Using Marketing Methods to ‘Sell’ Kids Healthier Food

August 11, 2015 Update Check out these 31 healthy ideas for kids' snacking by Play Fuel which draw from industry marketing tactics as well!On a "how low can you go" level of problematic food industry sidewinders, today UConn Rudd Center released the 98pp report on how kids of color are particularly targeted with junk food, soda. (78% of Spanish TV targeted kids with junk, black … [Read more...]

The Miley Mess & Role Model Reverb: What to Do

Before I turn part two of yesterday's preteen post on the pop culture hypefest of Miley Cyrus over to Dr. Robyn Silverman, our adolescent body image expert, I just want to say THIS is why I left the sensationalized tabloid-style TV journalism of 'mainstream media' long ago. Headlines scream that she was 'topless' and some even go so far as to say 'nude,' which is a stretch … [Read more...]

Dr. Robyn Silverman Joins Shaping Youth As Our Body Image Pro

We’re thrilled to welcome Dr. Robyn Silverman as our new body image expert here at Shaping Youth, where I’ll no doubt also pick her brains as a consultant for my documentary film underway called, Body Blitz: Media, Shaping Youth filmed on K-5 playgrounds...(the poignant illustration I bought from artist Ashley Cecil at left sums it all quite well) Sometimes … [Read more...]

Mamma’s Got A Brand New Bag…er…Face. Nose. Belly.

Is the media baiting us again? I can't wait to hear what our friends at Beauty and the Breast have to say about this one! Being a writer, kids around me are accustomed to me soliciting feedback, in this case, about a new children’s book called “My Beautiful Mommy,” which "explains plastic surgery to kids." Not exactly Good Night Moon or the Berenstain … [Read more...]

Best Practices For Kids Social Media: Profile Settings

How can we help kids’ learn to configure their profiles so they have fun on social media sites, while protecting themselves from needless data-mining, behavioral profiling, ad targeting, spam and such? I wrote about the new plug-in at My Data is My Data.org (just went live today) and rightfully, press buzz and discerning eyes noted that it simply shifts the trust/faith … [Read more...]