Fast food toys & violent movies
Friday, July 27. 2007
I seldom do editorials here, but I thought this was interesting. This story was reported in today's Mirror.co.uk:
Burger King was yesterday slammed for encouraging kids as young as three to watch the violent Transformers movie. The fast food chain is giving away free toys, based on the film's characters, to kids of three and over despite it being classified a 12A.
The National Consumer Council chief executive Ed Mayo said: "This is a great summer for films and we wish Transformers well, but it has a level of violence that gives it a rating of 12 and over. So why are we seeing marketing to children over the age of three? The promotion with Burger King looks and feels like it's designed to pester and undermine."
It seems history is repeating itself. This article appeared almost exactly 15 years ago:
McDonald's Corp. has issued a written apology to a Christian organization that charged the burger giant with promoting "Batman Returns" as an acceptable movie for children.
The Dove Foundation, a non-sectarian organization based in Grand Rapids, Mich., said McDonald's Happy Meals tie-in with Batman encouraged children to see the movie but did not properly inform them of the film's violent and dark theme.
The responses from the fast food companies were about the same, too:
2007:
A Burger King spokesman said: "We are pleased to be able to make these popular toys available in our restaurants so that children who are perhaps too young to see the film can still enjoy the magic of Transformers.
1992:
"The object of our Happy Meal program was to simply allow young people to experience the fun associated with the character Batman," Jack Daly, McDonald's communications vice president, said in a prepared release. "It was not designed to promote attendance at the movie or to take the place of parents using their best judgment regarding which movies their children are allowed to see."
You can view these "evil corporations" with as much contempt as you see fit, but Daly has a point: why are Happy Meals and Kids Meals taking precedence over parents' opinions? Batman Returns and Transformers were both rated PG-13 (or 12 and 12A, respectively, in the UK) for a reason. But in both cases, the movies are based on subjects that can and do have appeal to the 3-to-10 demographic.
If a kid wants a Happy Meal/Kids Meal, the parents need to decide if the content of the meal is appropriate for their child: is it safe? Healthy? Are the toys appropriate? The parents then need to make another, seperate decision about whether the content of the movie is appropriate for their child: is it scary? Violent? Inappropriate due to swearing, nudity, or other "adult themes"?
I don't know why the concept of allowing one but not the other is so foreign. I seem to remember my parents making judgment calls all the time as I was growing up. In fact, one could say it was part of their job. Parents, please: if your kid want to see a movie, check it out first. The internet has eliminated the last remnants of the "I didn't know" excuse, so there's no reason to be caught off-guard by the contents of a movie. And if you find out that the movie is rated above your child's age, please take that to heart and don't bring them to it. They will only be bored, scared, or grossed out by it, and it will ruin the experience for them, for you, and for everyone else who went to see the movie.
Buy them the toys, tell them to have fun with the characters, and let them make up their own stories. Better yet, play with them and help make up stories that will be fun and appropriate.
The National Consumer Council chief executive Ed Mayo said: "This is a great summer for films and we wish Transformers well, but it has a level of violence that gives it a rating of 12 and over. So why are we seeing marketing to children over the age of three? The promotion with Burger King looks and feels like it's designed to pester and undermine."
(Full article available here)
It seems history is repeating itself. This article appeared almost exactly 15 years ago:
The Dove Foundation, a non-sectarian organization based in Grand Rapids, Mich., said McDonald's Happy Meals tie-in with Batman encouraged children to see the movie but did not properly inform them of the film's violent and dark theme.
(Full article available here)
The responses from the fast food companies were about the same, too:
2007:
1992:
You can view these "evil corporations" with as much contempt as you see fit, but Daly has a point: why are Happy Meals and Kids Meals taking precedence over parents' opinions? Batman Returns and Transformers were both rated PG-13 (or 12 and 12A, respectively, in the UK) for a reason. But in both cases, the movies are based on subjects that can and do have appeal to the 3-to-10 demographic.
If a kid wants a Happy Meal/Kids Meal, the parents need to decide if the content of the meal is appropriate for their child: is it safe? Healthy? Are the toys appropriate? The parents then need to make another, seperate decision about whether the content of the movie is appropriate for their child: is it scary? Violent? Inappropriate due to swearing, nudity, or other "adult themes"?
I don't know why the concept of allowing one but not the other is so foreign. I seem to remember my parents making judgment calls all the time as I was growing up. In fact, one could say it was part of their job. Parents, please: if your kid want to see a movie, check it out first. The internet has eliminated the last remnants of the "I didn't know" excuse, so there's no reason to be caught off-guard by the contents of a movie. And if you find out that the movie is rated above your child's age, please take that to heart and don't bring them to it. They will only be bored, scared, or grossed out by it, and it will ruin the experience for them, for you, and for everyone else who went to see the movie.
Buy them the toys, tell them to have fun with the characters, and let them make up their own stories. Better yet, play with them and help make up stories that will be fun and appropriate.
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