effort to thwart obesity in their nation’s children.