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KIDS FIRST! NEWS 2002 Turning your TV Time into Quality Time CQCM Newsletter Archive: October 2002 September 2002 August 2002 July 2002 June 2002 May 2002 April 2002 March 2002 February 2002 January 2002

2001 2000 1999 1998 1998 1997 1997

 

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KIDS TV VIOLATIONS BRING FINES In July, the FCC handed out more than $40,000 in fines for violations of its rules limiting commercial time during children's programming. (Broadcasting & Cable , July 28, 1997) LEADING THE WAY WITH STRONG FEMALE ROLE MODELS There is a long held belief in the entertainment industry that girls will watch programs with boys as heroes but boys won't watch programs with girls as heroes. We celebrate the following companies for changing the way that females are portrayed. Here are some new programs soon to be released that portray strong-willed, enterprising females with well-defined characters who conquer their worlds by tapping into their own considerable internal resources. Disney's feature film "Mulan" - slated for release summer 1998 Nelvana's August release of "Pippi Longstocking" Warner Bros.' fall TV series "The Legend of Calamity Jane" 20th Century FOX's feature film "Anastasia" to be released November 21st Paramount's "Fairy Tale: A True Story"

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KIDS FIRST!™ (CQCM) Web Site clocks over 90,000 hits monthly and has received several awards including:

Cybermom Dot Com 2Hot2Handle Award
Parenthood Web Select Parenting Site Award

As a benefit to membership, producers can link from our site to theirs - you could sell your title off the net. For more information, contact us.

Other organizations that support the KIDS FIRST!® initiative are offering the Directory to their members and will generate a small profit from doing so. If you know an organization interested in doing this, please have them contact our office.

While everyone else is busily trying to figure out how to identify quality children's programming ... we've done it!

CQCM's most recent edition of its KIDS FIRST!®Directory is now available! The new 68 page, four-color directory describes over 700 KIDS FIRST!®endorsed videos and CD-ROMs, including Juror comments, and expert guidelines from child development specialists, educators, parents and kids. Order your copy for $5 (includes shipping and handling) Call 1-505-989-8076 or order on-line today!

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C E N T E R . F O R . M E D I A . E D U C A T I O N

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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE NEW TV-Y7-FV RATING The television industry has developed TV PARENTAL GUIDELINES that provide information to help parents make choices about which programs to tune in or tune out for their children. These guidelines are a result of negotiations that took place among child advocates, educators, health professionals and industry leaders last summer. The following special categories have been created for programs that are specifically directed to children: TV-Y identifies programs designed to be appropriate for children of all ages. These programs are not expected to frighten younger children. TV-Y7 identifies programs designed to be appropriate for children age 7 and older, who are better able to distinguish between make-believe and reality. Themes or elements in the program may contain mild violence or comedic violence, or may frighten younger children. TV-Y7-FV identifies programs that contain Fantasy Violence (FV), which is more intense or combative than programs in the TV-Y7 category. Children who watch these programs are at significant risk for learning aggression. Violence is the central theme of the program; the fighting is presented in an exciting -- even thrilling -- way, the villains and super heroes are valued for their combat abilities, the violent acts are glorified, and the violence is used as an acceptable and effective solution to a problem. Programs in this category may include animated cartoons, live-action, or a combination of both. Children constitute a special audience with special considerations, and FV is one of them. Fantasy Violence poses a high risk for learning aggression because young children cannot tell the difference between what is real and what is make-believe on television. Children may perceive some fantasy programs as real. Some parts of the story, action, or character portrayal may make a program more realistic for children. Children of all ages may be affected by the violence they see on TV. Violence that seems realistic to children may encourage them to act in aggressive or antisocial ways, become less sensitive to others' pain and suffering, and be more fearful of real-world violence. Watching with children and talking about the violence they see helps put it into perspective.

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TV VIOLENCE CHECKLIST TV-Y7-FV alerts parents to a form of violence (Fantasy Violence) that they may not otherwise have realized to be harmful. When making decisions about what programs children are allowed to watch, consider the high-risk factors related to learning aggressive behavior. Use the following checklist to identify programs that contain violent content potentially harmful to children. The more questions you answer YES, the greater the risk for most children. Parents should carefully monitor these programs and restrict children's viewing. Answer YES or NO to the following: Are there many violent interactions in the story? Are the heroes and villains valued for their combat abilities? Are close-ups, special effects, or music used in the program? Are weapons like guns or knives used? Is violence used to resolve conflicts? Do characters have a good reason for using violence? Do the "good" guys go unpunished for using violence? Do the "bad" guys go unpunished for using violence? Are the victims' injuries and their pain and suffering not shown? Are some things that happen in the violent scenes funny? Do children think the villains and super heroes are "cool?" Do children imitate the fighting when they play or reenact the action with toys based on characters from the program?

Teachers' Guide for using the Professional Cartoonists Index Web Site

UNICEF's International Children's Day of Broadcasting

Independent Television Service on Television

The Eddie Files®, an award-winning instructional television series.

ANNENBERG PUBLIC POLICY CENTER and it's involvement with the mandated 3 hours of core educational programming that must be provided by all TV Networks beginning this fall.

In response to the ongoing debate about the possible consequences of media violence for children and youth, UNESCO saw the need for an International Clearinghouse on Children and Violence on the Screen. UNESCO asked the Nordic Information Center for Media and Communication Research (NORDICOM) at Goteborg University, Sweden to establish the Clearinghouse. Financial support is provided by the Swedish Government as well as UNESCO.

A primary purpose of the Clearinghouse is to provide a forum where all aspects of the relationships between media violence and young people can be understood and acted upon in the light of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Activities include building an international network of contacts and publishing a periodical newsletter and a yearbook. Membership in the Clearinghouse if free.

For more information contact Cecilia von Feilitzen,
Dept. of Journalism Media & Communication, Stockholm University, PO Box 27861, Stockholm, S-11593

This holiday deason, the Coalition will expand its Hospital Donation Initiative, Meg's Gifts, to over 100 hospitals, and will place CD-ROMs, audio recordings, and videotapes in pediatric units.

With donations from our industry members, programming specifically for hospitalized children are donated to hospitals nationwide. Contributions from producers make this happen.

WISH LIST: Donated endorsed titles, donated licensed products of endorsed titles, shipping services & materials, press coverage, local volunteers to pack and ship, general contributions.

For details please contact us.

In April, CQCM held its Annual Meeting. More than 30 board members, major members, staff and selected guests participated. The two days of meetings resulted in a revision of the Coalition's Strategic Goals. Copies are available to Coalition members upon request.

KIDS FIRST! Jurors recommended that new criterion of "No Unsafe Behaviors" be added to our baseline endorsement criteria. Several examples of titles which had been reviewed this year were brought forward as rationale for adding this new category. The Board gave unanimous approval.

Regulators on July 16, 1997, said it is against the law for online marketers to collect personal information from children in cyberspace without fully disclosing to a child's parent how the data will be used. The Federal Trade Commission gave online marketers guidance on ho to avoid breaking the law when gathering names, e-mail addresses, phone numbers and other "personally identifiable information" from kids. Get the Story Here

Recently, we compiled the backgrounds of our current Adult Jurors who specialize in:

Child Development 24%
Media 24%
Primary Education 12%
Library Sciences 14%
Secondary Education 11%
Health Science 10%
Psychology 3%
Higher Education 2%

BARNEY COHEN, CHAIRMAN, VALLEY RECORDS:
Barney Cohen began his career in the record industry working in the local record stores of Kansas City during his junior high years. In 1974, he opened Barney's Good Time Music store in Woodland, CA. Over the years, the number of retail record stores he owned grew as did his interest in music wholesaling and distribution. In 1985, Cohen started Valley Record Distributors, Inc. From its humble beginning, Valley has grown to become one of the most important one-stops in the business.

Today, Mr. Cohen juggles his schedule as Valley's Founder/Owner, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board with his position and responsibilities as the Chairperson of the music industry's National Association of Recording Merchandisers of NARM.' Mr. Cohen graduated from Antioch College in 1969 with a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education. He has completed the Executive Program from Harvard Business School.

Most recently, he was presented with Northern California's "Entrepreneur of the Year" award sponsored by Ernst & Young LLP, and nationally cosponsored by the Entrepreneur of the Year Institute, the Center of Entrepreneurial Leadership at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, USA Today, and the NASDAQ Stock Market.

EVELYN GRAY, MANAGER, MARKETING SERVICES, 20TH CENTURY FOX HOME ENTERTAINMENT:
Evelyn Gray has worked at Twentieth Century Fox since 1990, first as contracts manager and since 1991 as manager of marketing services.

Previously, she worked as licensing manager for The Roger Richman Company, marketing celebrities for licensed products including Marilyn Monroe and W.C. Fields. Her experience in not-for-profit administration includes co-manager of operations for Aish HaTorah Jerusalem (1987-90) where she organized fund raising events and created and supervised distribution of direct mail materials. She holds a B.A. in Radio, TV and Film from California State Northridge.

Center for Media Education has a position open for a senior media policy analyst/project manager.

For details call or e-mail Dr. Kathryn C. Montgomery, President, CME
1511 K St., NW Ste. 518, Washington, DC 20005; Tel.: 202-528-2620

A perk for Jurors is that you may keep any title that you approve. For many teachers and librarians, it is a nifty way to increase your collection.

If you are interested in becoming involved as a KIDS FIRST! Juror, contact at the Coalition, phone: 505-989-8076.

Come spend an afternoon in our Santa Fe office.

You can help in a multitude of ways - and we're happy to let you take some tapes home on a free loan basis to share with your family.

Please contact [email protected] to set up a time that's convenient for you, phone: 505-989-8076.

The Second World Summit on Television for Children will take place March 9-13, 1998 in London, United Kingdom.

The organizing committee is chaired by Anna Home, Head of Children's Programmes, BBC Television.

The first Summit took place in Melbourne, Australia in 1995, the initiative of Dr. Patricia Edgar, Director, Australian Children's Television Foundation and attracted delegates from over 71 countries.

The 1998 event is expected to attract an even greater international audience who will come together to promote the production of entertaining and high quality children's programming. A series of structured networking opportunities and enjoyable social events during the Summit's five day programme will also give everyone attending the chance to forge working relationships with colleagues from all over the world.

Programme: The Summit features a wide range of events for general interest and niche audiences, including keynote addresses by some of the best known names in television, panel-led debates, topic seminars, workshops, master classes and screenings of a diverse range of children's television programmes. Children themselves will be actively involved throughout by contributing to debates and by taking part in their own events.

The registration fee of £650 + VAT covers attendance at the Summit from March 9-13 as well as refreshments, lunches, social events, all documentation and a full set of proceedings after the event. Simultaneous interpretation in English, French and Spanish will be provided for all plenary sessions.

For more information please contact the organizers: BBC Television Centre, Room E522, East Tower, Wood Lane, London W12 7RJ, United Kingdom; Phone: 44 (0) 181-576-4444; Fax: 44 (0) 181-225-8668.

Another meeting proposed as a continuation of the First World Summit in Melbourne is the Summit of the Americas, which is being organized for the year 2000. Watch future issues for details.

Mexico City will host this festival from August 19-24, 1997. Created as part of the second CIFEJ Latin American Tour, the Mexican festival continues the original objective - to reach the children of Latin America with films from other countries which they would not have the opportunity of seeing any other time.

For details contact Liset Cotera, Fax: +52-5-569-9899

Recently, the Coalition has been approached by several broadcasters and labels about adding KIDS FIRST!- endorsed programming to their roster. If you are interested in your title becoming part of a KIDS FIRST! block of programming on television or a home video label, please contact us.

ParentTime

Sony

FOX
FOXKids

BabyBag

US Department of Education: Community Update provides updates from Secretary Riley's office.

The Children's Partnership has developed a children's health coverage bill legislative alert for ways in which you can communicate support for a children's health coverage bill.

International Research Forum on Children and Media provides an on-line forum for researchers working in the field of children's media and to put members in touch with one another.

The Exploratorium San Francisco's favorite kids' museum, hosts a fun to visit site and live views from the Hubble.

Center for Media Literacy has excellent media literacy curriculum resources for use in and outside the classroom.

Did you know that 1997 was the Year of the Reef'? Find out more about reefs AND how they need protection.

Subscribe! Subscribe to our monthly E-Zine to stay up to date on KIDS FIRST! initiatives. - FREE - Your e-mail address: (privacy)

KIDS FIRST! NEWS 2002 Turning your TV Time into Quality Time CQCM Newsletter Archive: October 2002 September 2002 August 2002 July 2002 June 2002 May 2002 April 2002 March 2002 February 2002 January 2002

2001 2000 1999 1998 1998 1997 1997