Advertising to Children

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Recommended: Negative impact of advertising on children

They see it; they want it. Advertising to children is turning a want into a responsive nag to a parent, like a reflex. Every media outlet advertises, and companies like popular fast food restaurants target children. In the process of fattening the children, will their reflexes get slower? At some point in every kid’s life, they see an advertisement for a food or toy they want. This want leads to nagging of the parent until they give in. Although it is highly effective and profitable, fast food companies should not be able to have aggressive advertisement campaigns targeting children because it corruptly brainwashes them and promotes unhealthy life choices. Companies, like Disney, have been developing their advertisement strategies since the 1930s. A successful example of this is when Disney threw an already recognizable character, Mickey Mouse, in to all of their other products. (Schlosser 185). This is a smart strategy to use because the company expects the children to buy their new product, because they are already familiar with the character. This tactic showed its effectiveness when Disney’s “Snow White” was released in 1938, with large success with products like toys, books, clothes, and other merchandise (Schlosser 185). The children related these products to the movie, and the movie to the products. Familiarity and already loved characters seemed to sell Disney’s merchandise, and it is obvious that most modern advertising uses these ideals still today. Ray Kroc was the driving force behind the image of The McDonald’s Corporation in its early days. He even took mirrored Walt Disney and his empire of targeting children to bring in business. In hopes of appealing to the children of 1960s America, Kroc introduc... ... middle of paper ... ...ttle stand close together, ultimately in one another’s fecal matter, and then go into one single machine to be grinded together. (“Colbert”). This description builds an unsettling image and the sense that their manure ends up in our meat. Every person in our society should be aware of how their food is handled before they get their hands on it. This type of disturbing manufacturing is not just for the meat we eat from fast food restaurants but from all the meat we buy at the store. Works Cited “Colbert Report- Eric Schlosser.” Colbert Nation. Comedy Partners, 2009. Web. 23 March 2010. “Food, Inc.” Hungry For Change. Food, Inc, N.d.. Web. 23 March 2010. Schlosser, Eric. “Your Trusted Friends.” They Say I Say: The Moves that Matter in Academic Writing with Readings. Ed. Gerald Graff, Cathy Birkenstein, and Russel Durst. New York: Norton, 2009. 182-99.

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