Just a quick post regarding this shocking email from the wonderful organization, the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood.
Check out the staggering amounts of money that are spent to convince our nation's innocent kids to spend money on foods, drinks and other products that could be quite harmful to them.
The Commercialization of Childhood Index*
$500,000,000,000: The amount of money in purchases that children under twelve influence every year.
$17,000,000,000: The amount of money spent to market to children, a staggering increase from $100 million in 1983.
$3,400,000,000: Revenue generated by the Disney Princess brand in 2006. There are 40,000 Disney Princess items on the market today.
1,200,000,000: Toys sold with kids' meals at fast food restaurants in 2006.
20,000,000: Baby Einstein videos sold by Disney through 2006. The American Academy of Pediatrics reccomends no screen time for children under two.
200,000: The acts of violence, including 40,000 murders, that the average child will see on television by the time they are eighteen.
25,000: Ads on television the average 2-11-year-old sees on television every year, a figure that does not include product placement.
4,151: The number of product placements on the first thirty-eight episodes of American Idol.
The organization ends the email with a plea for a $50 donation (or any amount), which will help "fight all of the above." The group says that it relies on us because it "will not compromise" its "commitment to children by taking money from corporations. All donations of $125 and up will be matched by an anonymous donor. If you'd like to make a tax deductible donation, go here.
*The statistics cited in this email are taken from CCFC's downloadable fact sheets.