April, 30 2009, 02:05pm EDT
CCFC Blasts New Hasbro/Discovery Channel Children's Network
Today, toymaker Hasbro Inc and the cable-TV programmer
Discovery Channel announced that
they will form a joint venture to create a TV network and website with new
programming based on Hasbro toys
and games. The following is the statement of CCFC Director Dr. Susan Linn:
BOSTON
Today, toymaker Hasbro Inc and the cable-TV programmer
Discovery Channel announced that
they will form a joint venture to create a TV network and website with new
programming based on Hasbro toys
and games. The following is the statement of CCFC Director Dr. Susan Linn:
This partnership represents a new low in children's television, a
network devoted to showing infomercials for Hasbro's toys and
games. It will make a mockery of existing ad limits and the current
prohibition of product placement in children's television.
The planned network is the latest indication that the deregulation
of children's television has been an unmitigated disaster for children
and families; no longer do companies feel compelled to even pretend that their
programming is beneficial for children or about anything but pushing
product. We hope that the FCC takes a long, hard look at this new venture as
they consider whether their current restrictions on embedded advertising are
adequate to protect children.
Fairplay, formerly known as Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, educates the public about commercialism's impact on kids' wellbeing and advocates for the end of child-targeted marketing. Fairplay organizes parents to hold corporations accountable for their marketing practices, advocates for policies to protect kids, and works with parents and professionals to reduce children's screen time.
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