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Showing posts with label Juliet B. Schor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Juliet B. Schor. Show all posts
Mar 6, 2013 at 1:05 AM | By: A Woman

Capitalism and Ignorance is Bliss - Consuming Kids (Part 2) - Day 317

 
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Illustration by Isabelle Arsenault
 
This is a continuation to:
 

Problem No.2

Physical Health - Obesity Epidemic

 
Children are exposed to Mass Marketing of Sweats and Candies, Beverages and Foods with no real Nutrition Values from the moment they entered this world.
While the parent Beliefs one is reading their Child a Book that would enhance the Child's Communication, imagination and Language skills, one does not take into consideration the hidden and indirect advertisement existent in the Book's Illustrations that would influence the Child's Nutrition Choices, later on in one's Life and therefor, one's Health and Well-Being. What was supposed to be a tool of Education and Entertainment for children, transformed into a Marketing Place for the Big Corporations.
 
The US food system is the second largest advertiser in the American economy through the massive Marketing over the television, newspaper, magazine, billboard, and radio advertisements - All of which would determines one's Life without one being aware and Conscious about one's Decisions and Choices one is so dearly protest to be Free.
However, what is more concerning is the 'In-School Marketing' that includes Commercial Activities, Direct advertising and indirect advertising and Market Research with Students:
 
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Since the 80s, Obesity in Children at the ages of 6-19 has roughly TRIPLED:
 
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A literature review by Kaiser Family Foundation highlighted a number of studies that suggested that advertising influenced dietary and other food choices in children, which likely contributed to energy imbalance and weight gain. It is not surprising that Half of the advertising time on Children's TV is devoted to Food Advertising and  While fruit and vegetables as well as grains and beans are rarely aired.
 
The Marketing of the Food ads are done through 'Persuasive Appeals' such as Taste, Fun and Uniqueness. Often, Incentive are introduced like for instance McDonalds' Children Happy Meal that comes with all sorts of Games and Puppets but most importantly, the most beneficial Persuasive Appeal is through connecting the products with the Children's 'Feelings' which would Develop, Create and Design the Child to become an Effective Present and Future Consumer.
Unfortunately, what is not Seen, Realized and Understood is that Advertising directed at children within Persuasive Appealing Technics is by its very nature, Exploitative and unacceptable.
 
Obesity is a significant health problem which the Corporation Elite are form a direct part in it within our Profit Driven Capitalistic System. Obesity can lead to high Health Risk conditions such as Heart disease, stroke, High blood pressure, Diabetes, Cancer and etc.
Within that context, I suggest following Paul's Journey to Life who is working with the Consequences of high level of Sugar intake as a child that had led him to a life with Diabetes Type 1.
 
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While the Research indicate specifically the correlation and relationship between Advertisement and Obesity, not much has been done to Prevent the Problem and Support with a Solution that would stop the Harm and Abuse of the Generations to come.
 
Another Problem is the Legitimate Continues Harmful Advertisement through the First Amendment of the United State's Constitution within the realm of commercial free speech. In other words, the First Amendment allow the Big Corporations make the kids suffer from Physical Health problems with a life long Consequences.
The Food and Media Corporation have repeatedly stated that their Advertisement is protected speech under the First Amendment and therefore, up until today, all attempts to Ban TV Commercials targeting Children in the US have failed  regardless the Research that were done, showing that if such era will arise where TV commercial Ads would be banned, we will see dramatic decline of Obesity cases.
 
While Children have no Real Free Choice in what they are being exposed to either at home or at their Environment, we have the power to stand up for a solution that would Prevent a future and much worsen Epidemic to a point of no Return. The Solutions are available and all we have to do is to Decide to walk the correction Process. 
 
Will Continue in the next blog to uncover the Mental Health Problems in relation to Advertisement which from there, I will move Forwards to the Solutions.
 
For further Context and thus Understanding, I suggest Reading and Watching:
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Mar 5, 2013 at 8:15 AM | By: A Woman

Capitalism and Ignorance is Bliss - Consuming Kids (part 1) - Day 316

This is a continuation to:

Capitalism and Ignorance is Bliss - Day 315

 

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Problem No.1

 

For further Context and thus Understanding, I suggest Reading and Watching:

Aleksey Graboviy, Consumerism and Its Dangers to Children: A Call for Regulation in Advertising (PDF)

Consuming Kids

Schor, J. B. (2004). Born to buy. New York: Scribner

A Woman's Journey to Life - Brainwashed consumers – Part 1 – Day 19

Bachmann Achenreiner, G., & Roedder John, D. (2003). The meaning of brand names to children: A developmental investigation. Journal of Consumer Psychology 

 

Over the Years, the Corporate Profit Driven Capitalism, have evolved itself by utilizing psychologically targeted persuasive technique. That was done with the assistance of Support of Edward Bernays that had showed the American corporations how to make people want things they didn't need by linking mass produced goods to their unconscious desires. (I suggest watching the Documentary 'Century of the Self' for further Understanding of how we have been Brainwashed by the Corporations and those in Power and Control and thus blindly followed our Desires that are/were not even our own).

Throughout the Evolution of the Corporate Marketing, they had perfected their Techniques through extensive Manipulation tactics within the understanding of the Human's Functionality of the Mind into Consumerized Robots.

 

Research were conducted on the Human's Behaviour and Social trends within the starting point of what would produce the most Power and Money to the Corporations which then thus, the focus started to be on Children as not only the indirect Present consumers but the Direct Future Consumers. Accordingly, some Corporations abused this knowledge of the power of Persuasive and thus, could increase sales by Manipulating the Children in Advertisement and thus, indirectly forcing the parents to buy the goods for their children. Obviously, within a Profit Driven System, the Advertisements do not include the necessary information and Education that would provide the children and thus the Parents with the skills and tools to identify whether or not the 'Goods' would result with Harm either Mentally and/or Physically or whether, it may actually support them.

 

According to Juliet B. Schor (Schor, J. B. (2004). Born to buy. New York: Scribner):

The Estimation is that Children are exposed to about 100 Daily Commercials and thus, view, more than 40,000 a year. The Commercials are Designed specifically according to Components such as Gender, Race, Culture and Age which then thus, the influence of the Children's mind is highly Effective.

 

Research done in the 90ties shows that Children can reason and categorize objects on a conceptual basis

already at the age of 18 months old (Carey, 1985; Gelman&Coley, 1990; Mandler, Bauer,& McDonough, 1991) in other words, they are able to recognized Logos and Brand names.

For myself, when working with Children at these ages where they have already developing their Communication skills either with body Movements or Language to express their wants, needs and Desires are - unless you buy them the Dora Candy in the grocery store, you and the entire neighbourhood would hear the screaming of the baby that didn't get the Dora Candy.

 

Schor stating that:

"Upon arrival at the schoolhouse steps, the typical first grader can evoke 200 brands. And he or she has already accumulated an unprecedented number of possessions, beginning with an average of 70 new toys a year. "

http://bcm.bc.edu/issues/fall_2004/ft_schor.html

 

There is nothing Natural in the Development of a consumerism Society that is blindly abused by Deception and Manipulation of the Deliberate Unskilled individuals through Mass Marketing of the big Corporations. The Massive Brainwash start already at age 0 and without the understanding of the Relationship between the Mind and the Physical, no one is really understanding the consequences and the outflows that emerged in the long run and thus can directly connect it to the Corporate mass Advertisements that is currently protected by the First Amendment. This is unfortunate and saying that, I encourage you to start educating yourself with regards to the Relationship between the Mind and the Physical - Studies that no Scientist or Psychologist had ever reached before: Parenting - Perfecting the Human Race.

It is no wonder thus that our values system is distorted and we have no Consideration for LIFE, of those that make LIFE Possible and those who dies, day in and day out for our peruse of Happiness. Instead of Developing Real Life Skills and Intimacy with ourselves and others to become an Effective Human beings in this world that would contribute to the well beings of us all, the Children are forced to a Life of Materialism which follow a real Deep form of Ignorance which we then thus, Perceive and Define as Bliss.

 

Will Continue in the next blog to Expose the Problems in relation to Consuming Kids: Mental and Physical Health which would follow with the Presentation of Solutions Rewards within such application. So stay tuned.

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