New Years Media Messages: Packaging Boyhood Meets The Hangover

Dec. 29, 2009 Last night I watched ‘The Hangover’ rated R, which I’d heard described by several YOUNG teens (meaning unable to buy a ticket unless sneaking in via diff. multiplex theater) as ‘hilarious,'  and ‘over the top’ and wanted to see where the kid appeal was coming from and try to ‘relate’ to why this movie was a ‘favorite’ on many a Facebook page. I'm not here to … [Read more...]

So Sexy So Soon: Shaping Youth Chats With Jean Kilbourne, Ed.D.

August 17, 2009 Last month So Sexy So Soon hit the market in paperback, though my hand-signed hardback by academic rockstars Diane Levin, Ph.D. and Jean Kilbourne Ed.D is frayed, highlighted, and worn from full use with youth and parent ed groups ever since its release last year. I broke bread with these two research pioneers at Susan Linn’s house when she hosted all of the … [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 agents out there. Just in time for our Consuming Kids screening and powerhouse panel tonight in Berkeley, (and again  Sun. 4-26 in San Jose and Tues. 4-28 in Palo Alto) MEF , … [Read more...]

Counterstrike: MEF Film “The Price of Pleasure” Screens For Free

April 9, 2009 Even though K-12 youth is Shaping Youth's primary focus, this campus controversy caught my eye for the overlap with our own counter-marketing tactics. In a ‘fight fire with fire’ media literacy move straight out of the Shaping Youth playbook, the Media Education Foundation is responding to this week’s University of Maryland campus uproar of whether or not free … [Read more...]

Counter-Marketing Thinspiration: Killer Media Cues

Feb. 12, 2009 Media literacy rule number one: Watch for extreme headlines that command attention. I could've gone with 'Fatal Attraction' or any other number of sensationalist eyecatchers. As you can surmise, this is about the role of media feeding the pop culture zeitgeist like the Venus Flytrap plant in the Little Shop of Horrors, singing, "Feeeeeeed me." Valentine’s Day … [Read more...]