I'm sure many of you watched the Super Bowl this weekend. In my technology class we talked about some of the commercials and the lack of appropriateness of some of them to be aired during a game which attracted young viewers as well as adults. It was brought up in class that some of these commercials could be seen as quite offensive and inappropriate for young kids to watch. Not only do these commercials air on television, but the world of the internet gives kids the freedom to search them later on and watch them as often as they want. I found the conversation we had in class very interesting and I would love to hear some of your thoughts on this matter. Did you think some of these commercials should not have aired during the Super Bowl?
Here are two of the commercials that were brought up in class:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAmE7n05vo8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4igYHZ-hmGo
I think the producers that show the Super Bowl do need to be more careful about what they broadcast. I have always watched the Super Bowl every year since I can even remember, and I'm sure a high percentage of the American population can say the same thing. It has always been a family event for me since I was a child and lewd, violent, or derogatory commercials take away from the experience.
ReplyDeleteEven the half time show was a little inappropriate with one of the performers giving the middle finger. Children pick those kind of things up and think its ok just because they saw it while watching a huge sport event with their family.
Thanks for your input, Dan! It's helpful to hear your first-hand experiences of some of the negative aspects of Super Bowl commercials and halftime shows and how they impacted your experience (though negatively) of watching the game with your family as a child. It would be nice to see some of the commercials for the upcoming years being more appropriate for all ages!
DeleteUnfortunately, the media is full of inappropriate commercials all the time. But, as Dan said, the super bowl is something that many families watch together. Children pick up on things so quickly and producers do need to be aware of how their commercials can impact them.
ReplyDeleteAgreed! And it puts parents in awkward situations when commercials pop up that have their kids asking all sorts of questions.
DeleteThis is one of those issues that strays dangerously close to censorship. While I'm sure most people would agree that children should not be exposed to inappropriate material, the technical aspects of executing this is difficult. What is the difference between appropriate and inappropriate? Who determines what is and isn't offensive? One would hope that show planners for events like the superbowl would have the discretion to make it a family program, but clearly this isn't the case. In many situations it can be difficult to find a solution without calling on the morality police.
ReplyDeleteI do believe this matter in general is controversial for the reasons you are stating. However, some of the commercials that aired (that I posted above) are clearly meant for adults and not children. It would be nice if in the future commercials during such family events on television would stray from nudity and sexual allusions, but of course, that's what makes money, and people know that there will be many viewers during a game as big as the Superbowl.
DeletePeople are influenced by everything they see, sometimes not even realizing it. Even commercials about food have been reported as having "secret" messages imbedded into them making people vulnerable to what they're seeing. Commercials of sexual or violent natures can have extremely harmful effects on anyone, especially the young, whose minds are so malleable.
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