An indecent exposure to junk
The kids’ cameras show them living in a world saturated with food advertising, the vast majority of it for unhealthy foods and drinks.
That immediately makes me think of the corner dairy before and after school: these outlets are typically plastered with marketing for unhealthy foods. How the code might be enforced here will be interesting to observe.
The ubiquity of advertising in kids’ lives is evident in research carried out by a team at Auckland University under the direction of the University of Otago’s Professor Louise Signal.
The Kids’Cam study aimed to explore children’s everyday environments by documenting what kids see throughout the day — while at home, at school and during most other activities.
To directly and objectively capture the environment surrounding them, children were asked to wear a GPS device and a camera around their necks for four days, which automatically took photographs every 10 seconds. This project was one of the first in the world to use this type of technology to explore children’s environments.
The images captured by the kids’ cameras show them living in a world saturated with food advertising, the vast majority of it for unhealthy foods and drinks. This ranges from signage at sports fields to in-store promotions to promotional clothing.
Given that the new code, like all ASA Codes, is the advertising industry’s own self-regulation, rather than law, it seems unlikely the majority of the ad messages in kids’ lives will get much attention. Unless, of course, we do something. Anyone can make an ASA complaint. There is an opportunity here for us to use our power as consumers to change the food environment for the better. Let’s get our cameras out and make some noise.