I'm with them on Nickelodeon sending bad messages to our kids and commercializing them -- I'm especially bothered by their Nick at Nite programming. But they're taking "Lazy Town" a little TOO seriously. Any show that encourages our obese kids to get off their fat asses can't be all bad.

Thank you Matt Coker! I am so happy that you are sharing this message. Parents need to take control of the remote. The exploitation of children is a symptom of free market world gone wild. We want ethics in advertising and programing for children everywhere, and Nickelodeon's big idea, "Us vs. Them" is a bad idea. #boycottnick

to PatrickInNC:
What's wrong with Nick at Nite...besides boring shows?

http://www.nickatnite.com/shows/index.jhtml

Seriously? Nick Jr (Formerly Noggin) is responsible for innocuous shows like "Wonder Pets" (teamwork message), "Ni Hao Kai Lan" (learning to step into the shoes of another and understand their feelings), and "Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends" (a family made of biological and adopted bug kids). Nickelodeon is not allowed in my house because of the commercials, but Nick Jr? Perfectly fine. "Lazytown"? Boring and pointless, but why do people insist on putting messages into shows where there are none? Said young girl also hangs around with geeky computer guy and other friends her "age." Seriously? The only people implying sexual or inappropriate messages in these shows are the parents. Should we be concerned that kids who watch Sesame Street are learning about homosexuality from Bert and Ernie or that kids who watch Barney won't understand that dinosaurs are extinct? GET A GRIP. Not to mention, TALK TO YOUR CHILDREN. If you want to make sure the message they are getting is the one you want them to get, TALK to them about it. You are your children's first and best teacher.

Pssh little girls dont watch lazytown and think oh gee i wanna go get older man friends thats ridiculous.i bet that chicks over 18 anyway. Nickelodeons awesome if i didnt have nickelodeon growing up id be so sad. Get off nicks nuts!

MAD is a valiant effort to protect children. Sadly, the root cause isn't Nick, its the disengaged parents who allow their children free reign of crap programs.

The majority of parents are too naive or disinterested to properly guide their children. These are the parents that need to be reached.

One thing that people have to understand is that there are a lot of bad parents out in the world. The kind of parent who just wants there kid to shut up so they put a TV in front of them. I don't have any kids myself and wont for few years, I do plan on talking to my kids and monitoring what they watch. I would have to agree with them on Lazy Town, I thought the same thing when I saw this show. It seems a little perverse to me. I agree with Kim that there shows do teach good values, but remember the older man is the only HUMAN friend she has in the show.

Can we say Photoshop on the Lazytown image? That's his head from the left side of the original image where he is lifting her with his back.

I understand their point, but we find it much easier to just not have cable tv in our home.

It sounds like someone is bored and trying to get some attention. Seriously … harmful? Try to focus on real problems before you create some BS problem out of the thin air. These people have their priorities messed up! Maybe fight for something with a real cause, I don’t know…like something against child predators! This is the gheyest shout for attention I have ever seen.

First of all, eliminating farts, boogers, and belches. Why not just kill fun, besides, this humor is only in nickelodeon shows meant for 8-12 year olds, not toddlers. You can't look at Nickelodeon as a whole. There is Nick at night, Noggin/Nick Jr., The N/Teen Nick and regular Nickelodeon. Each is for a different age group. For instance, anything to do with Nick at night is irrelevant because it is meant for older people, it is comprised of the shows that an older generation used to watch.

Secondly, that lazy town photo is edited. There is no such shot where Sportacus's head is by Stephanie's rear end. You can tell because look at the person Stephanie is leaning on, that is Sportacus's back, so how can his head be where it is? Also she doesn't spend all day with him, she has other friends, and he encourages them to eat sports candy, not candy.

Sports candy is fruits and vegetables. You can't protest something you don't know even know about. Do some more research.

I'm 16, and I think this is just a little wacky. I don't agree with them that nick is bad, angry beavers, invader zim, all these twisted shows made me the person I am today.

Look, I grew up watching Nickelodeon in the 90's during the days of Ren and Stimpy. Sure there was plenty of weird stuff and tons of commercials, but I turned out fine because I had good parents. I can understand not having TV in your house (I don't have it now), but it's ridiculous to blame TV for everything. Boogers and fart jokes are going to reach your kids from all of their friends anyway, and no child is going to think that the man in Lazy Town is something they have to have.

tl;dr: I grew up with it and turned out fine.

I have kids and the part about LazyTown is a total mischaracterization of what the show is like. The show isn't like that at all! The primary purpose is to tell kids to stop eating junk food, spending all their time playing video games and go out and play.

Is it me, or is that "disgusting shot from Lazy Town" photoshopped?

These old hags are taking it too far. I'm so sick of people like this that want to blame everyone else for their children's problems. Stop being a lazy bitch and take responsibility for your child. If you don't agree with something, then don't let YOUR child watch it, but don't try to take it from everyone. The things I remember on TV when when I was a kid are nowhere near as tame or educational as what my daughter watches on Noggin. Here's the thing though, I knew it was all fake and what was unacceptable socially because MY PARENTS FUCKING TAUGHT ME,ya know the way it should be. If you're this upset about your kid seeing these programs, its most likely because you are too lazy to take your parental responsibilities seriously and are looking for a scapegoat.

People will always find something to bitch about. There is nothing wrong with any of these nick shows. ANY of them, they make kids think and laugh, and they learn things about everything from colors and shapes to getting along with others and sharing. Next these mothers will be complaining that sesame street teaches kids animals can talk, and it must be taken off the air, give me a break, and give your kids some credit.

The analysis of Lazy Town may be too critical for ones taste. And I believe all shows are up for interpretation, but the underlying theme is seen in all Nickelodeon programming.

The fact that Dora runs around following a map, alone.

The Rugrats break out of their cage every episode to follow a back talking brat Angelica.

In the George Lopez Show, the kids drive him crazy, they "Give Him Hell" as an 8am ad said.

Glen Martin DDS opens with a scecne of a child playing a video game about killing prostitutes. The same show features a dog with half his anus hanging out.

Is it ok that Nick news ran a show about "Kids in Rehab"

What about when Tom Shales of The Washington Post said Ren and Stimpy showed "not one smidgeon of pro-social value"

Disengaged parenting is a really big issue in regards to protecting children from media like Nickelodeon. There are a lot of bad parents out there. A lot. But children shouldn't have to suffer because of ignorant parents. Children shouldn't be subjected to ads, be given role models such as Chris Brown, and Sir Mix A Lot, learn about things such as penis ads... they shouldn't be bombarded with mediocrity because parents turn on Nick for three hours to "take a breather". I am concerned for all children, especially those with bad parents.

I know many people think The Mothers Against Nickelodeon are extreme. And that's ok. And no I am not doing this for attention. I received enough attention as a twenty one year old student mom at a private liberal arts school... This isn't about me, its about kids and advertisers. A lot of people are passionate about letting Nickelodeon get away with this and that... but with that attitude things are just going to get worse and it not fair to kids for things to get worse.

Its just not right.

Please feel free to email me with any personal questions. I love conversation: themothersagainstnickelodeon@gmail.com

And I'm not an old hag, far from it :)

Sorry, but this is just a matter of good parenting. If you prefer your children not to watch something, don't let them. Learn about your parenting controls on your cable box.

Really is censorship the solution to bad parenting?

"Orange based moms" ?? Are they citrus flavored? Is it that hard to write Orange County? With a worldwide audience on your website, don't assume everone knows what you mean.

Although i will agree with some of todays rediculous kid TV shows, why not turn the TV off or turn the channel instead of letting your TV do YOUR baby sitting for you.

Sigh. It's always the same refrain: I don't like it, so everyone else should be made to suffer.

This has nothing to do with Nick and everything to do with the parents. End of story.

There will always be someone to protest something about anything. It's just how the people distract themselves from their own failures as parents ect. I grew up with the only show forbidden was the Simpsons, but it was all just a show. I'm 21 now and I don't go around smacking people or anything, but I watched mostly the shows where people did those things. The fact that MADD does almost three times the amount of harm than good is a perfect example of this kind person's results.

Without Nick, who would I even be? This network was my childhood, and i didn't come out fat... Nick gives you a sense of humor. My older siblings will agree that shows like spongebob still make them laugh. Its not nicks job to get kids into child porn, there job is to get a few laughs and give your child some creativity. I hope all kids whos moms are crazy enough to rise against nick, end up getting noogies and shit stuffed in their lockers all throughout school cuz their to busy trying to keep up on those A's.... nick's been around for ever, why now is it such a big deal. Hey arnold, spongebob, ahhh real monsters, rocko's modern life, and rugrats for life! Maybe worry about family guy and south park?

I 100% agree with those moms. when my buddies and I go out every night to pick up hookers, do intravenous drugs, and commit crimes against people whose lifestyles differ from my own, i need to know that the babysitter (i.e., the television) is teaching my children good moral values. fart, booger, and belching jokes are simply unacceptable- and i simply don't have the time to actually take care of/supervise my children. everything my children do wrong is obviously someone else's fault- and the culprit is television! oh, and Blacks, Mexicans, and gays (that's what my church says)

Part of the problem here is that men have been portrayed in the media as being child molesters and wife beaters for so long that everyone immediately assumes that any man who pays attention to a child is a molester. I think it's healthy to show children that men can be a positive influence. I've seen Lazytown with my granddaughters. It's an innocuous show. The image in the article has obviously been altered.

As far as advertising is concerned, I agree. Kids are targeted by advertisers and are heavily influenced by them. The influences aren't always healthy or good for them.

I think its good to let networks who accept child-oriented advertising know that there are parents who object. But keep things reasonable. Simply because a show depicts an older man with a young girl does not mean he's a pervert and she's a victim. In this case he's a positive influence and a good role model. Children need to learn that not all men areeveil and apparently some women need to learn that as well.

oh and theres this thing on comcast, and probably on other cable services that offer parental control... where you can set a code on the channel.. But nah, lets cancel one of the best networks on television cuz you want your kids to be einsteins. its a choice between being socially retarded and smart or socially adapt and street smart. and if your child was raised correctly, they could handle having both a sense of humor and a sharp mind.

stop being lazy-

Orange is a city in Orange County. It has been since 1888. Chapman University is there. I don't write for Newsweek, I write for OC Weekly--OC as in Orange County. Sorry you did not get that.

Janelle,

Your heart is in the right place but your research is shoddy. You have completely mis-characterized LazyTown, and I know this to be true because I worked on the show. You claim that Stephanie hangs out with Sportacus by herself all day. This is demonstrably false and has never happened even once in over seventy episodes.

Stephanie hangs out with her friends all day. The only time she sees Sportacus is when he arrives - as a hero - to save the day, usually in the final moments of the show. She lives with her Uncle Milford, goes to school, takes part in healthy, kid-oriented activities, and is a wonderful, positive role model for kids around the globe. The "candy" you refer to is something that Sportacus calls "sports candy" - and it's nothing more sinister than fruits and vegetables.

Have you ever seen LazyTown? It's hard to believe that you have, given these mistakes.

Even worse, you have posted an image that has been manipulated to create the appearance of deviance. The image is clearly manipulated, but you have somehow managed to miss that.

Given this track record with LazyTown, how badly have you misunderstood the rest of what you see on television?

Brown Johnson and her group at Nickelodeon are professional, caring and responsible individuals who have gone beyond what other network execs have done to ensure that the messages on Nick are positive, the stories are well written and balanced, and elements like diversity, social skills and equality are given prominence.

If you are truly interested in making a difference in this arena, I suggest you work a little harder to get your facts straight. It's impossible to take your concerns seriously when they rest on such an obviously distorted foundation.

Mark Valenti

jack, that was one of the more funny/sarcastic things ive heard in a while.

Tell you what- when 40 year old mothers are arrested for ogling 17 year old boys ("Twilight"), we'll cut out the booger and fart jokes. Can you imagine if a group of 40+ men went into a theatre and were doing the same over an underage girl?

My 9 year old watches Monty Python anyways.... and follows up on the historical lessons he learns. He's smart, polite, and well-adjusted. He does not need to have a "nanny state" look after him. He is street-smart and even OWNS A POCKETKNIFE.

Sounds like these "Housewives of OC rejects" need some drama in their vapid existence to stave off the calming effect of the prozac they imbibe upon.

You Can't Do That on Television!

Gman says: "Can we say Photoshop on the Lazytown image? That's his head from the left side of the original image where he is lifting her with his back."

Thanks Gman. Now that you point it out, we can totally see that the guy in the weird suit is in two places in that image, his back is in the lower left, and his head is on the right.

These people seem more like teenagers than parents. When we were in High School, we talked about how Mr. Rogers is a pedophile (even though he was never seen with children), Bert and Ernie are gay, Power Rangers are dorky (but somehow we knew quite a bit about them), Barney is a pedophile, or Barney needs to be blown up.

We even had edited photos to "prove" our points. A photo of Mr. Rogers is taped onto a photo of a playboy model. So he must be a pedophile. QED.

Adults shouldn't be doing this though. If you are an adult, and you see a girl and a man, and immediately jump to sex, something is wrong with you.

Why not just smash you're tv's all together and spend some actual quality time with your kids?

THERE'S AN IDEA!

p.s. you can't sensor your kids forever.
Eventually they'll get out into the big bad world, that you, we, I, they, everyone has created.

I'm hosetly stunned by the fact that on this day I find out that I am now a bad parent!

Those Wonderpets are just so damn cute though...

LazyTown is a great show. It promotes active lifestyles. Sportacus shows up at the end to thwart Robbie Rotten, who has come up with some plot to get the kids of LazyTown to eat junk food or stop exercising.

They dance during a recurring song at the end after Sportacus has saved the day, but they don't hang out together (or at all, Sportacus lives in a zeppelin above town until needed usually).

The picture is funny sure, but it was photoshopped to be funny, since I remember seeing it on fark or Digg or one of the link aggregators.

This is just attention-whoring at its worst. They haven't actually watched the show, and are probably just reacting to the picture. They probably think they'll get some attention and then get to be on the Real Housewives or something.

If you're a rich stay at home mom, how about you spend time with your kids instead of critiquing children's programming. You are one of the lucky few parents that can actually be around their child most of the day, and they'll probably be worse off being neglected by you than watching a talking rodent or sponge on TV. Anyone who's looking for issues in a tv show will find them.

If these mom's are truly against the consumer aspect of TV, their credibility rests on them not having a single designer item in their house. Why guard their kids from something they so quickly embrace?

I suppose your christmas is going to be gift free? or at least limited to practical items? Living in OC i highly doubt that.

and this isn't against the reporter, you did a great job showing a story about the people in your area. People with issues the real world laughs at.

max-

I seriously doubt the mothers behind The Mothers Against Nickelodeon are trying to get on Real Housewives. One needs to sneak into a State Dinner or bang Tiger Woods for that.

I agree that some of the shows on Nickelodeon are ridiculous and your kid might annoy you for a little while retelling some stupid joke from Spongebob, but the shows are certainly not harmful, and Nick has come out with some really outstanding shows, like Avatar: The Last Airbender, which pertains to a large age range,while having some real substance to it. I agree with the people who say that if you're concerned about your children, control what they watch, but don't try to shut down the network and ruin it for other kids. Plenty of other kids with sane parents shouldn't be sheltered from something like Nick, just because you think fart jokes are detrimental to your child's well-being.

Why are all of you defending nickelodeon. Are you that lame? You still watch nick jr. and blog in your free time? Think about whats going on in this show for a second, and if it seems normal in any capacity. Also, obviously its photoshopped fools, the "call the cops" part was added in, even those link aggregators (if thats a real term) noticed the disgusting undertones(blatant) of the show.

Hey how hard is it to monitor what your child is watching and not let them watch stuff that you don't find appropriate for them? Then these "moms" might actually have to put forth a little effort, then, eh? YOUR TV IS NOT A PARENT. FFS.

This show isn't appropriate for any small child. TV stations shouldn't be allowed to create and advertise unnapropriate shows targeted towards small children. Its not right, some parents work, and the child is in daycare, usually daycare workers allow the children they watch to sit in front of the television for a few hours. People spouting crap about parents constantly screening what their children are watching, its an unnecessary waste of time. Filth should not be marketed towards children, its pretty simple

uhm yeah lets fight the world you idiots, mothers against nick. you are the same type of idiots who say " things were so much better in the ( time period ). "
its funny you mention lazy town, uhm her friend that you say she takes candy from, in the show is allergic to candy, it enourages kids to get up go outside and play and exercise and eat right. go fist your selfs you idiots.

find a real cause!

mojo - I agree with you. We want parents to engage and turn off the TV, that's the point of #boycottnick. TV was not meant to babysit children. Use the parental controls, that is what we advocating and educating why.

It seems from all the love Lazy Town and Wonder Pets get from this blog post, that the adults are really watching Nick most than the kids. As for Nick at Nite, well it's at night and most kids should be in bed if they are young and the others should be doing homework. LOL!

Cole - you are right. Get rid of TV's and spend time outside, the O.C., has plenty of sunshine. Also, there is plenty of real life stuff that we can't sensor on the streets - homeless, poor immigrants, gangs, and a yes, more commercialization and consumerism. The "big bad world" awaits... home should be safe :)

One point that seems to have escaped most of the anti-parenting crew is that the film "Consuming Kids" points out that living in today's commercialized world is different even from 10 - 20 years ago. Our kids are building their worth in objects of consumerism. They wake up and are the brands being promoted. Watch the movie. See for yourself.

Dec. 3rd at 7pm at Chapman.

Brandon - Do you have kids or just love Nick that much?

nice manupulation on that screen shot

how can the "man" be both behind her and holding her up as she flips on her back?

"​ Little girls will think it's OK to dance around with older men that offer them candy"

did you ever even watch the show. he is all about healthy eating and never offered her candy.

someone is a tad stuck up

kim has a very good point. If your letting TV shows teach your children, where you should be doing it makes you horrible parents. How about shutting the thing off and playing with them insted. The parents that are conserned about this use the TV as a "baby-sitter". Should be ashamed that your putting energy into this insted of spending it actually interacting with your children.

ah more proof on photo shopped

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MKVNf6kuhv0&NR=1

heres a hint, if you dont liek it turn of your tv its that simple. the only reason why shes hanging around with a 30 year old all day is cuz hes a super hero. ever notice they all have simple names like stephanie and robbie but his name is "sporticus" he promotes eating healthy and exercising if thats wrong. you say he offers candy but if you at any point ever watch the show hes anti candy instead offering apples. Maybe they shoudl stop wasiting time boycotting nick and at home with thier childen who are probally sitting at home watching cartoon network, a channel aimed at older kids. i bet thier moms didnt boycott pepe le peu when he was running around forcing him self on a cat, or the flintstones when wilma never seemed to leave the kitchen. stop wasting your time cuz jus like most of smart america nick doesnt care about your opinions because they are shit. your trying to make a mountain out of a mole hill

Good job nice try

Someone really did some investigative reporting when they wrote this story.

Janelle is pretty hot though …

Kat:
Have you watched the first show listed there?
http://www.nickatnite.com/shows/glenn-martin-dds/index.jhtml

Its NOT kid friendly,

nice try -

Photo shopped or not, it from their website. Why would they photo shop the picture to look like this.

This is not about specific shows, it is about the advertising, commercialism and consumerism. Nick is just as guilty as the rest, and we are taking on Nick because they started it.

Rob - "Filth should not be marketed towards children, its pretty simple"

Johnnyinnc - right back at you! love the outrage. Was your mother a cold mother?

Here's my solution. If you don't want your kids seeing it, don't let them watch it. That's what being a parent is about. Just because it's on T.V doesn't mean anything. You control the shows they watch.

"But they're taking "Lazy Town" a little TOO seriously. Any show that encourages our obese kids to get off their fat asses can't be all bad."

yeh! and get your exercise with an older man!

nothing wrong with that huh?

@eric so if your childs gym teacher was an older man you would want ur kids to sit out of gym?

The Mothers Against Nickelodeon has many examples and much research on the egregious tactics Nick uses to deliver children to advertisers. If you don't think kids are being manipulated then you're naive, ignorant, or stubborn.

Look at the history of Nick. Go back to 1984 when Nick was commercial-free and offered programming that was parent-friendly. Learn why Nick changed its revenue model to depend on advertising. Understand the Big Idea Nick implemented to serve its advertisers at the expense of parents, children, families, and educators.

If you don't know who Geraldine Laybourne is and you're attacking The Mothers Against Nickelodeon then you're arguing from less than half a deck.

Why?

Because you are not informed.

So get informed.

Come to Chapman tomorrow night.

7:00 PM

Folino Theater.

RSVP here:

http://themothersagainstnickelodeon-efbevent.eventbrite.com/

Cory O'Connor
Assistant Professor
Advertising and Public Relations
Chapman University

Kristine Simon, the whiners who started the MAN website got that from a random google image search. It's not any more real just because a pretentious group uses it. The author of this OCWeekly article should know better than to promote the image as real, when it's a well known internet humor piece.

Yo, Janelle Maluenda.

You lost all credibility when you photoshopped that Lazy Town picture.

Please crawl back into the deluded hole you call home and take all your Cansorship Nazis with you.

I find it sad that you have reproduced, try not to fill your poor children with hate.

some one please name a better spot to advertise the newest crayola products or the new dora the explorer doll. you dont hear avid football fans complaining because NFL Network is showin commercials for the new Ford F-150. get real go find a job instead of being a stay at home mom and then complaining about what you see. if you wanna boycott something find something worth boycotting...how about this boycott yourself and people like you

I'm just going to say DITTO what Gman just said because that's exactly the two points I was going to make.

The only addition I would make is what sspeedracer said.

I'm glad to see some people have common sense AND want to be involved in their children's upbrining...sadly a novel concept these days...

Am I the only one that has a problem with the giant run-on and incomplete sentence in their mission statement?
By the way, this is about as ridiculous as PETA's recent attempt at making a chicken empathy museum. http://www.peta.org/mc/NewsItem.asp?id=13544
Don't place the blame for your bad parenting on someone or something else, just take responsibility. I guess next they are going to say that Nickelodeon causes kids to have school shootings...

To everyone saying The M.A.N. mothers should turn their TVs off: If you read the post, you would know that one mom won't let her 7-month-old watch any television until she is 2, and the other is not allowing her twins to watch Nick. It's odd, then, that they are getting damned for voluntarily warning other parents about the marketing directed at kids, and those advocating plopping kids in front of TVs are, what, heroic?

To everyone saying the Lazy Town image was photoshopped: I honestly did not know that, I figured it had been purposely cropped that way and the type added for maximum condemnation. Now that I know it was photoshopped, I'll add that to the post.

What happened to go the good ol days when parents could just be parents? Seriously, if you don't like your kids watching Nick, don't let them. Use one of the many technologies that come with cable boxes to BLOCK THE CHANNEL. It's really not that hard....

Stop complaining about what Nick shows and be a mother ffs. I watched Ren and Stimpy growing up. My mom didn't like it so ya know what she did? She didn't let me watch it. Really, that was all. She didn't write a letter, she didn't complain to other parents, she did her job as a parent.

This is just getting ridiculous and seems more like some mothers attempting to get some kind of media attention for theirself instead of actually trying to do some good.

These 2 media sluts are happy to photoshop a pic that makes the guy a paedophile, they should be in jail, so why is anybody even giving them the time of day?
I hope the LazyTown guy sues their asses of for this disgusting fabrication.

this is a joke, people being over sensitive because they want to try and make a major change to get their name in papers and in lights. Nickelodeon is about the best, cleanest entertainment you will find on TV, so leave it the ef alone. if you would rather, let your kids watch spike (violence and men being men), lifetime(its supposed to be for women, but just shows them getting raped and cheated on), or if you wanna hit the homerun, why not playboy channel? i watch nickelodeon and think it is fine. go after the liberal and conservative media channels like MSNBC and Fox News first.

Take some responsibility, to me it seems like you aren't good enough parents to be parents. You just want the TV and outside world to take care of your kid for you because you lack the skill and time for a child...maybe you shouldn't have had one in the first place.

Blaming others for your shortcomings is a sad excuse and you are sad parents...MAD makes me mad because these hags are all of the sudden realizing things everyone knows that TV is not a good tool to raise your kids and doesn't substitute for parenting.

Go away before you embarrass yourself even more, pathetic excuses for parents...I watch Bevis and Butthead and Ren and Stimpy and guess what I am a hard working college educated professional...but I guess those shows really messed me up huh...oh wait no I HAD GOOD RESPONSIBLE PARENTS.

Who let these bitches outta the kitchen?

Woman, get back to the kitchen and make me a sandwich before I give you a knuckle sammich

Give me a break you ignorant morons. Everything is someone elses fault, never their own. If you don't like Nickelodeon don't watch it. People find ways to complain about everything in this country. No wonder it is going down the crapper.

I watched Nick growing up and I am pretty sure there is nothing wrong with me...

PS I do not hang out with men 20 yrs my senior.

The first photo is photoshopped, the second isn't bad I guess you would censor a guy hugging his niece to? What does it take for groups like this to realize they can just turn the channel off and that would tell the network people don't like what they are showing. using a photoshopped picture to support a cause that is stupid to begin with makes this group pretty fail.

It's OK if the man they hang out with is gay, though, DUH!

Geez, those parents are only about 40 years or so late to the game. When I was in elementary school in the 1960's, McDonald's was bigtime marketed to kids through programs like the Hobo Kelly Show in L.A. It is one reason why they got such a big constituency among children that continues to this day. So that Nickelodeon was doing it is about as surprising as the sun coming up in the east in the morning.

If you don't want a station marketing products to your kids, write emails to Nickelodeon and your cable provider and then turn the damn tv off. Don't use the intellectual passivity creating device that is television to babysit your kids.

@Matt Croker

I'm sure her daughter will be so much less susceptible to advertising and whatnot when she's 2.

And did someone say they really didn't realize that photo was photoshopped? Wow. Just wow. Did you not look closely at the photo before you put it up on your site? That's just poor strategy.

By not bothering to actually research their perceived "enemy," and just grabbing any old article on the Internet they believe agrees with their agenda, leading to such fallacies as commenting on a foreign-produced show promoting nutrition and exercise as a domestically-produced love letter to pedophilia (with or without Photoshopped pictures), failing to look at the actual message or characterizations of some of the programs they criticize, passing off a satirical article from a parody of fundamentalist Christian outspokenness as a true description of perverted jokes hidden in programs by their creators, and criticizing Nickelodeon and its parent companywhile putting The Walt Disney Company- arguably the biggest shameless self-promoting business in the world, as well as another infrequent user of fart-and-booger humor- the Mothers Against Nickeloden make themselves as determined yet laughable as any outspoken pundit or activist and with as many errors and oversights as the film they are planning to show. Though I wish the MAN the best of luck even though I disagree with their campaign, I suggest they do more actual research if they really want people to join their cause.

*should read "putting The Walt Disney Company- arguably the biggest shameless self-promoting business in the world, as well as another infrequent user of fart-and-booger humor- on a pedestal..."

Yeah, it's Nick's fault that your kid is a loser =
http://bit.ly/5X8CCM

Isn't Lazy Town considered one of the most positive children's shows because its messages of eating healthy and living an active lifestyle?

Anyone else find it contradictory that one of our key elements of freedome is our freedome of speech and was put into place for the prospect of a better society but then things like the fcc and these idiots who have nothing better to do then try and put the spotlight on themsleves trying to limit everything we are allowed to do, say and even think all in the name of a better "free" society. Ur opinion is just that . . . An opinion just as mine is, the only difference is my opinion isn't reversal of the reason I still live in this country. My life and my childrens life are mine to control not yours.

So what. Consumerism is everywhere. Exploitation makes the world go around. Murder and disease decreases the population (although obviously not fast enough) yes. Nick has a SHIT tons on commercials aimed at kids. So what. Exactly how has it harmed them thus far? its not like your 4 year old children have money to blow on coloring playsets and dora dolls. why the fuck do you insist on ruining it for people who obviously have more common sense then you? i've already wasted far too much thought on YOUR ignorance. i think i'll go watch my spongebob dvd and enjoy myself. Good night.

Nickelodeon for real you wanna ban? Duh!

I have a five year old son, and we let him watch Nick Jr. but not Nick. Some of the Nick Jr. shows are among the best programming available for kids (Blues Clues, Backyardigans, and yes, Lazytown).

The main reason we forbid Nick (as in not Jr) programming is because much the Nick programming IS NOT WRITTEN FOR KIDS.

Spongebob, Jimmy Neutron, Mighty B, and many others are animations for Grownups, sold as animations for Kids. The jokes, gags, and plot hooks are not kid-friendly, and seem aimed at a more mature audience. But the network pretends that it's children's programming.

Many of the other shows, including iCarly and Penguins of Madagascar are no worse than what we watched as kids (e.g., Bugs Bunny and Brady Bunch). They're not *good* for the kid's brain, but they're not bad either... taken in moderation.

Fortunately a DVR helps us sort out the programming and make the acceptable stuff available at any time.

Am I the only person who sees the idea of a television show telling kids to go outside and play contradictory?

As a stay-at-home mother who has a degree in Advertising and previously worked on advertising campaigns directed at young children, I refuse to allow Nickelodeon in my home. In fact, the only television allowed in my home is PBS. Nickelodeon promotes materialism and greed in children at a very young, impressionable age. It is doing a disservice to our society.

And to those saying "turn off the tv" - yes, I agree with you. The parent is the first line of defense. However, Nickelodeon has turned into more than just a television station - it is a brand empire. Impossible to escape. My daughter could easily use a Nickelodeon character item for every aspect of her daily life - her diapers, plates, clothing, bedding, even her shampoo and toothpaste. They know what they are doing.

all i have to say is this....notice that Ms. Maluenda is essentially repeating information she heard in school....i dont care if it's grad school...or just bachellor's requirements....don't tell tales out of school...so YOU did research and YOU think nick is turning your kids into slaves....then YOU should TURN NICK OFF. Duh.

Anyone who attacks these women as disaffected housewives is completely ignoring the reality of the consumer culture which has consumed *them*.

If you believe the full extent of their complaint is satisfied by the (cliched) response to "turn of the television and parent your children", you are missing their point completely and utterly.

And in doing so, you demonstrate your own blindness to the all-consuming consumer culture that devours you, every moment of your waking life, in this country.

Your naivite will be your own destruction.

I respond that that is exactly what these women are trying to do,and trying to encourage others to do as well.

Ed above comment:

"I respond that that is exactly what these women are trying to do,and trying to encourage others to do as well."

i.e., they are "trying to" educate people as to the dangers and excesses of commercial culture, and its dangerous effect on children; a point which so many of these commenters seem to have totally left out of their formulation of opinions.

bughunter: I would disagree slightly with your categorization of the shows. I would say that shows such as iCarly and Penguins of Madagascar are in the same vein as SpongeBob et al. It's ironic that you say the "jokes, gags, and plot hooks are not kid-friendly" yet compare the shows that are to Looney Tunes, which were originally written for an adult audience and shown before movies, and frequently featured (tame, of course) jokes about subjects such as ogling shapely women, smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol, depicting Blacks, hispanics and others with usual stereotypes, etc. (Of course, most of the latter are now removed from the reruns shown on television). I frequently hear animators of that era say "we didn't make them for kids, we made them for ourselves." There isn't really anything in SpongeBob that's more complicated or "adult" than an old Bugs Bunny cartoon or vice versa- there are occasional pop culture references and other gags about everyday life only the adults will get, just as in the old cartoons, but it's mostly slapstick, comedic dialogue, and unusual situations. If the characters are funny and the plot and dialogue are well-written, a show will appeal to adults and children, and that goes for both the old cartoons and the new ones.

Cristina: even PBS characters are marketed. Your daughter could probably use a PBS-licensed product for everything in her life, too. In the case of Sesame Street, which is a non-profit organization, the money goes directly back into the company's projects, but that's probably not the case for other PBS characters. Even the programs have corporate donators who get their names on the program in return- PBS needs money as desperately as anyone else because the government won't and/or can't foot the entire bill.

Eliminating all advertising would be nice, but a communistic ad-free society would be impossible. The power of the almighty dollar and commercialism in general are prevalent in all aspects of life. People just have to accept it and teach their children that just because something is advertised doesn't necessarily mean that they want it or need it.

I have three kids and they have all watched Nick Jr. Now that they are older, we have been able to move on to better shows that include more fart/poop jokes sprinkled with a little violence. Despite the fact that they have been subjected to the voices of the Wonder Pets and the questionable wardrobe choices of the Backyardigans, they are happy, intelligent, well-rounded children who enjoy sports, music, and believe it or not, they don't spend all their free time figuring out what products they should be suckered into buying.

If you don't like the programming, don't watch it. Unless, of course, someone is standing in your family room with a gun to your head saying "You must watch Diego save the humpback whale or I'll shoot you in the face." In that case, you should probably watch the show.

There are shows on other channels that I don't let my kids watch, but it's not because I'm afraid they're getting brainwashed with consumerism; it's because the shows suck.

http://jodythemeanmom.blogspot.com/2009/10/yes-they-get-it.html

Kids ask for stuff, whether it has a picture of Dora on it or not. If you don't want to buy it, pick the purse that has a picture of Tinkerbell instead.

Let me shorten the article for everyone here. In fact, let me speak on behalf of all the ignorant women/men here that call themselves "parents" or "mothers". What this person is trying to say is:

"I'm a bad parent who doesn't keep a close watch on my own kids and I blame everything on shows because I don't have enough balls to admit my own mistakes or I am a housewife/househusband with too much free time and essentially worthless to society."

Don't like what I have to say? Get on my website www.wowomg.com and give me a piece of your mind (if you have one, but then again with all the "analyzing" of all these kids shows, I highly doubt it.)

you do realize that the girl in the pink was 18 years old at the time of the filming right? and that her age is both becuase she's short and becuase of camera angles.

I understand your outrage at consumerism, and that one of you won't let your child watch Nick/television until he's 2.

Unfortunately, the only thing you're doing is postponing the inevitable. Waiting till he/she is two means they'll get exposed to consumerism then, and from then, onward. And for the member who will never let her children watch television because she wants to shield them from consumerism, what will you do when they go outside, and there are billboards outside for McDonald's or Old Navy?

Consumerism is a part of society. Part of what helps us all grow into mature adults with common sense is learning how to NOT give in.

While I admire your devotion to keeping your children safe, I respectfully disagree with your tactics. Why? I, like many people who have posted here, am a Nickelodeon kid myself. This may not sway you, that I understand. But keep in mind, my cartoon viewing has done nothing more than give me an appreciation for humor and animation.

The current programming on Nick is less than desirable, I'll grant you that. But getting a small group of people together to outright ban a channel that many, many other people actually enjoy is taking this too far.

As a matter of fact, I'd encourage you against trying to get the channel banned, because if your line of logic follows, you'll keep going after everything else that strikes you as odd, everything else you find a terribly rendered Photoshop picture of on the internet and believe you have an argument based off of it. As someone else stated earlier, you've got passion for your cause, but you are severely lacking in credibility when you fail to acknowledge the actual characterizations/content of the shows you vilify.

I'd really suggest reassessing your tactics and motivation for doing this.

And honestly, I saw the picture of one of you holding up a picture of Spongebob you doodled on. For someone who is so concerned about immaturity on Nickelodeon, I suggest you practice what you preach in the pictures you take as well.

i agree with most of the people here that this is an extreme reaction to a small problem and the only solution is better parenting. Sure kids shouldn't watch some shows, but farting and belching doesnt turn your kids into consumer zombies. The photoshopped pic also shows that being fair and helping people isn't the main goal here. besides when they talk about the skimpy dress its like they have never heard of a leotard. Its like their saying anyone who dresses for exercise is really a slut.

Someone should start an organization against the production of the abomination that is iCarly. That shit is rotting the minds of kids and teens everywhere, it's not even funny, just dumb! Same with almost every live-action show nowadays and don't even get me started on the Retarded shite that is the Jackson mc Fashionpants show or whatever. Also these women are retards who have never actually seen the show and are probably overweight.

So, okay. I promised I wouldn't get into this too heavily, and as a "Nick Kid" who also understands WHY these women boycott nick, I've got something to say.

To the people who keep saying "Well then turn off the TV and take your kid outside" - isn't it obvious that these parents are PROBABLY already doing that??? If their entire argument is based off of not watching TV because of the consumerism-from-a-young-age-until-the-grave-approach?

The problem isn't "parents being good parents and raising their own damn kids" - whether we like to admit it or not, we are responsible for the young who's parent's DON'T take care of them. There are some parents out there who just raise their kids on TV because they are too busy trying to pay off debts here and there and every where, so their kids become latch key TV watching kids - these are the kids who the MAN are trying to help, kids who's parent's don't know what's going on.

While the Mother's of MAN are against Nickelodeon, it's not like they're just plopping their kids in front of other TV. If they've already taken the steps to start an organization boycotting the consumerism-from-cradle-to-death approach that they probably PRACTICE what they preach and feed their kids healthy fruits, veggies, maybe if they DO choose to let their kids watch TV (aka) pre-approved-educational-or-artistically-important-DVDs without commercials.

The reason this group exists is partially for their children - yes. But that's not it - because they could EASILY do this in their own homes and be done. The reason this group is around is for kids who DO NOT HAVE THE GOOD FORTUNE OF GOOD PARENTS (cause lets face it - there are some people who will just sit their kids in front of the TV and be done with it) have to have their minds. There could be brilliant minds who are now trapped between a combination of bad parents and bad tv - so consumed with being a little "bratz" type girl with make up and her next toy/play thing/"I WANT IT" item - instead of studying so she can grow up to change the world for the better.

The problem that we are glossing over isn't about censorship - it's about responsibility for our younger generation. Lazy Town might be a great show, until the kids are screaming for lazy town toys and lazy town healthy tooth paste and lazy town *branded item for most sales impact* and of course, foods branded with lazy town images. Lazy town is just an example, I don't know if they're branding items, so if i'm wrong please don't troll me - sponge bob, a show many of my friends enjoy (and sometimes I myself enjoy, and I too am a "nick kid" and /love/ the old skool cartoons, Oh Zim, oh Rocko!) - would be better off NOT as sugary candy, cereal, fatty foods, tooth paste, diapers, shampoo, bubble bath, etc etc - that is part of the Mother's Against Nick.

The Vision of TV for the under 15 set - commercial free, various entertainment with educational values (whether it's socialization "morals" - and please, morals are a societal thing, not a religious thing, let's not even go into that - or education about history made "fun" - geography, science, how to on art, or even providing plain ol' fashion cartoons and even plain old silly-for-no-reason-other-than-to-be-silly - gotta teach those young comedians too!) - free from the ned to keep getting more and MORE and MORE and MORE AND MORE OR ELSE YOU AND YOUR KID WILL BE SOCIALLY OSTRACIZED. The problem isn't always the programing (sometimes it is, I myself find boogers, farts, hilarious. Can't help it.) It's how the programming is made to start shoving young minds intellectual parts away RIGHT AWAY and bringing out the emotioanl-based-object-wanting parts ("This show makes me laugh, the commercial makes me excited, if I get this toy, it'll make me that laugh-excited-happy that I crave"). Or to a point of not being socially accepted ("Mommy they teased me because all the girls have dora backpacks and accessories and I don't so you HAVE to BUY it for me.")

Ug. I'm outtie. If I haven't touched on something I apologize, please don't give me ridiculous flamer comments if you're not going to bother to read what I've said. And please remember, I AM one of you "nick kids" - I grew up on Snick, Rocko, Clarissa, Pete & Pete, even Ren & stimpy is to this date one of my favorite shows. Heck, I was that 7th grader who started watching South Park because I had a "cool mom" who never patronized me and let me watch all the adult things. I still have problems though with how kids CAN'T have the option to ignore what nickelodeon/disney/etc have to monetize on unless they are home schooled away from the rest of the children of society, basically if a kid goes to school they will encounter not a plain lunchbox or even one they decorated themselves, but instead one that their parents had to pay $20 so they could have Dora/Spongebob/Miley on it because their peer group might not accept them if they DON'T have it.... Ug OK am really shutting up now. Hopefully I had a point or two in there. Again. Don't flame it unless you read it, digest it, and can give me THOUGHTFUL responses that aren't regurgitated from the comments I've read above.

I guess the American Taliban is alive and well in OC.

@Tiffany: "The problem isn't "parents being good parents and raising their own damn kids" - whether we like to admit it or not, we are responsible for the young who's parent's DON'T take care of them. There are some parents out there who just raise their kids on TV because they are too busy trying to pay off debts here and there and every where, so their kids become latch key TV watching kids - these are the kids who the MAN are trying to help, kids who's parent's don't know what's going on."

So because negligent parents aren't raising their kids properly, let's blame Nickelodeon? If you have access to Nickelodeon, you also have access to Comedy Central, which has the notorious show, South Park. It's where I first learned the existence of transvestites. I was 12 at the time.

Solution to disciplining your child: Backhand their retard brains into submission. It'll work. Dr Phil can suck it.

Dear mothers against nickleodeon, here are my thoughts, i watched this channel when i was a child and i grew up just fine. maybe, just maybe if you mothers who sit at home all day and have nothing to were to use that time rasing your children instead of letting the TV do it, you wouldnt have to worry about what is being broadcasted. not to mention you ever here of parental controls on your tv, USE THEM. why are you sooooo worried about your children running around using fart jokes, and booger jokes, when you let your 13 yr old daughters sleep with 18 yr old seniors, and think nothing of it, when your the one's who can stop them from leaving the house dressed like a hooker! not to mention you are worried of what your children pick up from these shows and use, when you probably sit around all day drinking talking ont he phone with your girlfriends cusing up a storm and talking about your scandalis tv shows you watch with sex all over them and you wonder where the kids learn to curse and act the way they do. MAYBE YOU SHOULD TRY AND ADJUST YOURSELF BEFORE TRYING TO ADJUST YOUR TV!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So basically, what these people are saying is that they want T.V. execs to play a more active role in parenting their children because they are to disengaged to do it themselves. Do it yourselves! If you don't want your sheltered kids to watch a show them tell them not to! Have them...oh I dunno...go OUTSIDE...AWAY from the electronic glow? But then, you would have to actually keep an eye on them, and the backyard is such a big scary place that a stranger from nowhere may take them! Pull your heads out people.

HARDEN THE FUCK UP. THERE ARE WORSE SHOWS THEN THE ONES ON NICK. FUCK! I hate people!

I am sick and tired of mothers or organizations in general getting mad over shows. IT IS NOT UP TO THE CHANNEL TO BE RESPONSIBLE.. IT IS THE PARENTS RESPONSIBILITY. If there is a specific show you dont want your kids watching, block it or that time frame. There will always be something that someone doesn't like. For example, when the movie Twilight hits HBO, I will filter that out of all of my channels, because it portrays all people as being total retards.

@Tiffany

I agree that in a perfect world, childrens' programming should be ad free, but at the same time, most of it isn't, and I don't know that anything will change that any time soon. Trying to shut down the company that does it isn't going to work - the parents who are concerned should write to these companies and try to maybe get them to stop advertising, but we all know that won't work. I suggest that parents mute the commercials (they're annoying and loud to listen to anyways) and talk to their kids about advertising. Growing up, I learned that if I thought I wanted something, I'd ask for it for Christmas or my birthday. And if I couldn't wait that long, I'd save up my allowance and buy it myself (it's a great way to learn the value of money, by the way). And hey, if I was teased at school because I didn't have the latest and greatest, oh well. I got over it, because my parents taught me that fads won't last, and I'm not any less cool because I didn't have the coolest new thing.

You can't shelter your kids forever, and its probably better to have them aware of and educated about advertising, than to have them totally sheltered and find out by watching some ad at a friends house that they have to have whatever they saw, because they'd never been exposed to it before.

My friends are still being slaughtered half way around the world -- our families are being slaughtered in our own back yards -- and THIS is the best you can do???

You people have WAY too much time on your hands.

The irony that a yet to be educated, young single mother is upbraiding a the Network of Jamie Lynn Spears for 'common decency' should be lost to no one visiting this site. Nor should anyone ignore that 'Mothers-Against-Nickelodeon' offers us an entertaining acronym. It's clear they really thought this through. Seriously, let's not overlook the commitment of time and resources these women have dedicated to this pointless exercise- we can't fathom the difficulty of finding a toothless cause to waste crucial minutes of life on. Between attacking a major network, abdicating her parental responsibilities to Spongebob and MAJORING IN ADVERTISING AND PUBLIC RELATIONS AT CHAPMAN COLLEGE, where does Ms. Maluenda find the time?

This is completely retarded. Mothers Against Nickelodeon? Seriously? I grew up watching Nickelodeon. When I was a child it was all I watched. Did I turn out to be a complete retard because of it? You tell me. I am now attending the University of Ottawa and my degree is an Honours Bachelor of Mathematics. After University I plan on continuing my education by obtaining a Masters degree in Business.

I think this group was formed solely for the purpose of giving older women something to make them feel good about. Why not try this- leave this station alone ffs and focus your efforts into something that will actually HELP PEOPLE!

I am pretty appalled at the aggressive nature of some of these responses.

People claim, "I watched Nickelodeon as a kid & I turned out perfectly fine!" If by perfectly fine, you consider a lack of respect for another human being for stating her opinion, then, yes, confused souls, you are just dandy. You don't have to agree with the M.A.N., but before you start your incessant name calling, do some research of your own. It takes a lot of work to start up an organization. These ladies would not waste their valuable time with something so microscopically unaligned with their own taste.

As a kid, I absolutely loved Nickelodeon; however, my mother would let my brother & I watch only two shows: Doug & Hey Arnold!

My brother & I fought & protested for the majority of our childhood. My mom gave us her reasons behind her actions, reasons such as Rugrats made parents look dumb & incompetent while the babies were brats & yet heros of the day. All the negative aspects are disguised with a brilliantly disguised blanket of entertaining storylines & hard to forget characters.

Back then, of course I didn't see this. I thought my mom was overreacting. I refused to believe it for the longest time. These were great shows to me, but my mom knew better. Children are blindsided by the amusement these shows bring, which allows for the fan base to increase & remain strong, even years after the shows have been canceled.

As I stated earlier, you don't have to agree with what these ladies are doing. & you know, you can even state your opposition. Just be more considerate & mindful of the way you choose your words. When you come off as a huge asshole, you lose your credibility & inadvertently prove a point you wouldn't wish to prove.

Nick Jr makes "Dora the Explorer", Diego etc., very nice shows for young kids that teach them things and make them interact with the show (e.g. has pauses asking them what they liked most, asking them to count or sing along etc.). My little girl just loves those and I love them too.

Hi everyone in OC
I'm in the Uk and I can't help feeling Nick is feeling the full force of parents frustration.
Surely this isn't all Nick's fault?!
I think there needs to be balance int he debate.
Surely the people most to blame for commercials are the manufacturers who own the brands. They're the ones who are acting unethically; aren't they?
I'm watching this very closely from the UK as winds of change from OC often make their way to us and the EU.

Oh, yeah, I bet every girl who watches it thinks, "I better go find a man friend that's about 30 and wear skimpy dresses when i'm with him!" Seriously!! The problem is not Stephanie and Sportacus, it's that the little kids might try to do the stunts from the show. It may just be jumping off the arm of the couch, but that could be dangerous. My brother did that, hit his head on the tv, and got really hurt. And do you really think, like, a 4 year old would think, hey I should become friends with the child molestor on the next block, be alone with him a lot, and wear skimpy dresses? Gosh...

This is dumb. About the only thing I am against Nickelodeon for is for the decline in entertainment. And some other things...like the giving away of the studio in Orlando and the removal of the time capsule they buried there. Among some other things...Also these mothers are using images that are photoshopped. I don't know much about the newer shows on Nickelodeon, including "Lazy Town". But that first picture made me want to try and find that segment only to flip it back over to the picture on here...obviously photoshopped. Who's back is she laying on? The "creepy" guy that is usually with her. But then who is that near her privates? The same guy! What the hell...Nickelodeon didn't use to be as bad. It sounds weird for anyone who wasn't there or didn't watch Nickelodeon during the late 80's and the early 90's...but it was an important part of my childhood. I've signed petitions. I'm even going to school to become a broadcaster/producer in hopes of restoring the goodness of the former Nickelodeon.

I spent the better part of new years day dancing and playing with my friend's kids. I'm 45. We all had a terrific time.

I'm getting sick of this paranoia. I'm getting sick of the inference that because I am male then I am a sexual threat. I'd find it tiresome if it wasn't so fucking insulting.

On the other hand I do support one of this group's points - especially the angle of insidious marketing on young kids - however I do think it's the parent's responsibility to manage what input reaches their kids brains. TV is not a substitute for human companionship and should not be relied upon as a baby-sitter.

Nickoloden is fine.. Infact nickoloden sucks now. I miss all the old cartoons like Ren Stempy etc... The problem here is the idiot parents who need to learn how to tell there kids NO! and well... be a parent.. Im 24 years old and I told my parents who are in there 60's and they think this is Bull#$%^.."MAN" is a waste of time space and energy... Why dont you take up something that really matters in this world... God knows there plenty.

"Something else I'm getting tired of in this country is all this stupid talk I have to listen to about children. That's all you hear about anymore, children: "Help the children, save the children, protect the children." You know what I say? Fuck the children!

They're getting entirely too much attention. And I know what some of you are
thinking: " Jesus, he's not going to attack children, is he?" Yes he is!
He's going to attack children. And remember, this is Mr. Conductor talking;
I know what I'm talking about.

And I also know that all you boring single dads and working moms, who think
you're such fucking heros, aren't gonna like this, but somebody's gotta tell
you for your own good: your children are overrated and overvalued, and
you've turned them into little cult objects. You have a child fetish, and
it's not healthy. And don't give me all that weak shit, "Well, I love my
children." Fuck you! Everybody loves their children; it doesn't make you
special. John Wayne Gacy loved his children. Yes, he did. That's not
what I'm talking about. What I'm talking about is this constant, mindless
yammering in the media, this neurotic fixation that suggests that somehow
everything--everything--has to revolve around the lives of children. It's
completely out of balance."

-George Carlin

Hey Janelle IT'S REN AND STEMPY!!!! its not supposed to have "not one smidgeon of pro-social value" its supposed to make you laugh... jesus get a grip. and Rachel people are responding like this because they cant believe how fucking stupid you people are... waaah!! are you appalled??? good!! thats the real world get used to it.. This just sounds like some dumb marketing ploy for them to make some money off this.. and everyone else gets screwed for what??? cause little johhny wants a batman lunchbox instead of a brown bag??
Man you people really have no idea.... I agree its not the tv.. Its the lazy parents.. Todays Generation's "new" parents are much lazier and selfish then the parents who were born in the 40's and 50's MY mom didnt have anything really.. all she cared about was what we had not what "car" or "clothes" or "shoes" she had..

magaria