Celeb kids in ads, big headache for parents
Celeb kids in ads, big headache for parents
Turning on the television or radio today can be a dangerous
undertaking for those of us who cringe at the sight of pint-size
performers. In a wave of cuteness led by the ubiquitous Joshua,
they have saturated the entertainment and advertising industry.
The Jakarta Post's Rita A. Widiadana, Bruce Emond, Gedsiri
Suhartono and Endi Aras look at the big business of little stars.
Related stories on Pages 5 and 9.
JAKARTA (JP): He is the star of his own TV series, host of a
quiz show and has a slew of lucrative endorsements under his
belt. His cassettes fly off the shelves, his songs picked up as
anthems for the country's political maneuvering.
He has it all, he is all of seven years old and he is Joshua
Suherman, a hot "commodity" for advertisers and organizers of the
world of showbiz.
His cute and youthful face appears almost every 10 minutes on
television screens selling products from candy, shoes, vitamins,
powdered milk, to computer printers.
And Joshua is an effective marketing tool. Says Ani, a three-
year-old preschooler, "I want to buy Joshua's vitamin and his
millennium shoes."
Her mother can do nothing but agree to her daughter's demands.
"She keeps nagging until I finally buy her one," said Diana, a
secretary at a private bank.
Novel Ali, a communications expert at Diponegoro University in
Semarang, Central Java, said children were now seen by
advertisers as the target with the most potential.
"Times have changed. In this information age, children are
more audio-visually literate than any previous generation," he
said.
Television plays the greatest role in shaping this new age,
reaching such a large and varied audience with vivid images. It
comes right into the home, where parents, grandparents and young
children may be watching together.
In this setting, advertises know they can easily persuade and
bombard this young audience.
"Parents, especially in dual-income families, find it hard to
turn down their kids' demands. Because of their feelings of
guilt, they compensate with consumer goods," Novel said.
Television is still considered the best medium to sell
products because it is visual and accessible.
A recent survey by the Indonesian Consumer Foundation revealed
that almost 50 percent of TV programs for children were filled
with commercials, especially popular children's shows like Power
Rangers, Dragon Ball and Sailor Moon.
With the increasing number of children watching TV and
children's programs on the airwaves, advertisers need child stars
to appear in their commercials, especially popular figure like
Joshua, Dea Ananda and Geofanny.
"Children feel close to stars like Joshua and they imitate the
fashions of their idols. They will likely buy everything Joshua
promotes," said Novel.
Novel said the Central Java Consumers Foundation conducted a
survey involving hundreds of parents in the province. The survey
revealed that more than 90 percent of the parents knew who Joshua
was and had purchased one or two products that Joshua promoted in
commercials.
"This is not only about Joshua and other kid stars, but also
about the change of mass behavior toward consumerism as well as
the exploitation of children as consumers and stars," Novel said.
The success of Joshua has drawn other children to attempt to
follow in his footsteps. Ambitious parents know if their children
become stars, the door to fame and money will open for them.
Joshua and other child stars are now showered with money and
popularity. Joshua receives at least Rp 30 million per
commercial, and according to a magazine he earns around Rp 2
billion per year.
Educators, psychologists and children activists have
complained about the excessive use of child stars in ads and the
targeting of children by advertisers.
"This excessive attention poses a very devastating effect to
children's development. Among their peers, the presence of a
well-known child performer may very well breed envy among other
children who will nag their parents to make them as famous as the
their celebrity classmates," said Yaumil Agoes Achir, professor
of psychology at the University of Indonesia.
The great number of children appearing in advertising,
according to Tini Hadad of the Indonesian Consumers Foundation,
is partially due to a lack of regulations to monitor how children
are depicted in advertising, be it content, manner of
presentation or type of goods advertised.
In fact, regulations concerning children in advertising do
exist.
Dr. Sampurno, director general of drugs and food at the
Ministry of Health, said the ministry has issued decrees
preventing drug, food and beverage companies from using children
to advertise their products.
More specifically, in l999 the government issued a decree
prohibiting the use of children under five years of age in food
advertisements, except in health magazines or journals.
"It is dangerous to use children to promote drugs for adults
or food inappropriate for their consumption. I have seen some
(such advertisements) on the television," he said.
The ministry has reprimanded companies and advertising
companies which inappropriately use children in their
advertisements, but no follow-up action has been taken.
Enforcement of the regulations has so far been lenient
compared to other countries.
Countries such as Norway and Sweden have in place tough laws
regarding the use of children in commercials. These two countries
do not allow companies to make advertisements targeting children
under 12 years of age. Also, the use of junior models is
prohibited.
In Belgium, advertisements for candy must be followed by a
message urging children to brush their teeth.
Yusca Ismail, a member of the National Advertising Supervisory
Board, admitted that some violations occurred, but said the board
could only reprimand its members to abide by the regulations.
"Some of the 'naughty' companies do not belong to the
Advertising Association. Therefore, it is hard for us to impose
any sanctions against them," said Yusca.
Novel insisted parents, companies, experts, consumer lobbyists
and the government must address this problem.
"Children are not commodities or cash cows for parents or
companies," Novel said. (team)