Author Archive
Posted June 14th, 2012 by Susan Linn
The notion that instituting parental controls for Facebook’s underage users or creating a kid-friendly version will keep pre-teens off of the regular—or unrestricted—site is ridiculous. The 7.5 million children under the age of 13 who are lying to get on the site will continue lie with our without their parents’ permission. According to Microsoft research, only 35% of parents whose kids are on Facebook actually know about it.
Posted April 27th, 2012 by Susan Linn
The truth: There I was, Director of Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, champion of limiting children’s screen time, playing Angry Birds on the subway. The justification: There I was, Director of Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, champion of limiting children’s screen time, after a stressful day trying to change a world that wasn’t cooperating, unable [...]
Posted March 1st, 2012 by Susan Linn and Josh Golin
Universal Studio’s animated film The Lorax opens in theaters on March 2. And environmentalists and people who care about children are already outraged—with good reason. For more than forty years, the Dr. Seuss classic has been a clarion call for reducing consumption and promoting conservation. But the book’s eloquent environmental message is being crushed by the film’s slew of corporate cross-promotions.
Posted December 6th, 2011 by Susan Linn
It’s been easy for people worried about the sexualization of little girls to feel unambivalently distressed about Miley Cyrus as Disney’s Hannah Montana. But how should we feel about her now that she’s made this great music video about Occupy protests around the world?
Posted August 24th, 2011 by Susan Linn
A Canadian couple’s decision to keep their infant’s sex from the world at large seems less weird when one consider’s the harms done by the marketing industry’s sexualization of young children
Posted August 17th, 2011 by Susan Linn
As Big Food tantrums about guidelines for food marketing to children a new study links advertising to nagging for junk food
Posted August 15th, 2011 by Susan Linn
Stuck for a whiz-bang college essay? Buy an experience! One more way commercialized culture robs kids of authenticity, creativity, and self-motivation.
Posted August 3rd, 2011 by Susan Linn
The controversy brewing over a new breastfeeding doll soon to be sold in the United States reminds me of the bru-ha-ha about Teletubbies when Jerry Falwell accused Tinky Winky of being gay. People rightfully upset about homophobia came to the support of the show, misguidedly defending the goodness of Teletubbies—which was being marketed, falsely, as [...]
Posted June 20th, 2011 by Susan Linn
As advocates for deep change know, big success is often preceded by small incremental changes that may go unnoticed by the general public. It seems the effort to stop fast food companies from hawking toys to kids is gaining ground. I was watching Friday Night Lights recently (a great show if I don’t fret about [...]
Posted April 15th, 2011 by Susan Linn
So my daughter-in-law stopped by the office yesterday to pick up a Screen-Free Week Organizer’s Kit. National Screen-Free Week, April 18-24, is hosted by Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, which I direct. She, her husband, and the two best little girls in the world—okay, in my world—are going to join in the celebration by giving [...]
Older Entries »
