The Children's Digital Media Center and the Georgetown Early Learning Project have been working together on this naturalistic longitudinal study to examine the relationship between early media exposure and preschool outcomes. Children who participated in media studies through Georgetown Early Learning Project when they were infants were recontacted at age 4.

Parents completed detailed TV viewing diaries and questionnaires when the children were infants and preschoolers. At age 4, all children were visited in their homes and viewed 6 different programs; 2 books (Bear Shadow by Frank Asch and Click-Clack Moo by Doreen Cronin & Betsy Lewin), 2 television programs (Dora the Explorer: Roberto the Robot episode (22 mins) and Sagwa: Comic Opera episode (22 mins), and 2 computer programs (Little Penguin, www.nickjr.com, and Elmo Goes to the Doctor, www.PBS.com). All children answered multiple choice questions to assess their comprehension of the story content and completed a variety of school assessment measures.

The results from this study answer the following questions: how infant media exposure influences preschool media exposure, pre-school readiness skills, and behavioral outcomes? How parent-child interaction during infancy media exposure is related to later parent-child interaction, school assessment measures, and content comprehension? How parent-child interaction varies across media platforms.

Advergame Study

As part of our childhood obesity initiative, Children’s Digital Media Center has also embarked on an experimental study intended to assess the effects of Internet food marketing on children. In particular, we are investigating ‘advergames,’ or online games which combine marketing messages with game play. Third and fourth grade students at elementary schools in the Washington DC area were asked to play a computer game with a healthy food marketing message. The game was created in our lab and is modeled after the classic PacMan video game.

In our version of PacMan, points are earned for eating healthier foods and lost for eating unhealthy foods. After playing the game, children are given a snack choice option. We intend to see if the food message appearing in the computer game influences food choice. If such games do effect short-term consumption of snacks, then advergames promoting less healthy food products may be similarly effective. Alternatively, if such games help to promote healthier eating, they can serve as vehicles to counteract less healthy marketing messages currently found online.

Food Marketing on Popular Children’s Websites

In 2006, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) concluded that food marketing was a contributor to childhood obesity in the United States. One recommendation of the IOM committee was for research on newer marketing venues, such as the Internet. To answer the IOM’s call, Children’s Digital Media Center recently undertook a cross-sectional pilot study to examine food marketing on popular children’s websites.

Ten websites were selected based on research conducted by KidSay, a market research firm, which identified favorite sites of children ages 8 to 11 during February 2005. Using a standardized coding form, these sites were examined page by page for the existence, type, and features of food marketing. Although it was not pervasive on the majority of the sites, 7 of the 10 websites contained food marketing.

The products marketed were primarily candy, cereal, quick serve restaurants, and snacks. Candystand.com, a food product site, contained a significantly greater amount of food marketing than the other popular children’s websites. Because the foods marketed to children are not consistent with a healthy diet, we recommend that professionals and the general public advocate for greater awareness and regulation of online food marketing.