Kids in ads: Why are they so awful?

Posted: Monday, July 02, 2007 11:00 AM by Gael Fashingbauer Cooper
Filed Under: TV commercials

Commercials are big fans of easy stereotypes, since they usually have less than a minute to get their point across. So moms are inevitably in the kitchen, dads all love sports, every family lives in the suburbs, and kids are almost always horrible smart-mouths. Things my mom would have said to me had I been a TV commercial kid would have included: "Don't be fresh!," "Knock it off, smart alec!" and "Go to your room!" But in commercials, kids' brattiness apparently is considered cute.

We've already mentioned the "IDK, my BFF Jill" ad. Some of you love it, others think that Jill needs to take a chill pill and Mom needs to stop paying for her text-messaging addiction.

I'm also bugged by the annoying V8 ad where the mom is cooing in front of her baby in a stroller. "Mommy's eating a French fry! Yes she is!" she dribbles. Then the baby decks her. Hmm, maybe this is an ad where I hate the mom more than I do the child.

Another ad that makes me want to change the channel every single time (just like those horrible car accident ads) is the one for some cigarette-quitting product. The mom is in the car and her baby in the back is screaming, allowing the mom to deliver a monologue about how awful her life is and how only the cigarette patch stands between her and jumping off a cliff.

Also annoying (and an oldie, apparently, as we've discussed it in past contests) is the Pediasure commercial with the mom and bratty little girl shopping. As the mom muses about things to buy, the little girl pipes up with "I don't like chicken! I don't like broccoli! I don't think I like waffles!" It would take a mom with the patience of a saint not to turn right around and march home and feed that kid a chicken-broccoli waffle.

I'm not sure if it's still running, but there was an ad for Sharpie markers where the mom was carrying a toddler, and every time she went to put him down, the second his feet touched the floor he would start to scream. Apparently it was trying to hype that you could use a Sharpie with one hand while carrying your spoiled kid around with the other.

Update: Readers mentioned an ad I'd blocked out of my mind, but that surely belongs here. It's the paper-towel ad where the kid sprays his mom with orange soda and she retaliates by spraying him with water from the sink sprayer. Unsure who to dislike more in this one -- the kid, who at least seems to be shocked by what he's done, or the mom, who has no excuse. (Watch it here.)

I don't hate kids -- I like 'em fine. I think most of us do. But likeable kids in commercials are few and far between. At least Quizno's has retired that man-voiced Baby Bob, at least for now.

Share your thoughts on kids in commercials, whether bratty or beautiful, in the comments.

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Comments

I'm with you about the commercials. As a mother of four boys (17, 16, 13, and 6), if any of my boys acted the way the kids on these commercials behave, they would not be able to sit down. Perhaps the commercials are just a reflection of what is starting to happen in the real world. Parents are not parenting, kids are in control, and this is what advertisers believe is the truth. Not in my house.

Paige Sutcliff, Statesboro, GA (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:00 PM)

I hate the papertowel commercial with the little kid who sprays orange pop all over his mom & the kitchen. Then the mom laughs and sprays him with the sink sprayer. I don't think most moms (definitly my mom included) would be laughing at sticky soda sprayed all over the place.

Erin Buffalo NY (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:08 PM)

I think they're all bad. I'm a wife & mother & the ones I hate the most are the ones where the father is always the stupid buffoon & the wife & kids are so much smarter. Could you see if it were the other way around & the man was the one (for a change) that had all the smart ass answers. I'm all for women's rights & kids should just keep quiet, but fair is fair & men have been getting the shaft on commercials since the "I think I'll keep her commercial" back in the early 70's. I think the wealth of stupidity should be shared by everyone because there's plenty to go around.

Mary Bunce (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:09 PM)

The commercial for Volvo with the little girl that talks the whole way, and the dad (Benicio del Toro?) just keeps saying uh huh. That is MY daughter in the car everyday. Just going on... and on... and on!!!!!!!!!! Laugh everytime I see it!

Emily Atlanta, GA (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:11 PM)

Thank goodness someone other than me hates bratty commercials. Had I talked to my mother (or father) in the manner some of the commercials show, I'd have had a red bottom. Yes, my parents spanked, and for that I am eternally grateful. If you got spanked for misbehaving, I can guarantee you'd never do it again. That's the trouble today, and God help us, it shows. I'm not religious, but even the bible tells us if you spare the rod you spoil the child, and it's obvious there are a hell of a lot of parents sparing the rod.

MARY SHAW, COLORADO SPRINGS CO (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:12 PM)

People are stupid, and somewhere along the line people forgot how to raise kids. Just the other day I found myself yelling at my Uncle's kids because they were completely out of control and he was doing nothing to fix the problem. I was a better disciplinarian than he was and I don't even have kids of my own. As long as you do not spoil and coddle your kids, and you keep them from blowing themselves up with dynamite, you have been a very good parent in my book. They may go to Yale, but if they are spoiled and shallow people, you have failed as a parent.

Devon, Warrenton VA (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:14 PM)

Cute kids are great - bratty ones are annoying!! OMG I cant stand watching bratty kids on tv. First of all it's basically telling all of America that its ok for them to raise bratty kids and that its the norm. No, its not. The txt messaging commercial is hilarious but most bratty kid commercials are just plain obnoxious. If advertisers insist on putting brats in their commercials then they should at least have strong disciplined parents to balance it out. Like the pediasure ad - I so wanted to sit that girl down at a table and feed her everything she didnt like too and the slap her stupid mother! (dont even get me started on my thoughts about giving kids nutritional drinks when they're not eating properly to begin with. that's lazy parenting!!).

Jena Fiori, Seattle Wa (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:14 PM)

The one for Progressive auto insurance where the mom is so happy that they came to house for the appraisal because she has 4 boys who are screaming bloody murder and jumping on furniture in the background. These ads make me want birth control, not car insurance!

Stephanie (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:16 PM)

You forgot the kid in the paper towel ad! The one where the kid shakes up the 2 liter of soda and squirts it at Mom. Mom's response tickles me pink, she grabs the sprayer from the sink and gets him back! Now I have to admit that I'd been tempted to do that a time or two, but if memory serves I restrained myself. The kid ends up seeming less bratty than most, and Mom a better sport than we're generally portrayed.

Claudia Farmington NM (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:17 PM)

ahhh It really tis a new world which we live.

Mark White Galloway,Ohio (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:18 PM)

amen! I particularly don't like the one with the 2 boys sitting in the car playing cards and are not interested in the tree house their dad built for them "cause they'd rather be in the car.

Grace luhrs Boca Raton, Fl (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:20 PM)

Ads I hate. Those STUPID Dow Chemical ones that talk about "the human element." They blather on and on trying to sound intelligent. And what they hell are they selling/promoting? Buying more chemicals....arrgh..it's just so pretentious.

Jane, Glendale, AZ (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:23 PM)

Oh wow! I totally agree with that PediaSure commericial. "I don't think I like waffles" I always want to deck that kid! I keep thinking, smack her mouth and say, "I don't think I like your tone!"

Mandy, Beebe, AR (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:26 PM)

Oh, and I miss the Quizno's sponge monkeys from like 2003!! They were fun! Bring them back, Quizno's!
"They got a pepper bar!"
http://youtube.com/watch?v=aZrks-BPeLQ
http://youtube.com/watch?v=cG042nkReBA

Jane, Glendale, AZ (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:26 PM)

I'd much rather see the bratty kid commercials than the disgusting cavemen ads. As the "valley girls" used to say "gag me with a spoon."

virginia waldrop, elizabethtown, nc (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:28 PM)

In our environment today, there is a definate trend towards belittling the authority of parents, making sure children are not denied anything, especially making fun of the Father....the mean old dad of yesteryear is being replaced by children who will put their parents in their place, so their self-esteem will not be damaged...What is being damaged is our society with the rising tide of brats on every corner, and parents who are afraid to discipline because there is a social-worker on every corner who will threaten to remove the children if those children show any sign of unhappiness....whew...what a mess...!

Don Watson, Cumming, GA (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:28 PM)

Not only are kids typically bratty in commercials, but they are almost ALWAYS wise way beyond their years. I HATE that. Kids are not smart; however they can be quite annoying!

Kelly, Annapolis MD (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:28 PM)

I like to eat kids with some broccoli and chicken. No waffles, though.

razib, Jonestown, MN (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:35 PM)

Totally agree, especially re the V8 commercial with the french fry eating mother. How bad is that? Maybe we'll see that child in 5 years @ 100 pounds eating those fries himself.

Bette, Woodrige IL (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:38 PM)

The best all time bratty kid commercial is the "reverse" argument between a mom and her daughter. This was an AT&T "Go Phone" commercial and the mother and daughter are having a heated argument, but comically the opposite of a real argument. "Why is it always what I want", shouts the daughter. The mom yells back "because you insist on acting like an adult". The commercial ends with the bratty kid screaming at her mom, "You never hate me and you never will". This commercial is priceless.

Kyle, Rosemount, MN (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:40 PM)

I agree that media tends to portray kids in a cute light when in fact they're being snotty brats. While I don't think we should go back to the days of mistreating children, I don't think they should be led to believe that they have leeway in how they are raised. I believe parents need to be more assertive and teach the kids to obey instead of argue.

Joe, philly (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:41 PM)

I agree!! We are sending a horrible message to parents and children! And how with the kid who is sitting alone at a table eating chicken, wiping his hands on napkins that he then throws in a pile on the floor?

SA, Olrando, Fl (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:41 PM)

What about the one with the tired and sweaty dad that opens up the door of the mini-van and announces to his son and kid's friend that the tree house is finished? The spoiled brats keep watching their DVD and playing "go fish" - completely dissing the dad's efforts. Every time I see that ad I want to grab that little beggar and haul his spoiled fanny OUT of the vehicle! I don't remember what the make of the mini is...so is the ad really effective?

Lee Stone (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:41 PM)

There is a cell phone commercial where the Dad is announcing to the kids that because of their new phone plan, they can send text messages all they want. I'm not sure who bugs me more, the kids who say "but we do that all ready", or the Dad's smart comment of "Hola" to his wife dressed as a taco as she heads out the door to her second job.

Pat, Helendale, CA (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:41 PM)

Who cares? Find something meaningful to write about.

John Doe, Seattle Washington (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:41 PM)

We see these brats being treated as special or cute in commercials, and then we have the audacity to ask, "Why won't my own kids behave?"

I see kids literally cursing out their parents in the super-market and the parents not doing a thing about it. The commercials may not be to blame, but they're not helping, either.

Bryan Weber, San Angelo TX (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:43 PM)

I find it annoying when the ad has kids eating and not holding the fork or spoon correctly. Also when the kids and sometimes adults say things obviously grammatically wrong especially, "Me and Joe etc..." Surely these writers know better.. but maybe not.

Mildred Cox (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:47 PM)

I don't even know what is being sold, however: A bratty, freckle-faced girl is sticking her hand in the punchbowl, the birthday boy hits a pinada and celery falls out. The kids are excited, and somehow the bratty freckled girl gets front and center of the camera with a celery stick out of both sides of her mouth.

I still want to slap that girl.

Jan Couch Hanford CA (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:50 PM)

Well for starters, I heard of an amazing thing the other called a 'remote'.
Apparently this device allows one to change channels to something more suitable to the tastes of the viewer. Cool. Then, have you ever read MSNBC? Pretty much all the stories are about awful Republicans, awful parents, awful business people, awful sports stars, just awful adults in general, which would account for the apparent plethora of awful kids in TV ads. People must like all that awful stuff thrown at them, otherwise they would use the mouse and the remote more effectively.

Kerry Stevens (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:51 PM)

I actually laughed a lot at the Sharpie commercial, because as the mother of several children...I remember days like that. It had nothing to do with the child being spoiled, and everything to do with it being an everything-is-wrong-and-bad-day. I could laugh, watching the commercial. I didn't laugh on those bad days.

I'll agree, however, that the BFF commercial was pretty annoying. 10 cents a message really adds up. The kid is....12? 10? And she needs to do all this messaging....why?

Angela B, Seattle, WA (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:56 PM)

Commercials, as you mentioned, are about selling a product. Unless the product requires well behaved children (Sylvan Learning Centers for instance) there is no incentive to display those qualities. If the product sells better with potty mouthed brats in it -- that's what the advertiser will try to create.

Wiley Dunn (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 3:59 PM)

I love the ad with the "IDK,my BFF Jill". I think the young girl is quite funny.

I really dislike the commercial, for a paper towel, that shows a child shaking a bottle of soda and the top flies off and the soda comes streaming out. Instead of her getting mad, the mom tells the young man that the sink sprayer makes a better weapon!

Robin Delaney, Las VegasNV (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:01 PM)

The one where the dad builds the tree house and the two little boys are playing cards in the family vehicle. The little boys ask the dad if the tree house has certain enimities that the car apparently does and since it does not, they chose to stay in the car. Beat their little butts and lock them out of the car!!!

Allyson High, Wilmington, NC (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:02 PM)

There is a local commercial where the parents are discussing what they want to do this summer. Every time they mention a family activity like going to a baseball game, the art museum, the zoo, etc. the kids yell the name of the pizza place. Last time I heard it in the car, I turned around and asked my kids what they think would happen if they did that to me, an my nine year old daughter correctly said "We would never go to that restaurant." But in the commercial, the dad laughs indulgently and says, "I guess we will be going to the pizzeria a lot, because you kids are CRAZY about pizza!" I HATE that commercial. I'm with you--kids are great, but bratty, whiny kids should not be rewarded for that kind of behavior.

Susan K, St. Louis, MO (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:04 PM)

I personally think this is the case where unfortunately, art imitates life. I am a parent of three children under 5 and I have noticed more and more bratty behavior being tolerated by wimpy parents everywhere. Who knows what came first, the commercials or the poor behavior? Either way, I'd like to see a commercial where the parent actually says no and doesn't cave to a tantrum.

Mike, Alameda, Ca (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:10 PM)

I love children too, real children. I have two of my own. They have their moments, of course, but for the most part they respect their parents and are affectionate. Bratty kids in commercials are appalling. But spoiled kids have also been a staple in TV shows for years. The Disney Channel shows are unwatchable in my view because the kids are so repellent. And in life, I regularly see parents who abdicate all authority to cater to their child’s every demand. Ick. They do nobody any favors. So advertisers, let’s see a lot more of nice children who are not being ruined by materialism and overindulgence.

Barbara McGrath, Wallingford, PA (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:11 PM)

I also turn the channel on brats. But, I find the same behavior all too often in store after store. I can barely control myself as the woman in the next aisle, blithely pays for her groceries as her toddler screams from the cart. No acknowledgment from her, but everyone else is scowling. I hope the brat keeps her up at night. Why manufacturer's would present this sort of situation to represent their product is beyond me. I turn away from the TV and the item in the store. If they have no more sense than that, I'm sure their product must be junk.

Carol Cardona (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:17 PM)

Have the gross kids in the Welch's commercials been mentioned? I can't stand them. 8 year-olds with lisps are not cute to me. Nor are snaggly teeth.

carrie (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:17 PM)

I hate the Jif Peanut Butter commercial with Joanna and her grandpa. Grandpa makes a big deal out of the sandwich he just made for her and Joanna replies (quite snotty) "Oh, Grandpa, it's just a sandwich." That would be the last time Joanna got a sandwich at my house!

Felicia L, Albany, GA (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:19 PM)

I'm so glad to know I was not imagining that TV seems to be glorifying brats. It's a reflection of today's parents who see their kids as little deities. I find both brats and parents of brats disgusting.

Andrea Hope, Wilmington, NC (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:24 PM)

"I hate the papertowel commercial with the little kid who sprays orange pop all over his mom & the kitchen. Then the mom laughs and sprays him with the sink sprayer. I don't think most moms (definitly my mom included) would be laughing at sticky soda sprayed all over the place."--Erin Buffalo NY--I dont know, in my house it would have escalted to that. Hit my dad with a sprinkle of water, he will send a pan of water in your direction.

But in general the stereotypes in commercials and on television shows in general are annoying. I was watching some show last night(can't, for the life of me, remember what it was) where the dad couldnt control the kids and had to call on the mom to help out. Now in my house there were two leaders(both my parents) to the house and if you disobeyed one, you were in trouble. Smart mouthes and talking back was rewarded with swats all the way up to spankings. Down with smart-mouthed, back-talking kids and bring back the belt/switch!!

Stephen Polfer, Fresno, California (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:25 PM)

There is, however, one commercial where the bratty kid is used to make a very funny point. It is an English commercial where the Dad and kid are in the supermarket and the kid launches into an unbelievable tantrum, screaming, kicking, throwing himself on the floor, general insanity. At the end, these simple words appear on the screen "Use condoms". The commercial is for a particular brand of condoms. It is very effective and funny.

Terry S, Barrington, NJ (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:29 PM)

MARY SHAW:
Spare the rod, spoil the child is not in the Bible. It's in an old poem by Samuel Butler. You need to spend less time beating your children and more time reading your Bible.

Kate Simons (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:36 PM)

I particularly detest that bratty kid that was in the "Carl's Jr." commercials. "Paris" something or other...

Greg, Florida (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:38 PM)

Why does almost everyone on this post want to beat children? Is it b/c you're watching too much TV and have become way too violent? There's a happy medium between smacking kids and keeping them from acting like the brats on commercials. My kids say please, thank you, may I, and sit politely in grocery carts and restaurants. And I've never laid a hand on them. Please don't make such cavalier statements and encourage parents to hit.

Erica (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:41 PM)

Every time I see one of those ads, I'm grateful for my tubal ligation. Well-behaved children are now so outside the norm that they are remarkable, and I think those ads just reflect today's "parents" (perhaps it would be more appropriate to call them breeders, as no actual parenting seems to be taking place).

Sharon C., San Jose, CA (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:41 PM)

Re: Bratty Kids in the stores. Why don't you'all get some gumption and tell the idiot who won't control her kids to go take a hike. I have (with all the dignity I could muster) went over to previously mentioned idiot woman and stood and screamed at her and the little brat in the cart. Just as loud as the brat was screaming. Do you know how fast someone else (in the group of what I can only assume were illegal aliens, no one spoke english) came and picked said little brat up and took her out of the store. Come one people get some guts, refuse to put up with it. Either that or go get the manager and demand that he do something. If enough of us complain something will get done.

Elsie E. Connelly (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:45 PM)

I also dislike the bratty kid trend in commercials. Who are these commercials written & produced by? Who signs off on these commercials at the companies?
I am really loving the comments in here... I'm not alone!

Rod Viper, Grand Rapids, MI (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:45 PM)

Kids can be obnoxious, and sometimes it is funny - until our own kids (or their friends) start behaving the same way, and then it ceases to be so amusing. You have to admit that advertisers are hard-pressed to come up with new ideas for promoting merchandise that has been around for a long time - as well as the new services (like text messaging). Unfortunately the people writing many of these ads are the teenagers we found so obnoxious only 10 or maybe 15 years ago. If the ads are objectionable, write to the company and tell them you won't be buying their product if they can't put out less offensive ads.

Talia H., Vernon Hills, IL (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:45 PM)

I hate the KFC commercial where the parents call the kids down to dinner and the kids run out to the car. Then someone (dad?) has the nerve to say the kids will get used to eating dinner at home- a bucket from KFC!! Of course from what my high school students tell me, getting in the car at dinner time is becoming all too common these days....

JE in Tennessee (Sent Monday, July 02, 2007 4:46 PM)

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Kids in ads: Why are they so awful?

Posted: Monday, July 02, 2007 11:00 AM by Gael Fashingbauer Cooper
Filed Under: TV commercials

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Kids in ads: Why are they so awful?

Posted: Monday, July 02, 2007 11:00 AM by Gael Fashingbauer Cooper Filed Under: TV commercials

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Posted: Monday, July 02, 2007 11:00 AM by Gael Fashingbauer Cooper
Filed Under: TV commercials