Appropriate Advertising Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Appropriate Advertising - Essay Example They will expose, shape, and try to mold the minds of children into tomorrow's consumers. Advertising, like television programming, should be screened for adult content, adult products, and relegated to an appropriate time slot. Children's exposure to a wide variety of products and influences is limited by society. Social norms limit drinking age, access to tobacco, and entry into the military. There should also be strict laws on the media content that enters and influences the minds of children. There is little doubt that when Miller Brewery advertises on Saturday afternoon they are not just selling beer. They are also grooming future customers. Advertisers know that children are watching and paying close attention. According to marketing researchers Maher, Hu, and Kolbe (2006), children as young as 6 years old are able to recall television advertisements with a 90% accuracy rate after seeing a commercial (p 31). At this tender and impressionable age, advertising can substantially influence a child's future willingness to drink or engage in other social deviance. Not only are children force-fed a propensity for unhealthy products, they are also socialized with an unrealistic view of materialism. Intent is as important as content in an advertisement viewed by children.