What to do about TV advertising aimed at kids?
Some people feel that there is too
much TV advertising aimed at kids.
They say children are too young to
tell the difference between the ads
and the program.
These people want to do three
things:
1. Ban all ads for products (such
as toys), directed to kids who are 8
years old and younger.
2. Ban ads for heavily sugared
sweets that can cause lots of
cavities. These ads are aimed at
kids 12 and under.
3. Require that advertisers pay for
good-nutrition ads to balance the
messages for sugared products that
do get on the air.
While many people support these
suggestions, many are also against
them.
These people say the government
should not control TV advertising.
This would be against free speech.
Some wonder how we would pay
for kids' programs if TV did not
carry ads.
Others point out that parents can
always turn off the TV set if they
object to the ads.
Both sides are presenting their
case before the Federal Trade
Commission, a government
agency.
This could take years to settle.
ACT Awards for children's television programs
Action for Children's
Television, or ACT, as it is called,
is a group that works to get the
TV networks to put on better
children's programs. This group
also is working to ban some TV
ads aimed at kids.
Each year ACT gives awards to
good TV shows.
Many of the awards went to
shows that are seen only in a
local area.
Awards that were given to
shows that are nationwide or
seen in many cities include:
? CBS News for 30 Minutes, a
weekly series about the current
? KCET-TV, Los Angeles, for
Freestyle, a series about career
choices.
? Workshop on Children's
Awareness, Cambridge,
Massachusetts, for Feeling Free ,
a series about kids with
disabilities.
* ? *
Programs that received awards
for continuing excellence were:
ABC Afterschool and Weekend
Specials, Animals Animals
Animals, Rebop and Once Upon
a Classic.
A special award was given to
KHJ-TV in Los Angeles for
refusing to run ads for highly
? I
sugared foods during a daily TV
show for kids.
Another special award went to
Children's Television Workshop
for producing Sesame Street for
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