Beyond Merida: Toy Industry Complicity in Marketing Vapid Values

Update May 11, 2015 Could the caped crusader cavalry be coming in the form of sheroes and indie offerings like IAmElemental and Roominate and Lottie Dolls? Sure hope so! If you need a bit of joy … [Read more...]

How Can We Use Media To Gift Without Buying?

Update: Dec. 12, 2018 Open Call...for any and all ideas to give the gift of TIME to teachers, elders, family and friends and reduce consumption/increase heartfelt meaning in the process! Hit me up … [Read more...]

CCFC Puts Energy Into Cleaning Up School Commercialism

May 16, 2011 Continuing our ‘positive picks’ series on media and marketing that matters, a gigantic ‘Howard Beale’ style shout from the windows “w00t!” to champions of change at CCFC, Campaign for a … [Read more...]

Sony May Singe Itself: Slimy Innuendo Ignites Backdraft

September 2, 2010 Without a doubt, guerrilla marketing campaigns can be effective disruptors as well as clever marketing and teaching tools for advertising AND media literacy. But what happens when … [Read more...]

Toxic Teen Messaging In A K-Mart/Alloy Episodic: The First Day

September 1, 2010 It’s the first of September, as the first day of school angst bubbles up throughout the nation on either side of this ‘premiere’ week. (many have started school already, some are … [Read more...]

Sexualization Summit: Save the Date Oct 22, 2010 NYC

May 17, 2010 As irony would have it, on Thurs, May 13, in New York City, a small tribe of thought leaders convened on how to best address rampant sexualization of youth in media and marketing. Each … [Read more...]

Commodification of Kids: The Backlash Has Begun

April 16, 2010 About a year ago, TruthOut featured a poignant article called "Commodifying Kids, The Forgotten Crisis" by academic Henry A. Giroux, and though I read it with lots of head bobbing … [Read more...]

“Mouse Inc?” Disney Bullies Small & Mighty CCFC From Home?

March 10, 2010 I bought and watched Academy Award nominee  Food Inc. last night, the riveting documentary on corporate pressures leaning hard on farmers that’s nothing short of mafia-style thuggery … [Read more...]

Addiction Series Part 3: Media, Medicos, & Critical Thinking

Jan. 15, 2009 Thought I’d wrap up Part Three in this series on digital addiction vs. agency (part one and part two here) with some humorous insights from the medical community that poke fun at some … [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 … [Read more...]

Graduation: From What To What? Media Moments Of Expectation

June 10, 2009 Yesterday my daughter ‘graduated’ from eighth grade, and I found myself marveling at the whole commencement falderal as being a bit surreal... It was lovely, in a 'life event' kind of … [Read more...]

Film Screenings: ATB Tonight in Marin, Consuming Kids, June 4th!

May 28, 2009 Last night’s screening of America the Beautiful in S.F. at the Clay with director Darryl Roberts for Q&A yielded another 220 ardent ATB fans and helped support About-Face in the … [Read more...]

Shaping Youth At Ypulse 2009: Send In Your Priorities

May 1, 2009 Much like the scene in the new Disneynature Earth documentary where the lions and the elephants are drinking from the same watering hole, Shaping Youth has been invited to share space … [Read more...]

Hope is On the Horizon When Movements Go Mainstream

April 25, 2009 I've used 'follow the money' as my rebel yell for 'why things are the way they are' and can usually sniff out the trail like a canine customs patrol. So it thrills me when the path … [Read more...]

“Consuming Kids” Is Now Available For YOU To Host A Screening!

April 24, 2009 Back to our green media focus in a minute, since we're all trying to figure out whether somethin' can be done about all this consumption? But first, here's some fabulous news for change … [Read more...]

What’s With 8th Grade Proms & Glamorama Tween Diva-ization?

April 3, 2009 “Myths & Realities of Eighth Grade Graduation/Dance: Students may wear something nicer than normal school clothes. However, we strongly discourage formal dresses and … [Read more...]

Shaping Youth Co-Sponsors “Consuming Kids” Movie Premiere!

April 2, 2009 Academic rockstars are descending upon U.C. Berkeley April 24th, as CCFC leaders speak in person on the commercialization of childhood and the impact on our culture!Shaping Youth is … [Read more...]

Supergirls Speak Out: Liz Funk on NBC Today, Tomorrow!

Feb. 9, 2009 In the ‘takes one to know one’ category, I have to throw my own overachiever support behind young SuperGirl Liz Funk who has spent the last couple years detailing the ‘pressure to be … [Read more...]

Eileen Clegg: Capturing Knowledge Via Visual Insight

When I was asked to present a workshop with all the powerhouse thought leaders and academic bigwigs this past spring at the 6th annual CCFC summit: Consuming Kids: The Sexualization of Children and … [Read more...]