"Youth-Our Most Valuable Asset"
Vancouver's Mayor Prayer Breakfast
September 23, 2003

     I was eager to accept invite speak when learned of the theme Mayor Pollard gave the breakfast “Youth Our Most Valuable Asset”.  Helping Kids is a passion of mine, major theme of office “helping kids to grow up healthy in safe communities with opportunity”

I would like to share some thoughts on them “PAUSE” When I was born in 1950 there were no cell phones.  Parts of America just beginning to receive self-dial telephones a home $8,450, a car $1,500 - $1,800, a loaf of bread .14, a gallon of milk .84 and gallon gas .18.  Of course minimum wage was only .75 per hour.  The yearly average income was a whopping $3,216.  Clearly, a lot of things have changed in the world and for young people.

There was a period of rapid and dramatic change for young America in 50’s and 60’s which led to many of the challenges that they must deal with today. The major difference between then and today for kids.  It is difficult to say exactly what was like in the 1950's.  We know cigarettes weren’t considered to be bad.  The army included them with our GI’s C-rations.  Like cigarettes alcohol is shown in movies as social norm at home /office and certainly over lunch which was the genesis for the three-martini lunch.

For kids no good statistics on alcohol and tobacco use of the 50’s however, if believe a fact known today that when perception of harm is low use is higher we probably had considerable use.  Although since fear of Dad and belt was also a fact of life that probably controlled use somewhat along with a different moral standard and respect, or fear, of discipline

Can be pretty sure much less use was of drugs clearly know when all began to change.  It was the Timothy Leary “drugs are good for you will open your mind” era of 60’s where we find a big difference is in concerns students, teachers, administrators had in schools.  Cheating on a test, spit wads and chewing gum were high on the 50’s list.  Today concerned with violence, guns, drugs, AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases, teen pregnancy, teen suicide and bullying.  Much of things concerned about are caused or contributed to by drugs and alcohol.  Before we start talking about ways kids and grandkids manipulated by marketing let me share things you may not know about them.

Advertisers spend more than $230 billion a year, $2,190 per household, (adv/giant McCann-Erickson) much of advertising designed target kids Recent Time Magazine article on the marketing firms just to determine what kids want/How to influence them and for good reason a study of 200,000 teenagers found that teens spend $4,500 per year.  According kids marketing expert James McNeal, children 12 and under influenced more than $500 billion of their parents, your, purchases in 2000.

How do they do it?  By nagging us. It’s called "The nag factor", Just how many times will a kid ask for a product they have seen advertised before their parents finally give in?  Answer: Nine times I wonder how many times grandkids have to ask their grandparents for something? •Linda and me it’s one or less!  Which reminds me of another question.  Why do kids and their grandparents get along so well?  Answer: It is because they have a common enemy.

Music CD’s, iPods and MP3’s to download music are products parents sure to be nagged to buy kids are into music today just as in the fifties following the launch of rock and roll with “Rock Around the Clock” by Bill Haley and the Comets.  Music always had a tremendous impact on society and generated endless debates

It was source for espousing political opinions particularly in tumultuous 60’s with the Viet Nam War and Civil Rights today the music can get pretty suggestive and violent. I can’t think of any from 50’s, 60’s, or 70’s quite as violent as today’s.  However if you listen carefully to some of our music you find weren’t angels back then when it came to suggestiveness, “Afternoon Delight”, Let’s Spend the Night Together” even the humorous song “Spiders and Snakes” by Jim Stafford if you listen carefully

Musicians seem to have most influence on young people with clothes, styles kids particularly vulnerable to marketing when it comes to clothes, shoes and CD’s.  They feel have to have them because friends do Basically, marketers playing on kids self esteem the age group where the pressure is the strongest to fit in particularly with clothes is the 12-13 year olds

OK let’s get a little more serious.  WA has number of resources keep track of behavioral trends of our young people. It helps direct resources better, limited as they are.  We know for instance alcohol is #1 drug of choice for WA’s youth as a matter of fact on the average young people begin drinking at 13 that is the average, some start younger.  Young people will always believe that adults just preaching to them when we tell them not to drink.  However, there are incredibly important reasons to do everything we can to keep kids from drinking at least until legal age According to National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism those begin drinking by age 15 are four times as likely to become alcohol dependent than those who wait until age 21.

Ironically, 6th graders who drink, ˝ get alcohol at home w/parents knowledge. Really not good idea.  Alcohol is a factor in 4 leading causes of death between the ages 10 and 24: motor vehicle crashes, unintentional injuries, homicide and suicide.  Although alcohol is the primary drug of choice for teens, more kids have been treated since the mid 90’s for their addiction to “marijuana” in our states publicly funded treatment facilities.

The well-funded legalization movement loves to try and convince the world pot harmless/non addictive. Tell that to our kids in treatment

A VP of a huge company was once quoted as saying, “This young adult market, the 14-24 age group represents tomorrow’s business. As this 14-24 age group matures, they will account for a key share of the total volume for at least the next 25yrs.”  He was talking about cigarettes C.A. Tucker, VP of marketing at RJ Reynolds Tobacco in 1974.  They followed up with cartoon characters like Joe Camel teen smoking of Camel cigarettes went from 3% to 30% in just 18 months.

Tobacco companies maintain they have seen the light no longer targeting kids concert attendees, where tobacco samples are given away, would challenge that contention.  Also, a new study has found that tobacco use is more prevalent in teen targeted PG-13 movies than in R-rated movies comprehensive study by Dartmouth Medical School found smoking in movies promoted smoking among kids

Do not believe for a minute tobacco industry takes seriously commitment to not market to kids.  Just as creative and dishonest as prior to tobacco settlement and finding news ways to reach our kids. The tobacco industry name for our kids is the replacement pool Replace 435,000 customers they kill in America

All of these folks after bodies and souls of kids, the tobacco, alcohol and drug pushers know that if our kids do not start using their products before get through their teens they likely never will.  So, they have to get them early or they won’t get them at all.

An issue kids had to deal with since forever is bullying and teasing. And for kids 8 to 15 they say it is a bigger concern than discrimination, AIDS, pressure to have sex, pressure to use drugs, pressure to use alcohol

Each day 160,000 children in US miss school due to bullying.  Bullying occurs once every seven minutes on school playgrounds by age 24, 60% of identified childhood bullies convicted of a crime drugs and alcohol found to be common amongst those doing the bullying

The issue of bullying came to light following the horrendous shootings in schools most infamous the Columbine shooting 12 students, 1 teacher killed, 23 others wounded.  We had ours in Moses Lake.

SFY, has made the issue of bullying a priority we’ve developed fun multi media assembly for elementary/middle schools very popular.  We are eager to come to your elementary schools.

Everything is not gloom and doom with our kids, in reality they incredible with big hearts.  I could spend hours telling of wonderful initiatives there’s good news relative to kids drugs and alcohol.  Alcohol, tobacco and drug use by WA youth decreased from 2000 to 2002 more students perceive drugs as harmful.

One exception 12th graders and marijuana.  Perception of harm goes down, use goes up It is because of all of the efforts to minimize or glorify the use of marijuana.

Recently in US magazine Kate Hudson’s husband was wearing a t-shirt playing off of the USA Today Newspaper logo. It said instead Use Today with a picture of pot. This is becoming all too common with the mass misinformation being vigorously disseminated by the legalization movement. So, know a little bit more about kids/grandkids let’s see how it is happening.  And by the way don’t believe the alcohol and tobacco industries don’t know facts.  Of course they know!  They hire the best market research companies in the world

Some of mediums for marketing to kids is what I’d like to talk to you about next. It is what I call “Our kids and ATM’s”, ATM’s is not the money machines, however they are definitely money machines.  ATM’s are advertising, technology, and movies, music and marketing.

Television in the fifties took off like a rocket and a whole new medium for marketing emerged.  In January of 1950, 4 million TV sets in the U.S. by 1952 that had risen to 21 million.  We think of cable as relatively new First developed in 1948 to bring TV to areas unable to receive conventional broadcast signals.  In fact by 1963 cable was in a million homes.

1948 same year cable was first developed there was another first.  The Howdy Doody Doll was introduced on TV Marketers realized children could be adv. Targets!

How old are children when they first recognize brand name merchandise?  Answer: 4 years old.  One study found 1 out 5, 3 year olds already make specific brand name requests.  TV was phenomenal marketing breakthrough and now electronic age handing the marketers another incredible tool to reach consumers

It took radio 38 years after introduction to attract 50 million listeners. Television took 13 years, 50 million viewers.  It only took the Internet 4 years to attract 50 million users.

This amazing technology brought new, exciting opportunities for communication and research.  It also created new challenges for our kids Now they still spend more time on the telephone, video games and, believe it or not, reading, than they do on the internet, but it is substantial at 46 minutes online each day.  46 minutes a lot can go on.  You need to know what they’re doing on line with the barrage of unsolicited garbage and mass advertising. Most parents do not realize that 70% to 90% of teens online say they have been exposed to pornography sites accidentally

All know we’re barraged w/unsolicited marketing here’s possible reason you get much more than should if sharing a computer w/your kids.  When kids visit a web site 39% of 13 to 17 year olds say they’ve given info on themselves and parents they are often asked about their habits and interests.  As well as those of their parents.   Including allowance - names of their parents’ favorite stores how their parents spend their weekends.  You might want to talk to your kids about privacy.

Technology quickly got arms around youth market with a potential market of 35 million teens the wireless carriers are doing everything in their power to attract teens.  Last year AT&T Wireless sponsored concerts at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Verizon Wireless sponsored a nationwide amateur basketball contest, Cingular Wireless advertising found in college bookstores, newspapers and plastered on more 1,000 high school billboards.

There is a term used for this type of marketing that virtually starts from birth and exposes today’s children to TV commercials, banner ads, billboards, logos and product placements all of their lives.  It is called “Cradle to Grave” marketing.

There are a lot of pressures on our kids to get involved in negative behavior, but there is good news to be found in “The State of Our Nation’s Youth” survey of 1,055 HS students age 14 –18.

When asked how they would like to spend more time the, the most common answer was: not relaxing with their friends, not playing sports not hanging out at the mall?  It was being with their family.  I find that to be great news. As one student surveyed said, “Hanging out with your family, that’s not a bad thing anymore.”

Teens also put family members atop their list of role models, ahead of entertainers/athletes and more than nine in ten said that they have at least one family member to confide in.  That’s some good news particularly when research shows family involvement and having a mentor is extremely helpful to kids living positive lives.

So, how marketers getting to our kids?  Some like cell phone folks right out front about desire to sell to them.  I’m not concerned about cell phones. Others I’m very concerned with those who hope to addict the kids pretend they don’t market to them.  The research says they are lying

I mentioned earlier you find more cigarette smoking in “PG13” movies than in “R”.  Research says it has an impact on youth smoking The drug legalization movement is barraging the media with misinformation and getting entertainers to spew their “pots harmless” rhetoric and they are distributing propaganda at colleges, universities, concerts and other venues particularly popular with young people .  The alcohol industry says its not marketing to kids, that the appeal of their products to youth is purely unintentional The industry claims to follow a voluntary code of conduct regarding its advertising.

The Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth study at Georgetown University shows both of those statements to be bogus and since alcohol is the #1 drug of choice for kids

Let’s take a closer look at these voluntary rules of conduct, as set forth by the Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S. (otherwise known as DISCUS) and the Beer Institute, which are both associations of alcohol producers.

Young people 12-20 are continuously seeing considerably more TV and magazine ads and hearing more radio ads for beer and distilled liquor than legal age adults.

Despite the risk of unintended and unprotected sex, academic failure, higher accident rate & even death alcohol is presented to children every day as part of being cool.

Ads for alcohol are everywhere kids turn, depicting beautiful people having a grand time and living risky lifestyles without any consequences. The rules go as follows: “Distilled spirits advertising and marketing materials should not depict a child or portray objects, images, or cartoon figures that are popular predominantly with children.” This is a alcohol sucker

“No distilled spirits advertising or marketing materials should contain advertising copy or an illustration unless it is dignified, modest, and in good taste.”

“No distilled spirits advertising or marketing materials should claim or depict sexual prowess as a result of beverage alcohol consumption.” And who better to illustrate this principle in their ads than Playboy’s Hugh Heffner?

”Distilled spirits advertising and marketing materials should not contain the name of or depict Santa Claus or any religious figure.” The ad on the left reads, “Yes, God is a man.”

And according to the Beer Institute’s voluntary guidelines, “Beer advertising and marketing materials should not employ any symbol, language, music, gesture, or cartoon character that is intended to appeal primarily to persons below the legal purchase age.” “Beer advertising and marketing materials should not be placed in magazines, newspapers, television programs, radio programs, or other media where most of the audience is reasonably expected to be below the legal purchase age.”

25 alcohol brands placed all of their magazine advertising in youth-oriented publications.

And with ads for malternatives, that have been flooding the market recently, kids again saw on average 60 percent more magazine ads than adults.

Although youth saw more of these ads than adults we know the beer and liquor companies have a choice in the matter, because We found that teens saw “58 percent” fewer wine magazine ads, meaning that kids don’t have to be exposed more than adults to magazine ads for beer and liquor. Kids are not seen as potential wine consumers

The Beer Institute and DISCUS guidelines state that members will not advertise on programs where young people are the majority, or over 50%, of the viewing audience.

The problem with the industry’s voluntary guidelines is that they prohibit alcohol ads on only about 1% of all network and cable programs.

Alcohol ads appeared in 2001 on 13 out of the 15 television shows with the largest teen audiences,

Youth saw more TV commercials for beer than for jeans, chewing gum, fruit juice, skin care products, cookies, crackers or potato chips.

The story with radio ads for alcohol is much the same because Most radio alcohol ads were placed on stations with “youth” formats with music including hip-hop, rap, alternative, punk and others.

The industry is quick to say that it’s the only industry that buys ads to discourage the use of its products. It spent over $23 million on responsibility ads on TV in 2001, and over $800 million on ads promoting its products. Here’s an example of an industry sponsored responsibility ad. Notice the people in the ad.(hit enter following the ad)

In fact, youth were 170 times more likely to see an ad promoting alcohol than an industry ad discouraging drunk driving,

And 93 times more likely to see an ad promoting alcohol than an industry ad discouraging underage drinking.

Incredibly, adults were twice as likely as kids to see the industry’s ads telling them to wait until they’re 21 to drink.

One of the reasons kids may think drinking is cool is because alcohol companies spend $1.5 billion dollars a year telling us it’s cool, and another $3 billion a year sponsoring rock concerts, community festivals and sporting events, many of which draw youth audiences.

So, it is crystal clear that the alcohol industry, the tobacco companies and the folks pushing drugs are all after the hearts and minds bodies and souls of our kids.

And that they use all of the means available from television to the Internet, rock concerts to the movies to reach them.

CAMY makes the point “It won’t be experts in some far away place who will keep alcohol out of the hands of kids, it will be the person sitting in your chair”. I agree.  Join them or start your own effort in the community, school or church to educate parents and help protect our kids.

At the very least be aware of what is happening we have handouts will give you some tips: How to deal with "the nag factor", family communication tips and establishing TV guidelines also, communities look at risk and protective factors, the good and bad in your neighborhoods.  Use them as guide to fill the dangerous gaps in your community.  Some can be found in the handouts as well

There is one fact has not change since 1950.  The key to the success of a child is for you to be actively and meaningfully involved in their lives Research even shows the more times you sit and have dinner together the less chance of your child being involved in negative behavior also more involved in church.

Keep them involved in something positive, Sports, music, woodworking, writing, (on screen) Get them involved in an organization and what better than their church.  Kids with a lot of negative factors in their lives followed for years .  The ones successful in face of diversity were analyzed to determine what common denominators were there that could explain their success

They are as follows: •Care and support •High expectations •The opportunity to contribute meaningfully •Once again get them involved in something positive and their church is a proven avenue to success.

I am going to share with you some recent research information that helps to emphasize the importance of the mayor’s prayer breakfast and the need to keep religion alive and working in your community.

It helps to emphasize that this prayer breakfast has a purpose. To remind us of the important role religion plays and can play in the positive future of not only our lives, but, the lives of our kids and grandkids.

An overwhelming majority of American youth believe religion is an important part of life. Eighty-six percent of Americans aged 11 to 18 believe that religion is an important part of their lives, according to a national survey of 2,004 randomly selected households done in 2000 by the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Work.

Researchers say that new-millennium American youth are very much like previous generations, despite some people’s views that today’s youth are less religious than previous generations. Sixty-seven percent of youth interviewed in the Penn survey said they attended a place of worship in the past month, and 42 percent said they belong to social programs or social groups within their congregations.

The following study emphasizes the benefits to society of not only kid’s attitudes toward religion, but also yours.

Sociologists with the National Study of Youth and Religion, based at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, released the results of a study in June of 2003 in the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion.

The article suggests that parental religiosity – including the frequency of religious service attendance, the importance of religion in parents’ lives and conservative Protestant affiliation – appears to protect against serious delinquency.

This finding revises previous thinking that parental religiosity only protects against minor delinquency, such as drinking or smoking. The study examines nine indicators that comprise serious delinquency. Such as, deliberately damaging property, stealing, using or threatening to use a weapon against someone, taking part in a group fight and selling marijuana or other drugs.

With all of the selfish efforts to steal the hearts and minds, bodies and souls of our kids we need to use every tool available to us to help our kids succeed against enormous odds.  Religion is not only one of those tools it is a proven extremely effective one.

A lot of work has been done over the years to help us help our kids and our grandkids.  We don’t have to give them up to those who would use them just for the profit in it.  They are more valuable than that so take advantage of this great research and help a child. Any child. They are our most valuable asset.

Thank you Mayor Pollard.  For the opportunity to share my thoughts and lobby for my passion.  It is always a pleasure to work with someone who cares so much about their community and thanks to all of you for caring enough to be here this morning.