Advertising today now seems to be reaching into every corner of our day-to-day lives. Now it is even affecting how we teach our children. Books used to be a way for kids to take a break from television commercials and product placement. Although I am a branded entertainment enthusiast and find it to be a creative way to reach an audience, I do not approve of what some brands are doing to single out and attract young children.
Many very popular candy and junk food brands are now writing their own children’s books to educate kids. Examples of such are:
- Skittles Riddles Math, by Barbara Barbieri McGrath, Roger Glass
- The Cheerios Counting Book, by Rob Bolster
- The Oreo Cookie Counting Book by Catherine Lukas
- The Hershey's Milk Chocolate Bar Fractions Book, by Jerry Pallotta
- The Hershey's Kisses Addition Book, by Jerry Pallotta, Rob Bolster
- More M&M's Brand Chocolate Candies Math, by Barbara Barbieri
- The M&M's Brand Counting Book, by Barbara Barbieri McGrath
- Twizzlers Percentages Bookby Jerry Pallotta, Rob Bolster
- Reese's Pieces: Count by Fives, by Jerry Pallotta, Rob Bolster
Now what is immoral with this you ask? Considering children in America are now 20% more obese than they were in 1990, I ask how can this be good for them (Diabetes in Control)?
These books persuade learning and make math interactive--through consumption. Children are already hard-wired to desire candy more than the average adult, and often beg their parents to purchase it for them. Yet now they are becoming only more susceptible to developing eating problems and becoming obese because these already high-revenue generating companies want to further establish their brand name into kid’s lives.
The first page of The Oero Cookie Counting Book says, “Ten little Oreos all in a line.” Then beside an illustration of a children’s hand reaching toward a row of cookies, it continues, “ Dunk one in a glass of milk and now there are nine.” The back cover insists, “Children will love to count down as 10 little Oeros are dunked, nibbled and snacked until there are none!” Reflecting on the fact that 10 Oeros have over 20 grams of fat and 500 calories, I believe that there is a much more healthy approach we should be taking to teach our children (Jahness). The basic eating habits that a child learns when they are young is what they will continue doing for the rest of their life. If we allow candy brands to enter the market of educating our children, it will only reinforce their already burning desire to consume a much more than recommended amount of food.
In my opinion, these brands are beginning to cross some ethical lines. Although they seem to want to teach children basic mathematical skills, it is apparent that encouraging more candy consumption by kids is also on the agenda. It seems that the only way to learn from these books is to buy the specific junk food as well to coincide with the learning. Although this kind of advertising may be successful at increasing some sales, I find their approach to be wrong. When a brand begins to create media for the sole purpose of generating revenue without regards to the health and safety of their consumer, then their branded entertainment is no longer a success in my book.
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