America the Beautiful: An “R” Rated Movie You WANT Kids To See

Teens and tweens have heard more raw verbiage on school grounds in any given day than Eve Ensler's little snippet in America the Beautiful that garnered the documentary an ‘R’ rating. (trailer here) That ‘R’ is for the reform needed in movie ratings, since even the most graphic visuals of plastic surgery could have shown on ER or CSI prime time on any … [Read more...]

Kids, See How You’re Smart: Use Your Intelligence(s!)

There’s nothing more heart-wrenching to me than a child self-critical of his or her brainpower, tossing off statements about ‘the smart kids” while excluding themselves from this tribe. I see this often in my work at Shaping Youth, and it’s painful to observe, much less ‘counter-market’ because media and classroom ideals often reinforce this type of self-selection. On … [Read more...]

We Want You! Custom Viral for Youth Pranksters & Politicos

Youth will no doubt give this one a nudge up the internet viral video charts, right up there with the ol’ Elf Yourself campaign we wrote about last season. Witty, seamless, and oh-so-relevant for the U.S. 2008 fall election year blitz, this campaign’s for you (literally) whether you’re ‘red, blue, or green’ in partisan politics... Insert YOUR … [Read more...]

America the Beautiful Documentary: See it. Support It.

Shaping Youth’s K-5 playground documentary in development, “Body Blitz: Media, Shaping Youth” should get a big boost of media ‘umpf’ and fiscal validation with the release of the new doc, America the Beautiful opening today in L.A. (theater listings/city slate here) and next Friday in S.F., S.D., and Las Vegas! I’ll be interviewing America … [Read more...]

8-8-08 Beijing Olympics: Using New Media With Decorum

My eco-minded ‘one world, one dream' brother was married on 8-8-88 at 8:08, and though he’s not Chinese, he’s well aware that many people in China believe in the good fortune of number eight, “ba” as a symbol of wealth and prosperity. So Happy 20th Anniversary today Mark & Deb! Here's to joyous days! If today’s 8-8-08 at 8:08 … [Read more...]