Kids have always nagged parents to buy them this or that. What's worse, says this social economist, is that the marketing infiltration of the thirteen-and-under set is near-total and far more insidious than just cute ads between Saturday morning cartoons.
Since the ‘90s, children have been subject to the explosion of variety in cable television and also tend to watch more shows aimed at adults. Marketers quickly discovered that young people are the ground zero of consumer culture and have been relentless in pushing their products, not just on TV, but also at slumber parties, on the Internet, on the playground, and in schools. As Schor explained in a magazine interview this month, some word problems in math textbooks include brands such as Nike and Gatorade in their examples.
The end result for children includes depression, anxiety, and the overriding belief that their social survival as individuals depends on their purchasing power.
Schor, who is a professor in Boston College's sociology department and has studied consumer issues for twenty years, was a faculty member at Harvard from 1986 to 2001. For Born to Buy, she conducted insider interviews and observations of advertising and marketing to kids, as well as quantitative research through surveys and data analysis. Though Saatchi and Saatchi, Channel One, and MTV declined to participate, the author achieved remarkable and crucial industry access elsewhere.
Schor argues that parents are usually aware of and uncomfortable with the commercialization of childhood and, given the number of industry professionals who were willing to open up to her, many advertisers and marketers don't feel good about it, either. She outlines a number of potential legislative, cultural, and social solutions on the horizon. In conclusion, she writes, "If we are honest with ourselves, adults will admit that we are suffering from many of the same influences. That means our task should be to make the world a safer and more life-affirming place for everyone. Reversing corporate-constructed childhood is a good first step." —Martha Lagace