Media Influences On Children 's Life

Within our society today, media plays a huge role in everyone’s life - an important role. Media offers entertainment, news, information, and education; however, with these benefits come negatives as well. For example, foul language, drug abuse, and sexual content may be presented to an unsuitable audience, specifically children. It’s easy to see sexual content on tv, hear foul language in songs on the radio, or even hear about the abuse of drugs and alcohol. Children are especially good at mimicking what they see and are easily influenced. So, with all this content being shown openly with no censorship, children think this is a social norm, as well as spending long periods of time watching TV, playing video games, and using the internet. Modern technology has transformed the way children learn and interact within their environment, it is having a negative effect on them in this younger generation with all the easy access to all genera’s of media material for long periods of time.

In today’s society, the media, in many ways control the average consumer’s way of thinking. Bright billboards, catchy radio jingles, colorful magazine ads, and eye catching T.V ads play a major role in obesity in the United States. The one dollar double cheeseburger, offered by Burger King and McDonalds is a prime example. Burger King offers more meat with a better taste, and the advertisements are very colorful. Media tends to influence un-natural way of thinking among the average consumer. These ads usually misrepresent images of their target audience, using physically fit looking people in the fast food ads. A large number of these advertisements place a great deal of attention on the foods taste, rather than its nutritional value. This causes the consumer to overlook the risk and pay more attention to the taste and convenience. Well designed fast food media campaigns play a major role in the unnatural thinking that leads to obesity in the United States.

Fast food advertisements can be found around the world, on newspapers, television, and even online. Children, teenagers, and parents have seen marketing focused on fast food. While adults may think little about such blatant advertising tactics that are solely designed to attract new customers, how are kids affected? People across the United States worry about the ever increasing obesity rates amongst children in recent years. A common explanation is the spike in popularity of fast food. Most kids and teenagers have eaten fast food at least once in their lifetime. But why has fast food gotten increasingly popular recently? Fast food has always been known to be very unhealthy, but kids still consume it anyway. The culprit: fast food advertising. In modern times, the majority of kids living in the United States have access to the internet or television, where they are easy targets for advertising. To prevent the nation from growing up obese, fast food companies should end all ad campaigns targeted towards children and focus advertising strictly on adults. These advertisements cause kids to consume fast food more often, to eat an unhealthy diet, and to grow up in a culture dependent on fast food.

In the article “The Battle Against Fast Food Begins in the Home,” Daniel Weintraub argues that it is the parents, not anybody else, who are responsible for teaching kids healthy eating and exercise habits. He also states that, “It’s the fault of the parents who let their kids eat unhealthy foods and sit in front of the television or computer for hours at a time.” His argument that parents are to blame for childhood obesity is correct to a certain extent but he fails to realize that fast food company’s marketing and advertising to young children also plays a big part in the problem.

Association, kids often do make food choices based on what they see on television. Doctors who study kids have noticed that food advertised is very powerful” (39). In order to prove that idea, the author adds that children and teens who watch more than two hours of television daily are more likely to be overweight than those who do not. Due to the many fast food restaurants and advertisements available to Americans, the realization that their food is unhealthy does not occur. The United States is aware of the consequences that come along with obesity, yet rarely ever are there advertisements promoting a healthy lifestyle. It is uncommon that an overweight person is shown eating a restaurant’s food in their commercial. It will give off the wrong

Parental neglect of offering healthy food for their kids led to compound the crisis. Recently, the consumption of fast food has dramatically risen in the U.S. The huge relevance of fast food restaurants, such as McDonald's, KFC, Burger King, Taco Bell and others, could be a contributor in changing the Americans style of food, and increasing their intake of these unhealthy foods. According to a research conducted about fast food consumption in the U SS, 22% of parents said that their kids consume fast food meals at least once a week, which might easily drive to obesity. As known, the main aim of fast food companies is raising their profitability, and therefore, their plan is to sell food as much as they could despite their knowledge that it is unhealthy. So, they focused on attracting kids to buy from them by enticing advertisements. They know how to draw kids’ attention, especially when they describe the taste of their meals and show their toys that come with them. There is no doubt that TV programs and advertisements have a strong impact on children. Many studies have confirmed that watching TV for a long time during a day is able to influence kids in their attitudes and habits. The problem of eating fast food is that it has a lack of fiber and dairy, contains a high density of energy, and has big amounts of protein, fat and sugar, which makes it the unhealthy

Childhood Obesity is known as the number one problem in the twenty first century. People today don’t realize how bad of a problem this is because they don’t most likely know someone who is going through it. But do you ever think what is causing children to be obese? Is it just their bad choices, or is it media? Like for example, pressured fast food commercials who are leading the children or young adults to make these bad choices. People today don’t realize how simple commercials seduces the human brain. Fast food commercials are pressured commercials who are dragging their customers into buying their unhealthy foods just because of a dollar less. Childhood Obesity is caused because of the media and their; influential pressured fast food

Along with these factors the food industry is spreading the sell of high-sugar and high-fat foods, increasing their portion sizes and uncontrollably boosting these products. In the article, “Fast-food Culture Serves Up Super-Size Americans”,  author Bridget Murray discusses “toxic signs” such as Nutritious foods reign, serving sizes keep increasing, and the food Industry has run amok. The food industry has prospered into being in common places such gas stations, vending machines, convenience stores,  serving high-fat, high-sugar food, and restaurants increasing their serving size and promoting bargains for low cost products.  Murray has noted, “ High-fat, High-sugar foods are widely available, taste good and cost less than healthier food”; an example of this would be vending machines. Vending machines contain many fatty foods at low prices as they are convenient to a typical person. The most common source of increasing serving sizes, is McDonald’s use of Super-Size it, which they had made into a verb. The food industry has run amok by serving appealing processed foods, through colorful packaging in addition to using advertisements on television, computers and social media. Children spend most of their day watching T.V., where they view multiple advertisements. In recent articles, “...research has found that children who watch more than three hours of television a day are 50 per cent more likely to be obese than children who watch fewer

Over the years, children have been lacking in good health, mainly due to media. Everywhere a child goes, they will always be shown an advertisement. The biggest type of advertisement that impacts a child’s physical health is related to food. According to the Royal College of Physicians, obesity rates have increase significantly among youth from 1989 – 2002 (Rogstad & Copas, 2004). On television, majority of the food advertisements are submissive to breakfast cereals, soft drinks, fast-food restaurants (Livingstone & Helsper, 2006). Obesity is one of the health problems children are facing today, as the numbers counting to increase, but they are not at fault because companies know how to make them want the junk foods that cause this.

The powerful media is considered a leading influence in our society both directly and indirectly. Media is available and readily accessible today more easily than ever. Printed materials, television, sound recordings, internet, and radio all fall under the umbrella of the big bad – or seemingly bad word – media. Is media bad? How is it controlled? And where does this all stem from…? These are some of the major concerns parents are faced with in raising children in today’s times.

Fast food companies do not hold back, and they take full advantage of this by advertising their fattening food products that appeal to the children. The American Psychological Association website explains that “Research has found strong associations between increases in advertising for non-nutritious foods and rates of childhood obesity” (“The Impact of Food Advertising on Childhood Obesity”). This direct relationship shows the harboring effect that advertisements have on childhood obesity. This also affects the child psychologically. “Most children under age 6 cannot distinguish between programming and advertising and children under age 8 do not understand the persuasive intent of advertising” (“The Impact of Food Advertising on Childhood Obesity”). Without even realizing it, children are channeling in on these persuasive and luxurious looking advertisements. One tactic that some fast food restaurants use is the inclusion of a free toy with a kid’s meal. “For more than 30 years, McDonald’s has included toys alongside children’s Happy Meals. And for more than 30 years, the rates of diabetes and obesity in children have steadily increased” (“Childhood Lost”). By promoting their business with bribes like this, unhealthy eating habits form, which can result in obesity problems. The fast food industries know that children are vulnerable, so they target them with these bribes. “Happy Meals are marketed as explicitly for children, and then children are rewarded with toys for consuming the high amounts of fat and sodium” (“Childhood Lost”). This is a crafty technique that some fast food restaurants use to sell off their products. Children are too young to realize the effect the advertisements have on them and the long term consequences that may come with

As fast food Industries expand throughout the United States, Americans have chosen to eat unhealthy food saturated in fat. Obesity has become an epidemic in the united states in the 70s impacting the common American family because of the lack of the healthier resources. Fast food company use marketing strategies to target the younger generation by building fast food companies in small towns which destroys any opportunities for the younger generation to eat local unprocessed foods. Obesity is the current issue America is facing and it appears to be growing each day. Many blame fast food who have attracted the public with advertisements containing foods, saturated with chemicals and fats. Propaganda and commercials are the most common advertisements to target the younger

Food advertisements, if focused at the right people and in the right places, are a complete success. These features, some of which are commercials, seduce society into buying food that we necessarily do not need. Many advertisement companies, especially those about food, are directed to children because they know that if you grab the kids you have their parents. While brands are using fun cartoons like “Trix Rabbit” and “Toucan Sam” (Green, 2007, p. 49) supermarkets are taking these items and placing them right in front of the children, at their level, advertising the “Fun foods” (Elliot, 2008, p. 259-273). They do this so the kids will use their, “pester power” (Scholsser, n.d., p. 2) to get what they want. A series of studies have been performed on children and television advertisements. An article states, “These studies have generally linked children's television viewing to negative health effects” (Korr, 2008, p. 451). Amongst these negative effects is a higher level of childhood obesity (p. 451). Similarly, in another study performed by a group of researchers, kids were asked to explain the television commercials that they remembered the best. The answers given were then compared with their diets. Interestingly, the items those children remembered best, chips, sweets, and sodas were a huge part of what they ate (Hitching & Moynihan, 1998, p. 511-517). However, some authors argue that television producer’s, even though their

The media is a part of everyday life in American kids. Children are surrounded by technology, entertainment, and other media that is full of violence. Newspapers, magazines, radio, television, and the internet all contain violence. Today's media has a negative influence on children. The media does have an influence on them, but does it really influence them to act out even though they know it's wrong? Mass media, and its components, are very powerful and can influence one's mind, as well as their behavior. Children that imitate characters who use violence in the media and display aggressive behavior, tend to give them reason to believe that violence can happen without consequence. For children who grow up with poor adult examples or an

In today’s society, there are a number of factors that affect a child’s ability to learn. The media, for good and for bad, is the primary teacher of American youth. This environment reflects life itself, sometimes in a corrupt way, including the positive and heinous parts, along with the beautiful and hideous parts, as well as the charitable and violent parts. It is almost impossible to protect American youth from experiences reflecting the adult world when the media invades homes and becomes so much a part of everyday living. “American teenagers spend 31 hours a week watching television, 10 hours a week online, 4 hours a week reading magazines, and 17 hours a week listening to music” (Miss). Even though mass media is a huge part of a