Comments on: Branding the Young http://eatmedia.net/blog/2009/01/branding-the-young/ For the Content Hungry Mon, 06 Feb 2012 05:07:34 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Jonathan http://eatmedia.net/blog/2009/01/branding-the-young/comment-page-1/#comment-780 Jonathan Fri, 09 Jan 2009 16:06:06 +0000 http://eatmedia.net/?p=110#comment-780 Kari, I'm only a few years older than you and remember when all seven television channels came into the house via antennna (NBC, ABC, CBS, PBS and a couple of UHF channels). I'm certain that at the age of four I likely pestered my parents for the latest Christmas toy, but the marketing of the mid to late 1970s was nowhere near as pervasive as it is now, especially as it pertains to children. We've just finished the college bowl season and had the Fedex Orange Bowl and the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. They used to just be the Orange Bowl and the Fiesta Bowl. Now, it seems, everything is a marketing vehicle. We currently get more versions of Nickeledeon via satellite than I had channels growing up. Each of those channels is dedicated to ensnaring young minds in order to hopefully build customers for life. What the latent effects of this relentless and pervasive marketing will be remain to be seen. Kari, I’m only a few years older than you and remember when all seven television channels came into the house via antennna (NBC, ABC, CBS, PBS and a couple of UHF channels). I’m certain that at the age of four I likely pestered my parents for the latest Christmas toy, but the marketing of the mid to late 1970s was nowhere near as pervasive as it is now, especially as it pertains to children. We’ve just finished the college bowl season and had the Fedex Orange Bowl and the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. They used to just be the Orange Bowl and the Fiesta Bowl. Now, it seems, everything is a marketing vehicle. We currently get more versions of Nickeledeon via satellite than I had channels growing up. Each of those channels is dedicated to ensnaring young minds in order to hopefully build customers for life. What the latent effects of this relentless and pervasive marketing will be remain to be seen.

]]> By: Kari Rippetoe http://eatmedia.net/blog/2009/01/branding-the-young/comment-page-1/#comment-778 Kari Rippetoe Wed, 07 Jan 2009 16:44:30 +0000 http://eatmedia.net/?p=110#comment-778 But Jonathan, were you not the same way at that age? It's been almost 29 years since I was 4 (holy crap, I'm that old?), and at that age I recognized countless Sesame Street characters, Disney characters, Saturday morning cartoon characters (remember Smurfs?), etc ad nauseam. Not to mention McDonald's, Burger King, White Castle, etc. For anyone in the western world not exposed to and familiar with all these brands by age 4, I would think there would be some concern over whether they had developmental issues, or were locked up in a basement. Brands are all around us, and they can't be avoided - always have, and I presume always will be. But Jonathan, were you not the same way at that age?

It’s been almost 29 years since I was 4 (holy crap, I’m that old?), and at that age I recognized countless Sesame Street characters, Disney characters, Saturday morning cartoon characters (remember Smurfs?), etc ad nauseam. Not to mention McDonald’s, Burger King, White Castle, etc.

For anyone in the western world not exposed to and familiar with all these brands by age 4, I would think there would be some concern over whether they had developmental issues, or were locked up in a basement. Brands are all around us, and they can’t be avoided – always have, and I presume always will be.

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