Reading, Writing, Arithmetic - and Television?
By Todd Brashear

Recently, the Associated Press reported on a study that appeared in the March issue of "Pediatrics," the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics. The study showed that seventh and eighth graders remembered television advertising more readily than television news. For my fellow cynics, this report probably isn't exactly breaking news. But the details of the story did raise some interesting questions for me.

The study tracked 240 middle schoolers in Washington state who watch Channel One, a daily public affairs television program shown in 12,000 U.S. schools. For those not familiar with Channel One, here's the premise:

Schools that agree to show Channel One on 90 percent of school days receive free televisions and satellite dishes, a substantial savings for schools that require this equipment. The equipment, production and broadcast of Channel One's news, health and fitness content are financially supported by advertising sales.

While Channel One CEO Judy Harris assures critics that advertisers don't influence the news content, and that the company follows high standards for age-appropriate advertising, several ethical issues come to mind.

For starters, nearly 8 million students see the program and its advertising according to Channel One parent company Primedia. To put that figure in context, consider this: In 2004, the overall median primetime cable news viewership was 2.6 million. In other words, Channel One reaches three times the number of people as CNN, FOX and MSNBC combined - in primetime! That's an awfully large captive - and easily influenced - audience for advertisers.

So, what kind of advertising does Channel One consider "appropriate" for these 8 million teens? Well, teen-oriented products, of course. According to researchers, that includes junk food and video games. Not exactly what most parents expect schools to teach their kids.

Now, don't get me wrong. We're all in the marketing business for our own reasons, mostly benign and some benevolent. But you and I aren't working for Channel One. And probably for good reason. To preserve the reputation of our industry, it's in our best interest to do business in ethical and responsible ways.

To be fair, I think Channel One does some good work. For example, the show won a Peabody Award last year for reporting on Sudan's civil war, an issue to which most "grown-up" news organizations have paid woefully little attention.

However, at some point, I have to ask, "Is 10 minutes of teaching kids about world events worth two minutes of force-fed advertising for products that don't exactly qualify as healthful? I mean, wouldn't the students benefit more from a 15-minute, thought-provoking discussion about the day's events? Wouldn't that teach not only current events but critical thinking skills, as well?

After all, last I knew, kids have their TV-watching skills down pat.

E-mail the author: Todd Brashear

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