By the 1970s, parents were mad. Consumer
groups began popping up to protest
television commercials that unfairly marketed toys directly to children, toys
that were unsafe, and toys that encouraged aggression or supported gender stereotypes.
The activism of these groups did
remove unsafe toys from the shelves
and made manufacturers more sensitive
to gender stereotypes. However, in
1980, Congress bent to toy industry
pressure concerning the right to freely
advertise their products to kids. When
it came to television commercials--the
industry had won and parents had lost.
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