Are Disney Movies Bad for Children?

[Yumyumsuppertime]

What's bad about all this is when children watch movies or TV, and then their parents use it as babysitting instead of using it as discussion material to explain what happens in the films/shows and to use them to set boundaries in a reasonable manner.
Jesus fuck, media is not inherently bad, it's how you use the media that makes it either bad or good.

I absolutely agree with this. While I won't go out of my way to introduce my daughter to Cinderella or Snow White, I won't bar her from watching it if she wishes to do so. I'll simply ensure that my wife and I gently encourage her to not wait for a prince or a fairy godmother, and to know that she's capable of building her own life using her own talents and skills.

[Torcularis Septentrionalis]

hell yea they are

(Image)]

(Image)

Not a boner, it's his knobby knees. Already debunked.

[Blekksprutia]

As I said, Scar was the only exception.

James Earl Jones voiced Mufasa, Simba's father. Scar was voiced by this guy

Oh. That guy is extremely white.

[Swith Witherward]

We can find racial, sexual and political undertones in all media. Is Disney immune from it? No. If you don't want your kids or siblings watching Disney, ban it in your house and don't take them to the movies. Better yet, turn off the TV and teach them to read and use their imaginations.

[Geilinor]

What's bad about all this is when children watch movies or TV, and then their parents use it as babysitting instead of using it as discussion material to explain what happens in the films/shows and to use them to set boundaries in a reasonable manner.
Jesus fuck, media is not inherently bad, it's how you use the media that makes it either bad or good.

I absolutely agree with this. While I won't go out of my way to introduce my daughter to Cinderella or Snow White, I won't bar her from watching it if she wishes to do so. I'll simply ensure that my wife and I gently encourage her to not wait for a prince or a fairy godmother, and to know that she's capable of building her own life using her own talents and skills.

I agree. It is the responsibility of parents to discuss and divide reality and fiction.

[Yumyumsuppertime]

We can find racial, sexual and political undertones in all media. Is Disney immune from it? No. If you don't want your kids or siblings watching Disney, ban it in your house and don't take them to the movies. Better yet, turn off the TV and teach them to read and use their imaginations.

Or better yet, expose them to a multitude of media so that they're at least able to converse with their peers.

[Ifreann]

Everything said in the first post is true. The other issue is racial messages, even when starring animals. For example, the blackbirds in Dumbo and the hyenas in The Lion King.

And I'm not even going into subliminal messages.

Subliminal messaging has never been proved to work.

[The Rich Port]

We can find racial, sexual and political undertones in all media. Is Disney immune from it? No. If you don't want your kids or siblings watching Disney, ban it in your house and don't take them to the movies. Better yet, turn off the TV and teach them to read and use their imaginations.

Or better yet, expose them to a multitude of media so that they're at least able to converse with their peers.

And don't fucking buy ANY FUCKING TINKER BELL MOVIES OR MERCHANDISE.

[Yumyumsuppertime]

Or better yet, expose them to a multitude of media so that they're at least able to converse with their peers.

And don't fucking buy ANY FUCKING TINKER BELL MOVIES OR MERCHANDISE.

I hated the message of the first one of those. It was supposed to be "Everybody has talents, so be proud of what you can do", but it came across as "Stick with what you're told you're good at, and don't try to expand your horizons".

[Vanomia]

Disney movies are Very Bad for the Children! Watching Disney movies makes them into serial killers! Guns don't kill people, movies do!

You do have some valid points, but I think you are overreacting - I mean, do you really expect a child to watch a movie and then go all "I wanna be a passive anorectic and marry in my teens now! Also I think everyone who is ugly and/or black is EEVUL and should be destroyed! Yes, this makes complete logical sense to me!"?

I mean, really. If you want to worry about something giving people a distorted sense of reality, worry about mainstream mass media and the crap that comes out of the U.S. government.

[Brocwika]

Everything said in the first post is true. The other issue is racial messages, even when starring animals. For example, the blackbirds in Dumbo and the hyenas in The Lion King.

And I'm not even going into subliminal messages.

Subliminal messaging has never been proved to work.

Not true. Subliminal messages aren't exactly what pop culture makes them out to be.

Subliminal messages are as simple as using color, and or cues during, say political advertisements.

Now just think about how many advertisements we see per day? You might not know it, but it does have small, albeit effects, on our thinking, even our appetite.

[Individuality-ness]

Subliminal messaging has never been proved to work.

Not true. Subliminal messages aren't exactly what pop culture makes them out to be.

Subliminal messages are as simple as using color, and or cues during, say political advertisements.

Now just think about how many advertisements we see per day? You might not know it, but it does have small, albeit effects, on our thinking, even our appetite.

Colors. Red and yellow. These work up our appetite subconsciously.

[Yumyumsuppertime]

Disney movies are Very Bad for the Children! Watching Disney movies makes them into serial killers! Guns don't kill people, movies do!

You do have some valid points, but I think you are overreacting - I mean, do you really expect a child to watch a movie and then go all "I wanna be a passive anorectic and marry in my teens now! Also I think everyone who is ugly and/or black is EEVUL and should be destroyed! Yes, this makes complete logical sense to me!"?

I mean, really. If you want to worry about something giving people a distorted sense of reality, worry about mainstream mass media and the crap that comes out of the U.S. government.

Do you have any understanding of how child development works? The stories that children are exposed to inform their entire worldviews.

[The Rich Port]

Subliminal messaging has never been proved to work.

Not true. Subliminal messages aren't exactly what pop culture makes them out to be.

Subliminal messages are as simple as using color, and or cues during, say political advertisements.

Now just think about how many advertisements we see per day? You might not know it, but it does have small, albeit effects, on our thinking, even our appetite.

So... Ban color TVs?

[Brocwika]

Not true. Subliminal messages aren't exactly what pop culture makes them out to be.

Subliminal messages are as simple as using color, and or cues during, say political advertisements.

Now just think about how many advertisements we see per day? You might not know it, but it does have small, albeit effects, on our thinking, even our appetite.

Colors. Red and yellow. These work up our appetite subconsciously.

Not sure if sarcasm, or actaully agreeing with me.

[Nailed to the Perch]

Storytime!

A while back, I was hanging out with my cousin's adorable daughter, M, who was about 4 at the time. We were playing with her Disney princess dolls, and she was making up elaborate (and very cute) stories about them. At one point in the story, several of the princesses were sent to jail. Their crime? "Not being pretty."

(It should be noted, incidentally, that the supposedly "not pretty" princesses corresponded quite well to the "not eligible for membership in the KKK" princesses.)

I asked if, before they went to jail, they could have a trial, and M agreed. As their "lawyer," I argued that, first of all, they were all very pretty in their own ways, because prettiness comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes and colors, and second of all, it didn't matter if they were pretty because they were good, kind, brave people, and that was much more important than being pretty. M thought about this (making a super cute "pensive" face while she did so) and concluded that this was a good argument and that all of the princesses should be set free. "Hooray!" I said. "Hooray!" she said, too, and gave Mulan a victory hug.

I cannot fathom the mentality of the people who think that, instead of taking this opportunity to talk to her about body image in age-appropriate ways, I should have just let M imprison all the brown girls, because THINKING IS HARD, YO.

I couldn't find a mic drop smiley, so this had to do.

Heh, thanks. And Parks & Rec gifs > smilies, anyway.

Storytime!

A while back, I was hanging out with my cousin's adorable daughter, M, who was about 4 at the time. We were playing with her Disney princess dolls, and she was making up elaborate (and very cute) stories about them. At one point in the story, several of the princesses were sent to jail. Their crime? "Not being pretty."

(It should be noted, incidentally, that the supposedly "not pretty" princesses corresponded quite well to the "not eligible for membership in the KKK" princesses.)

I asked if, before they went to jail, they could have a trial, and M agreed. As their "lawyer," I argued that, first of all, they were all very pretty in their own ways, because prettiness comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes and colors, and second of all, it didn't matter if they were pretty because they were good, kind, brave people, and that was much more important than being pretty. M thought about this (making a super cute "pensive" face while she did so) and concluded that this was a good argument and that all of the princesses should be set free. "Hooray!" I said. "Hooray!" she said, too, and gave Mulan a victory hug.

I cannot fathom the mentality of the people who think that, instead of taking this opportunity to talk to her about body image in age-appropriate ways, I should have just let M imprison all the brown girls, because THINKING IS HARD, YO.

That was an astonishingly clever and constructive way to handle things. I'd have probably been a lot more direct and botched the whole thing.

Thanks, although conversations with kids are tougher to botch than you might think. I suspect a more direct approach would have worked fine, too (although admittedly I might have missed out on the super-cute "Hooray!" at the end).

[The Rich Port]

Disney movies are Very Bad for the Children! Watching Disney movies makes them into serial killers! Guns don't kill people, movies do!

You do have some valid points, but I think you are overreacting - I mean, do you really expect a child to watch a movie and then go all "I wanna be a passive anorectic and marry in my teens now! Also I think everyone who is ugly and/or black is EEVUL and should be destroyed! Yes, this makes complete logical sense to me!"?

I mean, really. If you want to worry about something giving people a distorted sense of reality, worry about mainstream mass media and the crap that comes out of the U.S. government.

Do you have any understanding of how child development works? The stories that children are exposed to inform their entire worldviews.

I'm gonna guess no.

[Brocwika]

Not true. Subliminal messages aren't exactly what pop culture makes them out to be.

Subliminal messages are as simple as using color, and or cues during, say political advertisements.

Now just think about how many advertisements we see per day? You might not know it, but it does have small, albeit effects, on our thinking, even our appetite.

So... Ban color TVs?

No. What i mean is, sometimes objects are purposely made certain colors by advertisements because they are suggestive of feelings etc.

[Tsuntion]

You do have some valid points, but I think you are overreacting - I mean, do you really expect a child to watch a movie and then go all "I wanna be a passive anorectic and marry in my teens now! Also I think everyone who is ugly and/or black is EEVUL and should be destroyed! Yes, this makes complete logical sense to me!"?

I mean, really. If you want to worry about something giving people a distorted sense of reality, worry about mainstream mass media and the crap that comes out of the U.S. government.

Nobody is saying that that happens.

People are saying that it is a concern that these messages are constantly being hammered into young children, and Disney movies are part of that.

Many girls are considering thinness and whiteness positive traits above being of healthy weight or an ethnic minority. They shouldn't be.

Children absorb lessons from the media, and the lessons aren't always good ones. Time needs to be taken to teach them about this, as NTTP has described in this very thread, and it would also be good if Disney would break out of their mold for once.

[The Rich Port]

So... Ban color TVs?

No. What i mean is, sometimes objects are purposely made certain colors by advertisements because they are suggestive of feelings etc.

It's a poor example. I would have pointed out how they use music or something more obvious than "color".

Media can MOST DEFINITELY be bad for ANYBODY, though. Children, adults, the elderly, everybody.

If we happen to enjoy them (or sometimes even when we hate it), it becomes a part of our personal schemas.

If children take a character as a role model, for example, they'll say "I want to be like that guy. That guy's awesome". Maybe being a pirate is silly, but being bold and brave are not.

No amount of parental advisory can change everything.

However, it definitely helps.

Always watch your kids' movies, with and/or without your kids.

And show them GOOD movies.

[Geilinor]

Not true. Subliminal messages aren't exactly what pop culture makes them out to be.

Subliminal messages are as simple as using color, and or cues during, say political advertisements.

Now just think about how many advertisements we see per day? You might not know it, but it does have small, albeit effects, on our thinking, even our appetite.

Colors. Red and yellow. These work up our appetite subconsciously.

So McDonald's should change their signs? Their ads have never caused me to desire a meal from McDonald's though.

[Thafoo]

Yes they are.
The Disney Cult is re-establishing films with stories that weren't really meant for kids in the first place. Many of the movies contain these subliminal messages about sex.

I know Walt Disney was a social conservative but his legacy has been hijacked by some fat corporate slob. and don't get me started on the garbage Disney Channel puts, those are worst than the movies.

wat

[The Rich Port]

Yes they are.
The Disney Cult is re-establishing films with stories that weren't really meant for kids in the first place. Many of the movies contain these subliminal messages about sex.

I know Walt Disney was a social conservative but his legacy has been hijacked by some fat corporate slob. and don't get me started on the garbage Disney Channel puts, those are worst than the movies.

Congratulations on trivializing the impact media has on people with bullshit.

[Individuality-ness]

Colors. Red and yellow. These work up our appetite subconsciously.

Not sure if sarcasm, or actaully agreeing with me.

A quick Google search would reveal that I'm doing the latter.

[Individuality-ness]

Colors. Red and yellow. These work up our appetite subconsciously.

So McDonald's should change their signs? Their ads have never caused me to desire a meal from McDonald's though.

But they can easily make you feel hungry. It's a marketing strategy.