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National Institute
on Media and the Family Warns
"Buzzploitation
of Minors" a Dangerous Trend
To address the increasing use of Internet marketing
firms engaging minors in sophisticated "word of
mouth" campaigns, the National Institute on Media
and the Family launched an investigation into whether
some Internet marketers are exploiting young people
and possibly exposing them to adult-oriented concepts
and products.
"The Institute has already expressed concerns
over Internet advertising to children," said
Dr. David Walsh, president of the National Institute
on Media and the Family. "Now we're finding some
marketers are pushing the envelope even further. Not
only are they advertising to kids, they're using minors
to promote their products to unsuspecting peers."
Through its on-going investigation, the Institute
has found:
By recruiting minors for online viral advertising
campaigns, marketers sometimes expose them and their
friends to sexually explicit information, age inappropriate
language, and sexual images. When these recruitment
efforts involve a centralized website, on which young
people can communicate with each other, marketers
open the virtual door to predatory adults who use
the Internet to stalk children, especially young girls.
"These practices would never be accepted by
most Americans if they knew what was going on,"
said Dr. Walsh. "We are going to expose these
practices to the light of day."
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