Effects of Advertising on Our Children
The Effects of Advertising our Children
Television and commercials are a part of our everyday lives. They are an entertaining way to learn new things, travel the world, and learn about people and culture. We are infiltrated with non-stop advertising while watching TV. According to the Website, “Love your Body”, the number one after-school activity for children ages 6-17 is to watch TV for. Many ads on TV subliminally tell us or make us want or feel something. Ads are powerful messages and content. They can make the unreal, seem real. Our children can become confused by watching too many ads. Ads target kids, since they are a major buying factor for their parents’ spending. If a kid wants something bad enough, advertisers know the parents will eventually give in and buy it for them. Many researchers from the American Psychological Association agree that ad targeting for children is unethical because it targets impressionable minds. It is also not healthy, mentally and physically, for our kids to be brainwashed by so many ads. There is plenty of research that shows all these effects on our kids do plenty of damage not only to our pocket books but also not good for the health and safety of our youth. I will be discussing these effects of advertising on our youth to bring more exposure to why we should limit our kid’s exposure to them.
Our kids are exposed increasingly to more and more ads every year. Marketers have expanded their campaigns to market to our youth since children are big influencers on their parents spending. Over 2.5 Billion dollars are used to market to kids (Shah). They target our youth because they know what big influencers they are. According to Shah, the average American kid watches between 25,000 and 40,000 commercials each year. All this marketing to youth really pays off, since it is reported that children (under 12) and teenagers influence their parents to buying over $130-670 billion a year (Shah). These ads are all targeting our children
Television and commercials are a part of our everyday lives. They are an entertaining way to learn new things, travel the world, and learn about people and culture. We are infiltrated with non-stop advertising while watching TV. According to the Website, “Love your Body”, the number one after-school activity for children ages 6-17 is to watch TV for. Many ads on TV subliminally tell us or make us want or feel something. Ads are powerful messages and content. They can make the unreal, seem real. Our children can become confused by watching too many ads. Ads target kids, since they are a major buying factor for their parents’ spending. If a kid wants something bad enough, advertisers know the parents will eventually give in and buy it for them. Many researchers from the American Psychological Association agree that ad targeting for children is unethical because it targets impressionable minds. It is also not healthy, mentally and physically, for our kids to be brainwashed by so many ads. There is plenty of research that shows all these effects on our kids do plenty of damage not only to our pocket books but also not good for the health and safety of our youth. I will be discussing these effects of advertising on our youth to bring more exposure to why we should limit our kid’s exposure to them.
Our kids are exposed increasingly to more and more ads every year. Marketers have expanded their campaigns to market to our youth since children are big influencers on their parents spending. Over 2.5 Billion dollars are used to market to kids (Shah). They target our youth because they know what big influencers they are. According to Shah, the average American kid watches between 25,000 and 40,000 commercials each year. All this marketing to youth really pays off, since it is reported that children (under 12) and teenagers influence their parents to buying over $130-670 billion a year (Shah). These ads are all targeting our children
Cited: Campbell, Kim, and Kent Davis-Packard. "How Ads Get Kids to Say, I Want It!" The Christian Science Monitor - CSMonitor.com. TCSM, 18 Sept. 2000. Web. 04 Dec. 2011. <http://www.csmonitor.com/2000/0918/p1s1.html>. "Children, Adolescents, and Advertising." Pediatrics. Pediatrics, 1 Dec. 2006. Web. 27 Nov. 2011. <http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/118/6/2563.full>.concerning the problem with targeting kids "Children Now—Media’s Impact." Ch1ldren Now Clay, Rebecca A. "Advertising to Children: Is It Ethical?" American Psychological Association (APA). Sept. 2000. Web. 27 Nov. 2011. <http://www.apa.org/monitor/sep00/advertising.aspx>. unethical reasons to market to kids Clay, Rebecca A