Summary and Response: Kid Kustomers

Brandon Asencio

Freshman Composition

3/4/15

Summary & Response Essay

            In his account Kid Kustomers, journalist, writer, and correspondent Eric Schlosser asserts that children have become victims of consistent, planned, and targeted advertising by addressing companies’ marketing strategies, consumer research, and organizational responses toward youth-directed ads. By supplying the reader with information about industry publications, studies, investigations, and quoting accredited marketers, such as Youth Market Alert, the CME Kidcom Ad Traction Study II, and James U. McNeal, Schlosser builds and supports his claims about aggressive youth advertising. He allows his evidence to speak for itself, writing without becoming subjective but establishing his stance against the commercializing influence. Schlosser appears to write in hopes of familiarizing readers with the influence marketed companies take advantage of in children; educating readers may allow parents and children alike to become wary of targeting ad campaigns and, perhaps, take a stance against it. Using statistical and scientific evidence, he urges his readers realize what truly occurs in broadcasting and how it affects present and future society. Considering Schlosser’s formal, informative tone, he seems to write for a general, yet professional audience.

            Schlosser, in essence, “hits the nail right on the head”; his concise address of aggressive youth advertising highlights important aspects of the issue without redundancy or unnecessary details. I immediately found myself interested in the issue; he portrays it as a pressing concern, using words such as “targeting”, “pursue”, and revealing the idea of “cradle-to grave” advertising strategies. Additionally, I enjoyed the amount of evidence Schlosser provided; for every point or claim he made, he gave the reader an outside source, accredited expertise on the subject that supported it. Notably, he weaves his argument into his examples, allowing the folly or quotes of others to subtly express his views; I noted his argument only after finishing his article, specifically, and humorously, when he provided a website’s claim of Ronald McDonald being “the ultimate authority in everything” (Schlosser) and in his choice of quoting the Federal Trade Commission’s head:  “They [children] cannot protect themselves against adults who exploit their present-mindedness” (Schlosser). He reveals much more than simple, common knowledge and, instead, utilizes various types of credible evidence to show how advertisers plan and strategize, implying that they only focus on consumerism and, indirectly, greed. Though his presentation convinced me to agree with his view, providing a counterargument for advertisers, and perhaps expanding on whether the negative influence comes from the advertisers themselves or the act of advertising to children, may have strengthened his stance. Depicting marketers in a different way, such as workers who simply create and/or sell their products to support their families, may have directed me to focus more on the harm of youth-targeted propaganda rather than evoke vexation against general forms of advertising. Looking past these suggested improvements, he still did an excellent job indirectly revealing his view, rather than outright stating it, and providing examples to persuade his readers.

Previously, I held a relatively indifferent, but a bit negative, attitude towards general advertising; Schlosser’s exposition, however, of the aggressiveness companies have and the measures they take, especially within his examples of “surrogate salesman” and forms in which a child “nags”, overwhelmed me after reading it and now brings about feelings of indignation. Speaking generally and professionally, he places his writing voice in a larger pool of knowledge, implying that his issue encompasses numerous psychological, economic, and historical aspects and carries great importance in society. I believe his article discusses specific, important knowledge that all consumers, parents, and children should acquire.

Works Cited

Schlosser, Eric. Kid Kustomers.