Television Advertising to Children: What Parents are Saying about Government Control

Four hundred parents were interviewed in the Southwestern United States to study parental response to the idea of child marketing and specifically television advertising to children. Findings indicate that the children of those parents interviewed are exposed, on the average, to more than twenty hours of television each week and that in-store product recognition on the part of the children is quite high. General response of the parents indicate a strong doubt in the honesty of advertising to children and a call for greater federal legislation to correct the situation. Also, a strong degree of cynicism was observed among parents interviewed about the institution of television advertising to children and its apparent misleading aspects. Parents were quick to criticize the use of premiums and prizes as a tool of selling to children.