The Federal Trade Commission made headlines with its recent report blasting the movie, music and video game industries for purposely enticing children with products the industries themselves had labeled potentially inappropriate. Industry representatives, reminding officials of their constitutional right to freedom of expression, said they would examine their marketing practices more closely. Ultimately, our success in these efforts will depend on the active involvement of parents in decisions about their children's entertainment choices. Parents say that's a tough mission, given how much media their children soak up at school, at friends' houses and elsewhere outside the home. They should understand the difference between needs and wants.
Wants are treats.
Now, she said, they've phased out television altogether. They're finger-painting, going to the zoo, going to the playground. Kubey, the Rutgers professor, said children need that critical thinking, because parents can't always play hall monitor. But if you're a parent today, contemporarily, your kids are increasingly getting information from sources that you can't control.