Teens: Shout Out a Rebel Yell For Banned Books, Year-Round!

The creative director in me absolutely LOVES the artistic execution of this “banned book” poster’s clean design and clever word play… The media maven in me is wincing at the notion that some child will log it into cogent memory in some form of accuracy, like “Kute Kids Kuts” or "Krispy Kreme." (since very few children I’ve … [Read more...]

School Fundraising Media Mashup: “Kid Fitness” TV?

Growing up in Hawaii hawking ‘huli-huli chicken’ and “King’s Hawaiian bakery sweetbread” as school fundraisers made me realize that all those yummy smells wafting through the hallways would never fly these days. Candy bars and hot malasadas (those puffy fried fat bombs like a sugar-dipped doughnut) were shamelessly hustled island-wide knowing … [Read more...]

Dove’s “Onslaught:” Media Messages Pummel Girls’ Self Esteem

“Here it comes” alright. I smell another Cannes win here for the Dove team’s short film/viral video efforts. “Onslaught,” a Dove film, conveys the pulsating “in your face” rapid-fire bombardment of beauty cues and media sexualization sent every nanosecond to little kids. Onslaught may do for girls what the “Evolution” … [Read more...]

31 Flavorite Authors For Teens: ReaderGirlz Teams with YALSA!

Shaping Youth last reported on "readergirlz" social media launch this spring when they kicked off their power-packed teen lit site as a mashup of ‘old media meets new media’ striving to keep reading relevant for teens in the 21st century. Readergirlz divas Janet Lee Carey (Dragon’s Keep), Dia Calhoun (Avielle of Rhia) Lorie Ann Grover (On Pointe) and … [Read more...]

Bogus Junk Food Bans & Bait-n-Switch Tactics Proliferate School Policy

Forty-eight hours after I wrote this article about the confusing USDA school guidelines and manufacturers marketing tactics to swap ‘lesser calorie junk’ to replace the worst offenders, today's front page S.F. Chronicle coverage reinforced the absurdity of it all using case study examples of Bay area schools. California has led the way in legislative successes, … [Read more...]