parents ALLOWING children to be consumers

Today in class we were discussing how the children are consumers because they nag their parents and are constantly asking them to buy them some product or food, or asking them to take them to somewhere and do something new. But while taking a deeper look into it-thats what any child does. I know personally thats exactly what I did when I was younger, always asking my parents for something or for permission to do something however, my parents reacted differently then most do now, by telling me "no". Businesses are trying to do their job by selling their products and creating new advertisements that will help spread the word and build on the "want". While its true that for many companies children are their target audience, parents are still the ones who make the decision on what they are able to view on television and what their children get to own. 

I know its not possible to prevent advertisements for reaching children, they are everywhere! But I do think that having some sort or parental control over what a child is viewing can weed out a lot of potential investments and wants. For example the Disney Channel is constantly coming out with a new show and new products to support them. While their tv shows are directed towards children, there is not a specific age limit. Hannah Montana and the Jonas Brothers are a huge boom right now (or were previously...I'm not really in the loop with Miley and the Jobros) and to be perfectly honest they are not too appropriate for younger children to view or hear. Yet Hannah Montana products are sold everywhere, as well as the Jonas Brothers and many of their consumers consist of children who are too young to be viewing them in the first place. Being able to filter your child from certain shows or information can make a big difference on the types of products they are interested in. 

Another way parenting can swoop in and save the 20-40% purchases that are made because of children nagging is simply by telling the child "NO" and not spoiling by buying them the things they want exactly when they want it. 

In conclusion, I dont feel as though the marketing and advertising of products is the problem--but the parenting is.