Report: Junk Food Companies Using Product Placement Instead of Commercials

I loved the first Austin Powers movie--still do. Hilarious, witty, fresh. I hated the sequel--still funny, but even then in 1999 (before my great Political Revelation of Groucho Marxism), the amount of product placement was unbearable. Maybe I have to see it again to see if it was intentional or satirical, but the move turned me off to the series forever (although Mini-Me will forever remain awesome).

Product placement has always been a part of entertainment--and today, companies are relying on it more than ever, especially if they made some stupid pledge long ago not to market their crap to kiddies.

An upcoming report by Yale University's Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity tracked 35,000 product placements (!) on television in 2008, the last year which they were able to fully track them. They didn't state how many are food-related, but did determine kids see 14 television commercials for food for every product placement for grub--yet that product placement had enough power that it has contributed to childhood obesity.

Oh, Almond Joy! (Nestle or whoever makes that bar did NOT pay me to say that)