Usually I try to avoid watching commercials on TV but there are times that I get caught up in them. It amazes me how little kids are often presented. Kids are either very obnoxious or sweet, sometimes saccharine sweet. The only commercial that I've seen a few times that presents the kid as normal is the one showing the little boy talking to his bloodhound and telling the dog that he's not going to lie anymore for the dog's mishap.
There's a commercial showing now by a fish stick sponsor in which the little girl is sassy, demanding and obnoxious. It seems to me that a child watching it will get ideas in their head that its ok to talk to mom that way cause you get what you want that way. Not a good thought for a small child to have. Granted it's JUST a commercial, but small children do watch them. There is no way any of my kids would even think they could talk that way to me and get away with it. If they get away with it when young, imagine what they will try as teenagers?
Another child in a commercial that drove me crazy was the one with the child touting grape juice. That child was no more than 5 or 6, yet used words that NO kid that age would even know what they meant. What's up with that?
Besides the little boy and his bloodhound commercial, I saw one the other day that presented two little girls, one Japanese and the other one American both eating Oreos in two trains that were next to each other. It was so natural and it was obvious that the two girls truly connected with no words spoken by either of them. Well done! Another one that is cute is about a daddy who is going out of town and his daughter slips her stuffed monkey into his suitcase. Daddy finds it and takes some pictures of the monkey in cute poses, then sets the monkey on his suitcase in their driveway letting mom and child know he was home. A bit saccharine but totally not obnoxious.
Kids are kids and often work well in a commercial. The advertising folks just need to remember that the kid is giving a message that often is different than what the commercial is plugging. Our children do watch these commercials and they do identify with them.
Anyone have opinions on this?
