Customer Reviews

Consuming Kids: The Hostile Takeover of Childhood

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Parents, grandparents, teachers, caretakers, and anyone who cares about children and the future of our nation, must read Susan Linn's, Consuming Kids, and take action. At it's core, Consuming Kids, examines the negative affects that marketing and advertising have on children. The disturbing fact is that marketing to children is a booming industry that is essentially profiting from programming children. The question Linn presents to the reader is: who is responsible for shaping our children? Is it McDonald's? Is it the Worldwide Wrestling Federation? Is it Pepsi? Is it Barbie? Linn argues and I agree with her, that today's generation of children are not basing their identity or values around those of their parents or friends, but are rather being shaped by brands and large corporations.

I myself am a student of media and marketing, having chosen a major in Communication Arts. In addition to this, I have spent my past six summers as a full-time nanny, and one day hope to be a mother myself. Why is this so important? All of these credentials provided me with the ability to read Linn's book from many different perspectives, however, in the end I received the same message no matter through what lens I was looking; marketing to children needs to stop, not only for children's benefit, but also for the benefit and well-being of society.
Linn brings a new perspective, as a mother and an Instructor in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Linn also serves as Associate Director of the Media Center at Judge Baker Children's Center in Boston. Her background allows her to speak from a mother's perspective, while also utilizing her experience in psychology when examining some of the tactics in campaigning and marketing to children. She successfully finds a balance between the concern of a mother and a deliverer of facts, making her a reliable and credible source. Through multiple personal examples, in addition to statistics and data, Linn reveals the harms of marketing to children.
Linn reflects on an era when children spent their time playing outside and creating fantastic imaginary worlds; however, as Linn points out, today a child cannot even read a popular novel, such as Harry Potter and bring his/her own imagination to it. Harry Potter has been constructed for them, no need to imagine what Hogwart's School looks like because they can see Harry Potter's entire world by watching the movie. Essentially Linn shows the reader that children are becoming programmed by the media and advertising. No longer do they stretch their minds and think for themselves, but rather they have become desensitized and need to be constantly entertained by way of television, video games, and computer games. When I nanny in the summers, the phrase "I'm bored" is uttered by every child in the family usually multiple times a day. My suggestions to play outside, color, or play a board game, are met by whines and responses of "I don't want to". Instead they prefer for me to take them to the video store to rent a movie or to simply act as couch potatoes, staring blankly at the television.

Linn's point is that corporations, commercial media, and advertisers are concerned with one thing and that is making a profit. The notion of instilling the correct values and lessons in children, in addition to reinforcing creativity and individuality, seems to have fallen to the waste side and has been replaced by images of sex and violence. Marketers strive to grab children's attention; sex and violence are only two examples of tactics that have proven to be successful. Not only is it problematic for a six year old to be playing with "lingerie Barbie", but also on a larger scale, where is the responsibility on the part of the marketers? Would they want their child playing with a scantly clothed doll? What lessons does that doll teach a child?

These questions of social and ethical responsibility are the heart and core of Linn's book. Linn recognizes that parents can only do so much and say "no" so many times before it begins to take a serious toll on their child/parent relationship. Therefore, she reassures parents that they are not the ones to blame, nor should they be blamed for problems surrounding children's exposure to negative and harmful images, but rather, people need to ban together and take action against the source of the problem which is the media themselves. Keeping consistent in tone and purpose, Linn offers a list of simple suggestions for parents to do their part in stopping the "marketing maelstrom". The future looks bleak if the media's messages to children revolve around sex, violence, and materialism. We must stop the advertising beast before it causes permanent damage and jeopardizes the future of society.

I learned about this book from the author when she was a guest on a local radio talk show. I like to describe my opinion as "not-so-humble-yet-worthless". In the case of this book that would be especially so, because I'm not married and don't have any children (a confession for which I am fully prepared to be lambasted behind, because I have the nerve to have an opinion on the topic).

Now that I've gotten that off my chest...I feel that this book was very good at shining a light on the ever increasing problem of the marketing and advertising blitz of consumer products that targets teens and working it's way all the way down to infants. I especially liked Linn's work as a "mole" during a marketing and advertising conference, how she exposes the way public schools have now become a hotbed for marketing executives, and I found myself empathizing with parents who are sports (mainly baseball & football) fanatics that may feel as if watching a sporting event on television is an indirect encouragement to drink, because of the flood of beer commercials that usually accompany televised sporting events.

I happened to be reading a portion of the book on a Saturday morning, and as I put the book down to turn on the television, the channel just happened to be on Fox. Linn speaks in specific detail about every single thing that I saw in that short TV break...the Fox/4Kids TV collaboration in the book, how that collaboration allows a particular ad agency to market to kids all morning long, every Saturday, how Companies like Lego have begun to offer playsets that are designed to create only one particular thing and as a result, stifle the creativity of young minds, and the way products devoid of nutritional value are marketed in this fashion, as well as the effects it may have on child obesity. So it's certainly not difficult to locate the evidence of which she speaks.

The book does drag at times and in just about every chapter, stops at or leaves room for many open-ended questions that as a result, make it at times begin to read a little too much like a buck-passing project put together by parents in search of a scapegoat for their bratty children. I could write an entire book myself on the questions that this one book raised for me.

But where I feel this book is superb, and I believe most readers will find the most useful, is in the final chapter...Ending The Marketing Maelstrom: You're Not Alone. Here, Linn constructs a detailed, yet highly attainable list of suggestions for solutions to the problem where everyone - young or old, parent or childless, marketing executive or schoolteacher, politician or clergyman, working with children or not - has a part to play. And while everything that Linn outlines is not attainable by everyone, I especially liked how she started the out with five segments of "WHAT PARENTS CAN DO"...in the home, in the community, in the schools, in the marketplace, and limiting television and why it's important...the things that are the most attainable by just about everyone. Because I truly believe it begins at home, and we can shine a spotlight on the problem until times get better, but at the end of the day, the reality of this world is that children are not a reflection of a cunning advertising agency or a slick TV commercial. Children are a reflection of the people raising them.

She also offers a list of other books as a suggestion to get people discussing the issue. I think I'm going to take her up on some of her suggestions. Having said that, I'll leave anyone humoring me by reading this review with a quote from one of America's more popular TV Dads, Bernie Mac, when speaking of his own less-than-well behaved TV children: "This is war, and I don't plan on losing."

The central premise of this book is that parents are being told that it is their responsibility--not that of the government or private industry--to shield children from the harmful effects of marketing while at the same time, advertisers are using methods specifically intended to undermine parents' efforts. Young children are extremely vulnerable to advertising, and marketers exploit that vulnerability without any concern about the well-being of the children or the population at large. It is not realistic to expect parents to have control over these influences when they come from all directions and with such force.

What is most disturbing about this well-researched study is how unabashedly exploitative the advertising industry has become toward children. They are proud of "cradle to grave" marketing that can begin when children are toddlers or infants. The "nag factor" is considered a perfectly reasonable way to get children to convince their parents to buy them things. Harmful products such as obesity-inducing fast foods, nicotine, and alcohol are pushed the hardest at children, and statistics show that even the most well-intentioned and involved parents can fail teach their children to make wise choices.

The only reason I do not give this book 5 stars is that the author focuses primarily on child-directed consumerism. As a parent, I have experienced the secondary effects of marketing when I've purchased over-hyped products for my son that he hasn't even asked for. Such is the power of advertising that parents become trained to anticipate what they will be nagged for.

The suggestions offered to parents in this book range from actions we can take at home to political issues we can champion to help protect our children. There is no step-by-step guide to making our kids marketing-proof. The point of the book is that parents currently do not have the power to protect their children, and should not be viewed as solely responsible for their well-being. Things are getting worse and only pressure from consumers and from our political representatives can level the playing field.

This book is a good short course in the shameless tactics companies use to market products to children of all ages. Linn goes "undercover" to a marketing convention and gives the reader an idea of the mindset of the typical marketing person's attitudes. Her undercover reporting along with references to industry journals show the marketing industry's complete lack of regard for how their messages affect children. The book is intentionally short on advice to parents; it's not intended as a manual for how to deal with marketing.

Linn repeatedly says how marketing to children results in parents constantly having to say "no" to things. I wonder if this is as big of a problem as the author suggests. We all have to say no constantly to choices that are pleasing but bad for us. Adults know that they must produce a good or service to get money to buy other people's goods/services. This fact of life ought to be explained to children at a very young age. Responsible adults allocate certain amounts of money to each of their needs and wants. Why not give kids an allowance of some sort. If as children they spend it on something they really don't want, it is better that they learned the lesson then than grow up to be adults thinking their existence is defined by much pricier toys. With this lesson children might learn to save their money and only spend on things they really like. They might learn that putting their money toward something they believe in is more pleasing spending it on consumer products. When I have children, I will revisit this review to see if I was hopelessly naive and optimistic about children's ability to make the right decisions on their own.

I don't have any thoughts as to how parents should deal with marketing the glorifies violence (including media relations from the US military) (...). These are age-old problems that are intensified by media technology. I think, however, that the same media technology can provide information challenging harmful marketing. I am very circumspect about Linn's suggestion of keeping computers out of kids bedrooms, especially after they have developed critical thinking skills. At some age, hopefully not to young, kids are going to be exposed to all kinds of crap and in the end it will be up to them to make the right decisions. Again, check back in 20 years to see if my take is simplistic.

In any case, Consuming Kids is worthwhile to read as a warning about mainstream companies' willingness to exploit children to sell their products.

I see the reader review preceding this one states: "The only reason I do not give this book 5 stars is that the author focuses primarily on child-directed consumerism."

Perhaps said reader didn't notice the TITLE of Susan Linn's book? :(

Why CONSUMING KIDS isn't a national bestseller in perpetuity (and required reading for parents), I cannot explain, other than to suggest that Mattel and Disney have formed a conspiracy against it. Kudos to Susan Linn.

An important book that helps adults look objectively at our consumer-driven culture. This books helps us empower ourselves and our children to lead happy, healthy, and productive lives that we have chosen, rather than what the products and companies have chosen for us.

It's hard to imagine someone picking this book up who already doesn't think kids are overly targeted by commercial interests, so the question of "does it make its point" doesn't seem to matter much (the answer is yes). If it won't convince you of its argument since you've already been convinced, what it will do at times is startle you with just how blatant or over-the-top that targeting is.
The book itself is well-documented in a variety of ways--a pleasing and effective mix of personal anecdote (a mother herself), academic scholarship/studies, psychiatry, and old-fashioned journalism involving interviews, internal company memos, and in some of the most interesting scenes, "under-cover" experience at some marketing conferences/workshops.
All the major and expected culprits are examined: tobacco, alcohol, sex, toys, television, etc.. Each one given roughly equal treatment of analysis, anger, and disdain. For the most part, the analysis is even-toned (though always with a sense of sad anger or urgency), though she occasionally stacks the deck against the book's villains a bit too obviously.
Linn closes with some proposed solutions. While she acknowledges the role of parents in such simple solutions as "hey, turn off the TV!", her main argument is that the balance of power has shifted too greatly over the past 20 years or so and the govt. needs to step in on a more aggressive parental/child-friendly fashion. Some will find her solutions overly-intrusive, others will cheer them on, and sadly, I think many will nod in agreement while thinking the genie's already out of the bottle.
There's really very little to complain about with regard to the book. As mentioned, it's a bit self-evident, so one doesn't expect any "wow" moments. And perhaps some more historical context could be helpful. A bit more balance from the other side would have been nice, even if it's hard to imagine much of a defense. But overall, it's a detailed, lucid argument made in pleasant fashion, even if the end result is frustration and sadness over just how far things have gone. Recommended.

Although I consider myself a well educated dedicated parent, and I truly believe in capitalism as the best governing system, I find myself continually challenged as a parent to stick to my ideals and goals in raising my children - particularly with respect to purchasing. Consuming Kids was an eye opener in explaining why this has been so difficult. This book presents well researched evidence anyone can understand about the consequences of allowing advertising and marketing in more and more places - and often aimed at children.
Readable, Alarming, and Thought Provoking!

This is a wonderful book. Every parent, teacher, and general consumer should read this book and be informed about the harmful things that our consumerist culture is doing doing our chlidren.

I devoured the first few chapters of this book, sped through the middle, and slogged through the end. By the last chapter i really just felt like the author was bludgeoning me with things she'd already demonstrated in previous chapters. Even considering that, though, i highly recommend this book to any parents, teacher, or anyone who interacts with children.

The short version is that marketing to children is ostensibly a self-regulated industry, but as with many other industries entrusted with self-regulation, it's a free-for-all.

The author goes through the book discussing specific aspects of the problem, such as marketing in schools, food marketing, alcohol and tobacco marketing. She documents examples of how marketers take advantage of the immaturity of juvenile brains. For example, children under five or so can't distinguish between a tv commercial and a tv show, and children under eight don't grasp persuasive intent. (Advertisers not only know this, they use it and abuse it.)

The author points out that it's not just our children's weight being undermined by fast food commercials, or their livers and lungs being targeted by alcohol and tobacco commercials. Their respect for adults and authority is attacked by commercials that, in the guise of 'empowering' children, portray adults as at best incompetent, and at worst deserving of disobedience and disrespect.

This book is not prescriptive. Only at the end of the last chapter does it give a few pages of suggestions on how one can combat this multi-billion-dollar industry that preys on children despite its own assertions to the contrary. For parents, it's simply ideas like not letting your child have a TV in their room, and limiting their TV hours. She goes on beyond that, though, by suggesting how teachers, health care providers, PTA members, and politicians can do their part.

On the whole, and as noted at the beginning, this book is not a how-to on commercial-proofing your child. It is, instead, a well-researched documentation of how products are marketed to children, and why it's bad. I highly recommend that anyone concerned about the effect of media on children read this book. I recommend it even more strongly to any parent who's a little uncertain that the media really can manipulate children so readily, or those who think that it takes nothing more than a simple explanation of what commercials are to equip children to understand and resist them.