FTC Food Marketing to Kids Update: Are Watchdogs All Bark No Bite?

Sept. 9, 2010 Where are we now with the whole junk food marketing to kids/obesity prevention discussion? Feels like we’ve been TALKING about "candy bars for breakfast" and citing Pink Princess Fairytale Flakes with ads for sugary slop on TV out the wazoo, along with advergaming (embedded digital trolling, seeding unhealthy junk food) and yet “the more things change, the more … [Read more...]

Girl World Tour Meets Tween Town Hall to Speak Up & Share: Mar 13

March 5, 2010 What's on the minds of tween girls' today? We're about to find out next Saturday at the Tween Girl Town Hall as 150 girls age 8-14 clamor for FREE swag bags and freebie finds from sponsors eager to hear their points of view. Hosted by marketing consultancy and tween social networking site AllyKatzz.com, creator of the inaugural Tween Summit (photo gallery … [Read more...]

A Homeless American Girl Doll: Really, AG? REALLY?

Sept. 25, 2009 Never quite thought homelessness would end up a ‘branding opportunity’ but alas, when Virgin Mobile lobbied Congress to declare November Youth Homeless Awareness month to devote time, attention and resources to the issue I thought it was pretty cool. I met a couple of people from Virgin Mobile’s Re-Generation campaign at the cause-marketing lunch table at the … [Read more...]

Should Kids’ Cartoons Sell Fruit & Veggies? Brandwashing Revisited

Sept. 16, 2009 Erma Bombeck once said, “My children refuse to eat anything that hasn’t danced on TV.” Quick! Mind snap: Did you blink to California Raisins boogieing to “Heard it Through the Grapevine?” If so, you’ve been ‘brandwashed’ by that award-winning iconic campaign from FCB so long ago… Next week on Sept. 21, two familiar icons and two slogans will be voted into … [Read more...]

Consuming Kids: Selling Value As A Virtue

July 28, 2009 In another ‘silver lining’ of our economy’s challenging moments, seems “consuming kids” are self-reining and prioritizing the value of purchases, with fashion taking a nosedive and techno-media holding steady. (Reminder, we’re screening Consuming Kids again at my place on Friday, so RSVP, it’s free!) When I interviewed Mike Berenstain of Berenstain Bears, he … [Read more...]