Psychotherapist and mom says: Boys have feelings, it’s time for their toys to catch up

Help Laurel today! Go to the the Kickstarter: Wonder Crew: More than Just a Toy - Expanding Boys' Play! Just a few more days to make this positive product for boys a reality. I'm thrilled to present this guest blog post by another parent … [Read more...]

A call to toy companies to stop marketing violence to children

Here at Marketing, Media and Childhood, we love it when people take action. So I invited reader Catherine Cook of Denver to write a guest post about her petition to Mega Brands (owned by Mattel) to stop shelving toys based on violent video games in … [Read more...]

Sexist toy marketing: Does it really matter?

Only if you are concerned about women's stalled progress in STEM fields, and how that potentially effects their own futures in terms of income and fulfilling careers, as well as the innovative and competitive strength of the overall U.S. economy. No … [Read more...]

Branding: Here’s a new one

The logo for the Disney / Pixar movie Cars, on the airplane wing of my Alaska Airlines flight.   Would you put the Planes logo on your car if Disney paid you?     … [Read more...]

Houghton Mifflin brings execution horror into classrooms

"Houghton Mifflin's Channel One News makes the execution of James Foley the top news story for students down to the third grade. Picture of executioner holding the knife that beheads James Foley is shown to middle school students." Read more: … [Read more...]

Update: How cute! Old Navy marketing starts girls on sexualization path as toddlers

Michelle Cove, who is the founder of MediaGirls, a media literacy program in Brookline, Massachusetts, sent along this photo and comment, as a follow up to my previous post about Old Navy advertising. "Sexualizing girls early isn’t always about … [Read more...]

Sexualization of girls via Old Navy, Boston Globe

I'm wondering how exactly Old Navy could have made the decision that this is an appropriate advertisement for its clothing for little girls. Remind you of anyone?     This child is about 10 years old, and recreating a pose from … [Read more...]

The unprecedented parenting challenges of our day

Never before have parents had to "deliberately and consciously counter many of the dominant messages of their own culture." (A synopsis of a Must Read article for all parents of small children) One day, Gloria DeGaetano found herself with two … [Read more...]

World Cup marred by the advertising on ESPN

My nephew, 9 years old, was watching one of the early games of the World Cup when he came into the kitchen and asked his mother, “Can we go see The Purge?” "Is that a kids movie?" she asked. No he said. It's rated R. Then he said, “What does … [Read more...]

Why we need more thoughtful examination of our media environment

Two things in the news that parents need to be aware of: unsafe apps your child may be using, and ways media may be using your child. Companies are collecting information about your child for profit As schools hand out laptops and tablets and … [Read more...]