April 26, 2012 “If it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck”… It doesn’t take much inductive reasoning to see Miss Travel is afoul. That said, using critical thinking skills to see why … [Read more...]
Wordless Wednesday: Not. Gleeful. Spark Change!
October 20, 2010 by 15 Comments
October 20, 2010 Wordless Wednesday photocap: "Why we need to SPARK change: Teens' media messaging" Register now for SPARKSummit to ignite a movement challenging sexualization. Girls' have a right … [Read more...]
Tips From the Trenches: Re-Imagining Youth Activism, SPARK Change!
October 18, 2010 by 6 Comments
October 18, 2010 Ancient Chinese proverb: “The best soldiers are not warlike.” Welcome to youth activism 21st century style. (pithy "model waiver" for American Apparel street theater protest at … [Read more...]
SPARK Ignites A Firestorm of Powerhouses: Geena Davis, & More
October 16, 2010 by 6 Comments
October 16, 2010 The countdown to the SPARK Summit (Sexualization Protest: Action. Resistance. Knowledge) is in its final week, culminating in the NYC Summit Friday Oct 22, 2010 and the hits just keep … [Read more...]
Teen Girls: Ready For A Rebel Yell? SPARK Change Now!
September 7, 2010 by 12 Comments
Sept. 7, 2010 Girls, are you tired of being wrapped up, marketed and sold like a slab of meat? Having the media tell the world what your priorities are? Sick of slimy innuendos aimed at toddlers, … [Read more...]
Raising Authentic Girls: Rachel Simmons’ “Be You! The Real Girl Tour”
August 31, 2010 by 7 Comments
August 31, 2010 “Be you!” Riiiiight. In a media environment that cynically exploits how to act, what to wear, why to buy and who to be, girls are repeatedly told to "be themselves." GirlsHealth … [Read more...]
Healthy Youth Media Act Pt 2: Can Change Be Legislated? (interview)
July 21, 2010 by 9 Comments
July 21, 2010 Can you hear the drumbeat, Hollywood? It’s getting louder. Girl advocates like Jessica Lawrence head to Capitol Hill to discuss H.R. 4925 tomorrow to share firsthand data about how … [Read more...]
Media Hypefest: Is Prom the New Wedding? A Teen’s Perspective
May 7, 2010 by 7 Comments
May 7, 2010 As the last vestiges of prom wind down along with Girls Rights Week, I wanted to land one last post in the queue exploring media and marketing’s impact on kids' expectations, reality show … [Read more...]
Shaping Youth Honors Girls Rights Week May 3-7
May 3, 2010 by 7 Comments
May 3, 2010 In honor of Girls Rights Week, advocating for positive change in the world, I’m going to run a week long series of “all things girl” to show how media and marketing can HELP rather than … [Read more...]
Deconstructing Gaga: Through the Lens of 100 Youth
March 29, 2010 by 7 Comments
Mar. 29, 2010 Whether you’re Gaga for Gaga or your emotions run toward dropping the last letter (ahem, cough) there’s no doubt her one billion online video views ascending her from bland to brand have … [Read more...]
Girl World Tour Meets Tween Town Hall to Speak Up & Share: Mar 13
March 5, 2010 by 5 Comments
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 … [Read more...]
Body Image: Tips for Teens To Survive the Media Morass
January 21, 2010 by 17 Comments
January 21, 2010 Last night I talked about body image to our local high school PTSO with Susan E. James, an LMFT eating disorders specialist and RD/MPH Cindy Stack-Keer from Kaiser Permanente all … [Read more...]
The Perfect Gift for a Man: Reinventing Manhood (Book)
December 9, 2009 by 12 Comments
Dec. 9, 2009 And now for the GOOD news! Yesterday for I wrote about ‘boys being turned into monsters’ with toxic marketing proliferation about what it means to be masculine, rolling out narrowcast … [Read more...]
Save New Moon Girls: Help Us, Help Them!
November 12, 2009 by 1 Comment
Nov. 12, 2009 Long before the vampires and sparkling sagas of Twilight’s New Moon, New Moon Magazine delighted girls as a ‘go to guide’ for navigating adolescence and being themselves. After 16 … [Read more...]
Shaping Youth Joins New Moon Girls Media As Affiliate Partner
November 5, 2009 by 11 Comments
Nov. 5, 2009 New Moon Girl Media had a massive makeover last year giving girls 8 and up a vibrant, social, supportive space to express themselves without being bombarded by pop up ads for diets, … [Read more...]
Reporting From the First Ever Tween Summit: Debra Moffitt for S.Y.
October 14, 2009 by 7 Comments
Oct. 14, 2009 This past weekend, Denise Restauri and the AllyKatzz team launched the first ever National Tween Summit to see what's on the minds of preteen girls. I haven't figured out how to be … [Read more...]
Rachel Simmons Tonight at GunnHS, Palo Alto!
September 24, 2009 by 2 Comments
Sept. 24, 2009 S.F. Bay Area readers, reminder Rachel Simmons is speaking TONIGHT for free at Palo Alto's Gunn High School (details here) about her new book The Curse of the Good Girl (living proof of … [Read more...]
Curse of the Good Girl: Interview with Rachel Simmons
August 29, 2009 by 22 Comments
August 29, 2009 “Aw, mom, it sounds boring, why do I have to hear some ‘expert’ talk about stuff I already know…Are any of MY friends going to be there?” Those were my ten year old daughter’s words … [Read more...]
So Sexy So Soon: Shaping Youth Chats With Jean Kilbourne, Ed.D.
August 17, 2009 by 30 Comments
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 … [Read more...]
Interview with Amy Jussel on The Girl Revolution
June 3, 2009 by 13 Comments
June 3, 2009 While I was at the Ypulse Youth Marketing Mashup, the last two days, this "Interview with Shaping Youth Director" (aka yours truly) posted on The Girl Revolution. Here's (Part One) and … [Read more...]
