Welcome to 130: Sociology of the Family
Please familiarize yourself with our course syllabus. If you have any questions, please ask.
On the first day of class, we will have an icebreaker activity. Each student should think of something that they are willing to share about their family: mentioning both one way in which their family is statistically average, and one way in which their family is statistically in the minority. We will get in pairs and introduce each other with this prompt. Please write a short summary of your response on our blog posting here, as a practice for blog posting.
In order to prepare for the next class on Thursday, please read the two following chapters.
Linn: Consuming Kids, Introduction: The Marketing Maelstrom, p. 1-10
Linn: Consuming Kids, 2: A Consumer in the Family, p. 31-41
To add to our discussion on Thursday, I would like you to think about your own family and it’s patterns of child-directed consumerism. Is there a product that is memorial from your childhood? Do you see your siblings attracted to particular products? Look up one of the products on YouTube or their website and post a description on this blog as well, with a link. Also, look up information on the deregulation of child advertisement. What Administration deregulated the industry? In what year? What were the impacts? Be willing to share your posting with the class on Thursday.
Sociology of the Family 
http://www.lego.com/en-us/default.aspx
The link above is to the Lego website. Growing up legos were huge with me and my brother and sister. My parents must have spent hundreds of dollars on legos for us. We had a huge box filled with them and because there were so many options and different kinds of Legos we always wanted more. They were advertised on television all the time and because of that we were always asking for more.
http://www.uggaustralia.com/shop/shop-ugg,default,pg.html?source=ggl_ppc&s_kwcid=TC%7C6895%7Cuggs%7C%7CS%7Ce%7C15940545420&gclid=CMygz4j-m7ICFWLptgodCCMA3A
This link is to the UGG website. I thought this was an example of consumerism in children because when I was 13, all I could think about was getting a pair of UGG boots. Everyone had them. They were the product to have. This is because of their advertisement style and their spot in the media. They made the consumer believe that if they didn’t have a pair of these boots, they were missing out on something. So, the majority of kids and young teens bought them.
Every time I look back to my childhood I always remember barbies. The commercials with barbies fascinated my 6 year old self at the time. Barbies seemed to fill up my closet and with all the accessories that came with these dolls, did not help the mess of the closet either. For every holiday/birthday my parents gave me a new barbie and the collection kept growing. The appeal of the “perfect” doll attracted myself and millions of other little girls across the world.
The link is for a commercial about Disney World. When I was younger I remember watching all of the classic Disney animated movies over and over (which was an expense itself). When I was about four, I discovered what an amazing place Disney World or Disneyland would be. I remember this commercial at the beginning of the Lion King VHS tape and ever since that moment I begged my parents to take me. It was quite effective for the Disney Corporation to use actual kids in the commercial. The situation really grabs people’s attention, but it is especially effective from a child’s viewpoint because the video presents information in the way a child would think and act, so it is very relatable.
(LINK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4x3poLxJjzw&feature=youtu.be)
One of my favorite christmas moments was very similar to this youtube video. Ever since my older sister received her AmericanGirl doll for christmas I wanted one too. When I opened it up I was overwhelmed with excitement. Similarly to Kaitlin and her barbies, AmericanGirl dolls come with accessories, which landed on my wish list for every birthday and christmas. It wasn’t until I was older I realized that these dolls came with a large price tag. When you’re that young price isn’t the first thing you think about when looking at toys, even though the magazines I received every month had the price listed wright for my eyes to see. Many children “want, want, want” but they don’t realize the price of their desires.
http://world.ty.com/
The link above is to the “Beanie Babies” website. When I was a child, collecting these beanie babies took preference to other games. Children I knew were also collecting these and competed for who had the most/the most rare to find. Because they were marketed as rare, some of these beanie babies were worth a lot of money to have. Children these days are still playing with these little stuffed animals and I still believe they compete to have the most.
http://www.barbie.com
The link above is a link to the barbie website. I remember as a child seeing different commercials for the new barbies that were coming out, and i can remember always wanting them, only because i saw them on the tv.
The video posted above is a barbie commercial. As a kid I always wanted every new Barbie doll that they came out with because they always had the best clothes and nicest hair and were always all pink,any little girls dream. I also remember the commercials always showed little girls having so much fun with their dolls making me want them even more. This shows how much toy companies can influence children and make them beg their parent to buy their product.
When I read this assignment, the first childhood product that popped into my head were Tamagotchi’s. The link that I have posted describes Tamagotchi as “a handheld digital pet”. As a 5 year old, this product was especially intriguing to me because my older sister had multiple Tamagotchi’s and I wanted everything that she had. Tamagotchi’s were extremely addicting because you would have the responsibility to feed and take care of the digital pet as it goes through several life stages until sadly it dies or the toy runs out of batteries. I have also posted a video that gives you a better idea of what a Tamagotchi looks like.
Considering that I’ve always been somewhat of an avid fan of hand held video games, when I look back on my childhood I immediately remember this commercial for the debut of Game Boy Color. What captivated me the most at the time wasn’t the actual product itself but the fact that it was something new , and I just had to be the first to have it among my friends… and I was. However, less than 2 years later the Game Boy Advance premiered, and the Game Boy Color completely lost its appeal, and a cycle began.
http://www.breyerhorses.com/
Above is a link to the model horse company, Breyer. As a horse obsessed child, I had over the years collected 100s of these horses along with many accessories and dolls that went with them. I remember discovering Breyer horses through older “friends” from the barn, and forcing my parents to buy them simply because everyone else at the barn had Breyer horses too. I don’t specifically remember ever seeing advertisements for this company, but I always found it quite easy to scope out one of their models in a toy store, because of their signature bright yellow box. These horses are still popular today among horse loving children, even though they still don’t advertise.
The link above is to a 17 second Raisinet’s commercial that played at the beginning of my recording of Peter Pan when I was a little girl. I did not even know what Raisinet’s were (after my dad told me I wasn’t so excited about them), but I wanted them in the worst way. I used to dance like the kids in the commercial when it came on and sing along every time I watched Peter Pan. I picked this advertisement because raisins are a pretty hard thing to get people excited about and I am amazed that I not only remember the commercial, but I have actual memories surrounding it years later.
The link above is a Spike Lee commercial advertising the Air Jordan sneaker. When I was young all of my friends were wearing these sneakers and I just had to have them too. I would beg my mother day in and day out about these sneaks until she could not take hearing me talk about them anymore. She bought them for me without me even knowing, that was a day i would never forget. The expression on my face made her feel really happy. Every since that day whenever a new pair of Air Jordans came out they were waiting on my bed for me when I arrived home. My mother only wanted to make me happy and that was one way to keep a smile on my face….(Spoiled I Know lol)
The above link showcases a few short commercials for the “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” toys that I used to be a crazed little boy over. They were replicas of the actor’s and actresses’ suits on the television series that I spent much of my time at the T.V. watching as a child. I chose this because it was the only toy that I could really remember getting that I enjoyed so much; I didn’t receive many toys. I recall as a child I was always afraid of theme park rides but a former-relative convinced me to ride a child’s roller-coaster after promising me a Power Ranger toy on the way home. I went on the roller coaster against my wishes because I wanted the toy so bad.
Above is the link to a What’s Her Face? Doll commercial. Although I don’t remember first seeing this commercial, I knew I needed it right away. It was like a Barbie doll, but wasn’t the typical blonde and blue-eyed doll we’re used to seeing. These dolls could have unique faces via a marker painted onto a stamp, and then placed onto the doll’s face, or drawn on. They also came with a range of clothing, as well as wigs of every color and style. This gave me, as well as other young girls, more of an opportunity to make their doll unique to them–whether it be simple or crazy. The dolls were often commercialized on television stations geared towards my age group at the time, and as seen in the commercial, portrayed the girls that had them to be happy and cool, something any young girl would want to be, and thus, would want the doll in order to be this way.
Above is a link to a video about a doll called Baby Tumbles. When I was little this doll is all I wanted for every holiday one year. This doll was all I wanted. I can remember for both my Birthday and Christmas I begged my parents to get it for me. When I didn’t have it under the tree Christmas morning, like the bratty child I was, I cried. And in February when my birthday came around and my parents got me a barbie instead, I cried again. Then finally, my aunt brought her present over for my birthday party and there she was, my Baby Tumbles. I don’t know why this doll was so appealing to me but I wouldn’t stop as a child until I got it!
This video is a commercial for the game Dream Phone. My older sister owned this game and we both quickly became obsessed with it. In this game, there are several male characters and the players have to use the cards and electronic “phone” to find out which boy is the player’s secret admirer. I wasn’t attracted to the product particularly because of the advertising; it was mostly me copying my sister. However, I do remember her frequently seeing this commercial on channels like Nickelodeon and begging our mom for this game. At the time, it was harmless fun; but, looking back on it, it seems a little ridiculous for very young girls to be playing a game focused on chasing boys in order to find a boyfriend.
clip is from the movie The Truman Show, starring Jim Carrey. In this film, a television producer adopts Truman, played by Jim Carrey, and unbeknownst to him, he grows up on a telelvision show. This scene in the movie demonstrates Truman’s wife performing subliminal advertising during the TV show. This is known as product placement, and is described on page six of Consuming Kids.
This scene reminds me of my childhood in two distinct ways. One being with my mother, who is victim to product placement as well as regular TV shopping with programs such as QVC. More than once I would find her glued to the television, phone in hand and ready to order whatever was on the screen.
This movie also my first eye opener to subliminal advertising. When I first viewed the film, I remember my father explaining to me about product placement, and how companies pay for their product to be on the screen, even if it’s for a short time. I began to pick up on product placement as I viewed other television shows and movies. I was surprised to notice how common it is, and even more surprised that I never picked up on it while I was younger.
When I was younger my dad would push me around in this red and yellow fisher price car. The floor was open on the bottom so you’re feet would make it go. I would put my feet up in front of me and let my dad push the car so i would go a lot faster. I just remember not being able to stop laughing when being pushed and gong extremely fast! I loved this car because i was able to have fun and spend time with my dad. the link provided shows a car similar to the one i had.
http://www.barbie.com/
The link above is the link to the barbie website. When I was younger I would always play with barbies. I would see them on TV and all over Toys R Us. I thought that Barbies were the best thing because every little girl wanted to play with the perfect doll. Now I realize how much money my parents spent on these dolls.
I chose the commercial for Slushy Magic because my 8 year old son wanted one so badly. When this commercial would come on he stared at it and beg for me to buy one. It’s a very intriguing commercial. My son’s reasoning for getting the Slushy Magic is so he can make me a slushy any day that I want one. This commercial is mostly seen on the Cartoon Network, Nick Jr. and Disney channels. We cannot get away from this advertisement. It drives me crazy because I know that this a nothing but junk. The other day we were walking in Walmart and there on the shelf in front of the register is the Slushy Magic. After several moments of his pleading and begging for the item; I took the time to look at the actual product. After reading the information, I informed my son I will not be purchasing the product today or any day. My reasoning was that it is not BPA free, that it is not a healthy product to buy. He was understanding and hasn’t asked for the Slushy Magic again.
This link is to the website for “Matchbox Cars”. As a young child my father introduced me to these toys, which were pretty much just miniature models of actual cars but they were quite entertaining all the same. My parents always bought me more matchbox cars to add to the gigantic collection that I had amassed over the years because it kept me from playing video games or watching T.V.. I still see T.V. commercials for these at least once a day which must show that they are still very big amongst kids.
This link is to the website for \”Matchbox Cars\”. As a young child my father introduced me to these toys, which were pretty much just miniature models of actual cars but they were quite entertaining all the same. My parents always bought me more matchbox cars to add to the gigantic collection that I had amassed over the years because it kept me from playing video games or watching T.V.. I still see T.V. commercials for these at least once a day which must show that they are still very big amongst kids.
When I was younger I always had a huge collection of Hot Wheels. One of my favorite tracks to play with was the Criss Cross Crash track. Watching that commercial and seeing the cars fly through there so quick and then in an instant they could crash was a thrill for little kids. I got that track for Christmas one year and I just sat in my room everyday after that sending different cars every time to see which one would make it through. My parents must have spent hundreds between all my cars and race tracks.
One of my favorite Christmas memories ever was when my parents gave my older sister and I a Barbie Jeep as a gift. The link above is a commercial for the jeep we had. I remember nagging my parents for this specific jeep for months, so as you can imagine I was ecstatic when I finally got it. It contributed to many family memories as we used to draw roads with chalk in our driveway and drive around together. I remember my sister and I putting on our childhood sunglasses and emulating our parents by putting our arm around the passenger seat as we backed up. Soon after we got this Barbie Jeep my parents bought my brother a red 4X4 jeep that my sister and I used to race him in. A couple years later there was a recall on the battery for the jeeps and my parents wouldn’t let us drive them around anymore and never got them fixed. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.
Kids are always nagging their parents for stuffed animals. I remember going out and whenever I was well behaved I would beg for a beanie babies. They were five dollar cheap little toys that I knew my parents would always give into. I now have five hundred of them in my room. As I child I remember being very persuaded by ads in the front of stores and TV. I always wanted everything and would nag until I got them.
This is a commercial for the toy Lite-Brite! I remember my parents buying this for my sister for Christmas when I was younger and how much I wanted to play with it. She knew how much I wanted it and so she shared it with me. We had so much fun creating different shapes and making pictures. It is amazing how easily entertained we were with this game. All we had to do was plug it in and make whatever we wanted by putting pegs through black sheets of paper. Finally my parents bought one for me and I didn’t have to share with my sister anymore and I was so thrilled. This toy was a huge part of my childhood that I will never forget.
I chose hot wheels because I remember how I’d feel whenever I got a new one. I’d feel like my collection was at its optimum peak..until I went to Toys’ r us and saw the hundreds of different cars they had there. The worst part was that I could never seem to get them to fly and go as fast as they did in the commercials. I mean, the kids in the commercials seem to be having so much fun so what else was I supposed to expect? As our texts explained, advertising came in many different forms. Of course, there were t.v. commercials but there were also hot wheels video games and hot wheels movies coming out. Unfortunately, I have no idea where any of those cars are anymore. 😦
I chose legos as well because growing up they were all that i played with. I had more legos than i could count in a giant box, just filled with pieces from multiple sets. I could never put the model together after it went into the giant tub because i could never find all of the pieces. I remember seeing lego commercials with children playing with them, and i used to think, “those kids are just like me.” If they like legos, then it would make sense that I would too. However, it was not I who bought all of the legos. My parents, grandparents, and aunts and uncles bought them for me. The commercials were aimed at me, and i convinced my parents to buy them for me, which is exactly what the company wanted. Regardless of the company’s intentions, I played with legos for hours and hours on end. Back then, all that they had in terms of advertising were a few commercials and their magazine. Today, they have more commercials, internet advertising, and there is even a t.v. show called Lego Ninjaga, where the characters are lego figures. Everyone in the United States knows what a lego is, so the company certainly must know what they are doing in terms of advertising. I still have all of those legos today, and i plan on giving them to my children when i have them.
This clip on youtube is about the history of legos. It is a bit long, but they recently celebrated their 80th anniversary, and it seemed fitting to show how the entire company came about and how it became so popular.
When I was a child, Christmas was my favorite holiday, I loved everything about that time of year especially the idea of Santa coming to my house. Santa seems to be everywhere around Christmas, especially in the advertisement world. As a child, I remember watching commercials of Santa drinking Coca-Cola and would ask my mom if we could leave Coca-Cola out for Santa instead of the traditional milk and cookies. As a child, I was not allowed to drink soda and my mother’s reply to me was that Santa did not drink soda just like I did not. I remember how angry I was that my mother was lying to me because I had just saw Santa drinking Coca-Cola in a commercial. This is an example of the struggle between parenting and the advertisement industry and the stress that the media puts on the parent-child relationship.
For an example of consumerism in childhood, I chose to share a commercial for Grand Champion Nuzzling Horses. Every time I went to the store I would beg my mom to buy me another one. Instead of asking for Barbies I would ask to get these horses, and I could spend hours playing with them. Sometimes the horses would come by themselves but other times they would come in sets like a mare with her foal. The sets were my favorite and I can remember being so excited, and so flustered with the straps, when I finally got to open a new set. I can only imagine how frustrated my mom must have gotten each time a new commercial came on and I had a new request!
The above video is for Super Smash Bros for the Nintendo 64. This was my favorite game growing up. I thought this touched on a couple of key points made in Linn’s introduction. First, Super Smash Bros employs the most popular gaming characters that were featured in either TV shows (Pikachu) or video games (Mario, Donkey Kong). By using characters that were already popular among children, the game has already created a connection with it’s targeted audience. Second, this commercial implies that the game has violence but in a non-threatening or scary way. This appeals to it’s targeted audience (which was young children, specifically boys) because it is violent, but parents see cartoon characters ‘beating each other up’ and see it as a non-threatening game.
That video is not for a product, but is one of my favorite moments from the TV show Mad Men on AMC. In this clip, the main character, Don Draper, is trying to sell an old wheel slide projector. To sell the company on his ad campaign, he uses photos of his own family and targets emotions over intellect. Sure the wheel was outdated, but do you see how by naming it the carousel and having pictures of a happy, loving family make it seem like a product you would want?
Some of my most vivid memories of my childhood are the hours I spent playing with my American Girl Dolls. I had two – Kit and Samantha! My friends and I would dress them up, bring them with us to the grocery store, and even set up pretend schools for them – the list goes on and on! I can remember after I received Samantha as a gift, the next thing I wanted was the set of books about her. Then I started receiving the magazines and found out all about the different outfits and accessories that went along with each doll! And then came the announcement that there was a store/museum in New York City dedicated solely to American Girl (what seemed like a miracle for my 10 year old self!). It is testament to my mother’s ability to ignore my insistent nagging that I walked out of that store with out the entire Samantha, Kit, and Felicity Collections.
http://store.americangirl.com/agshop/static/kitdoll.jsp
This link is for one of the dolls I had growing up!
The child-marketed product I chose is the Furby. I remember 14 years ago when I was a child, the Furby came out. All of my friends had to have one, and naturally, so did I. I’m still not really sure what it’s purpose was, but I suppose it made me feel like I had a little companion and someone to take care of. It is an electronic toy, pre-programmed with gibberish sayings, that are eventually supposed to evolve into English. Its eyes blink, it sneezes, and it can even say “I love you”. This product really interested me because a new version of it is coming out this Fall. The first link is to a commercial aired in 1998, and the second link is to a review of the new Furby for 2012. It will be interesting to see if parents line up for hours outside stores this Christmas as they did when I was a child, sometimes paying around double the market price, just to get their hands on one for a child they love on Christmas morning.
For my toy I chose a water baby doll. I chose this product because it is one of my most vivid memories of childhood toys. I remember always having dolls to play with and every time I saw a commercial for one on TV I begged my parents to get it for me. I specifically remember wanting this doll so bad because it was so different than all my other dolls. Since it was filled with water, it made the doll feel more lifelike and I thought that was really awesome. I remember being in the toy store with my mom one day when I was probably around 5 years old and I saw the doll. After asking my mom several times, she finally bought it for me and I was so excited. I brought it home and filled it with water right away and I was so happy. A few of my friends also had the doll so whenever we would have play dates we would have fun playing house with them and using our imaginations. Although this happened with many other dolls and toys, I think the uniqueness of this particular toy is what made it stick in my memory.
This link is an advertisement for a Bop-It. It was popular in the late nineties and was a hand-eye-coordination oriented toy that included pull handles, twistable cranks, spinnable wheels, toggle switches with the pace speeding up as the player progresses. I enjoyed playing with the Bop-It and it was even more fun to play at family parties or with friends during recess. I recently found my Bop-It buried in a box in my attic and attempted to play a game but got frustrated with all the irritating noises. I can only imagine how my parents felt every time I would play it.
http://www.pokemon.com/us/pokemon-trading-card-game/
Although I was not interested in the trading or the actual game played with these cards I remember being infatuated with collecting pokemon cards. My brother and I would ask our parents for new packs every time we went into a store that had them. We knew my parents meant no when they said it but we still tried to break them down with persistent nagging. I remember thinking the pokemon were cool because they were cute like normal animals but much more unique and had special powers. I had no interest in battling or anything of the like, but I still wanted them so bad for some reason I cannot remember. They weren’t very expensive but I can’t imagine it was pleasant that a simple trip to RIteAid was sprinkled with “Can I have a new pack of Pokemon cards, c’mon Mom there right there!” It all seems so pointless now to have annoyed my parents so much for them, especially because I can’t even think of why I liked them but I remember all the kids my age having them and needing to collect as many cool cards as I could.
The link above is of a Polly Pocket commercial. When I was little, the only thing I wanted to play with was whatever my sister had. We didn’t have many toys growing up, but we had a few sets of Polly Pockets. Whenever a new setup came out, my sister would always beg my mom for it, so of course I helped her nag for it. My mom rarely gave into us generally, but on occasion she would. I didn’t even enjoy playing with dolls that much, but something about the commercials showing the girls having such a good time made me want to enjoy that same fun. Of course we grew out of that stage and into a new phase as most kids do.
This is a link to the Skip It commercial that aired in 1991. I remember when I was younger, my little sister and I each had a Skip It and would go in our backyard to see who could skip the longest. This commercial made the Skip It look so fun and I remember being thrilled when my parents bought them for us. Just about every girl in my elementary school class had a Skip It and used to brag about how many skips they could do.
One product that I can remember very well from my childhood is the SkipiIt by Hasbro. The Skip-It apparatus was designed to be affixed to the child’s ankle by a small plastic hoop and spun around in a 360 degree rotation while continuously skipped by the user. Basically, it was a kind of jump rope alternative. During elementary school, it was a very popular toy used by mostly girls. I do recall whining and pestering my parents into getting one for me in third grade because “everyone else’s parents got them one.” Now that I look back, I can’t fully now if I really genuinely enjoyed the toy or if I enjoyed the instant attention I received from unveiling it on the playground. Interestingly enough, my sister who is approximately five and a half years younger than me had the same Skip-It craze during elementary school, half a decade after my own craze. This does lead me to wonder about what makes the Skip-It so desirable among younger girls, and whether this is an internal, more psychological factor or an external, ingenious marketing plan within the company.
I do consider all of the ideas you’ve presented in your post. They’re very convincing and will
definitely work. Still, the posts are very brief for starters.
Could you please lengthen them a little from next time?
Thank you for the post.
This is a link to a furby commercial. I remember seeing this product on TV when I was younger and always wanting one. The toy was very interactive and I liked that it would talk to you. The commercial showed little kids having such a good time, so I wanted one too. When I found out that the girl next door to me had just gotten a new one I had to have one. My brother and I begged our parents for a furby and they finally gave in and got us both a gray one. When I look back on the commercial now they are kind of frightening but marketers knew that kids would be drawn to the furby because they were so interactive.
Accidentally posted this in the wrong place..
I am an only child, but growing up I have always been very close with my cousins and my extended family. I remember my grandmother always having catalogs in her kitchen. She would give us each a marker or a pen and we would circle the things we liked and put our initials next to it. I remember having an American Girl Doll named Molly who had brown hair and brown eyes just like me. My grandma would always pick out the best clothes and accessories for her and give them to me for Christmas and I was always so excited. I only have one other girl on that side of my family and she is nine years younger than me, so since I’m not a kid anymore, all my American Girl Doll things were passed down to her.
There are not many Youtube videos about American Girl Dolls but here’s one that’s relatively normal.
When i was younger i would love to play nintendo 64 with my friends. The graphics are completely different compared to the game system’s we have now but people are still using the nintendo 64 for some classic fun. Super Smash Bros. is one of my favorite games to play, 3 other people can play against you and fight which makes it a competive game meaning some friends will end up angry after they lose and that is amusing. The different places you can fight and the characters you can use just make’s the game an overall great game.
I remember always playing games on my gameboy color as a kid. I received it for Christmas and continued to use it for multiple years afterwards. My favorite game was Super Mario Bros Deluxe. In the game you are Mario and have to make it to the end of each level within a time limit without dying from the numerous obstacles in your way. It includes many of the same levels as the original Mario game from the 80s, as well as many new levels too. I also played Ken Griffey Jr. Slugfest and Madden ’01 on my gameboy too. I would play with my friends and could even play vs. them with the use of two gameboys and a cable connector cord. This product was a part of the video game craze that marketers definitely tried to expose youths like myself to. A lot of the games were similar to other gaming system products, such as Playstation or N64. Also, there were certain games, especially Super Mario Bros, that had other versions available as marketers tried to create a “brand” that would generate multiple levels of profit across different product lines.
Thankfulness to my father who informed me on the topic of this blog, this weblog is truly amazing.