Media Smart

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Mediasmart is an organisation which is funded by fast-food, media and toy industries. Its website states that Media Smart is a

"non profit media literacy programme for school children aged 6 to 11 years old, focused on advertising. Media Smart develops and provides, free of charge and on request, educational materials to primary schools that teach children to think critically about advertising in the context of their daily lives. Our materials use real examples of advertising to teach core media literacy skills. Media Smart is funded by the advertising business in the UK and is supported by the UK and EU governments....In the UK, it is one of the only media literacy programmes in which Ofcom plays an active role.Media Smart plays a key role in developing significantly young people’s understanding and constructive use of modern media, including its advertising content. It is an important contributor to building a media literate society in the UK." [1]

History and Origins of Mediasmart

The roots for Mediasmart are to be seen in the "Concerned Children's Advertisers" organisation founded in Canada [2] which is also funded by transnational corporations. [3]


Media Smart is based on a model developed by Canadian advertisers in the late 1980s called Concerned Children's Advertisers (CCA). Backed by giants such as Coca-Cola, Hershey and Buena Vista, the $10m CCA programme now claims huge success in cutting concern about children's marketing over there. "The Canadians were originally pushed into action by a ban on children's advertising in French-speaking Canada, but since the programme has been up and running, complaints on the issue across the rest of Canada have fallen to around zero," says Jackson. "I'm not saying there's an urgent threat here, but we must take the long-term view." [4]

Media Smart was incorporated as a business on 5 March 2002 and is a private company limited by guarantee. It is listed with Companies House as:-
MEDIA SMART UK LIMITED:
Company No. 04387708[5]


Independent report

In 2006 Media Smart commissioned an independent evaluation of their BeAdwise 2 teaching materials from The Centre for the Study of Children, Youth and Media, Institute of Education, University of London. In 2007 the centre produced their independent report.[6]


The authors of the report were

Buckingham and Willet are members of Media Smart's expert group.


An independent organisation?

  • Mediasmart does not mention on it's website who its employees/staff are. The office address is given as:-

Abford House:
15 Wilton Road:
London:
SW1V 1NJ [7]

This office is also the address of the Advertising Association, which suggests that Mediasmart is based inside the Advertising Association's offices.

  • The domain mediasmart.org.uk is also registered by Media Smart, but a who is with the British internet registry gives out a differing address for Media Smart:

29 Cloth Fair
London
EC1A 7NN

This address houses the offices of Hudson Sandler [8] and the Global Consulting Group(GCG)[9] both of which are subsidiaries of Huntsworth. The GCG entry in the APPC register lists Media Smart as a client between December 2004 and November 2005. [10] Prior to that Media smart was represented by Ergo Communications Services [11] which was acquired by Huntsworth in 2004.

  • In 2008 the Media Smart website listed a new address:-

7th Floor North:
Artillery House:
11-19 Artillery Row:
London SW1P 1RT:
Telephone: 020 7526 3615 :
Fax: 020 7526 3699 :
Email: info@mediasmart.org.uk [12]

This office is also the new address of the Advertising Association.[13]


Mediasmart international

Mediasmart is spreading throughout the world. It has divisions in Belgium, The Netherlands, Poland, Ireland, Finland and Germany.

Germany - Mediasmart and Disney

Mediasmart Germany (www.mediasmart.de) is owned according to the german internet registry [14] by RTL DISNEY Fernsehen GmbH Co.KG.

Staff

Expert Group

Professor David Buckingham, Centre for the Study of Children, Youth and Media, Institute of Education Dr Rebekah Willett, Centre for the Study of Children, Youth and Media, Institute of Education Jenny Grahame, English and Media Centre Michael Simons, English and Media Centre Andrew Carruthers, Ofcom Simon White, Department for Culture Media and Sport Tony Halston, Department for Education and Skills Matteo Zacchetti, European Commission Janet Moffat, Melcombe Primary School Graham Brown, Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO Anna Chapman, Hasbro Laura Simons, Independent consumer affairs consultant


Expert Group (as of November 2008)


Funders

Media Smart is funded by corporate sponsors and partner organisations.


Resources

EU/US Conference on Good Practices Action on Diet Physical Activity and Health Working Group One

Paul Jackson, Media Smart Chairman 11 May 2006

References

  1. ↑ Media SmartAbout us,accessed 20 November 2008
  2. ↑ Concerned Children's Advertisers[1]
  3. ↑ Concerned Children's Advertisers [2]
  4. ↑ Daniel Rogers Plans to keep the kids sweetPublished: March 25 2002 13:30GMT | Last Updated: March 25 2002 14:03GMT
  5. ↑ Companies House Media Smart Details, accessed 20 November 2008
  6. ↑ Media Smart Evaluation Reportaccessed 20 November 2008
  7. ↑ Media Smart [3]
  8. ↑ Hudson Smart [4]
  9. ↑ Global Consulting Group [5]
  10. ↑ APPC Register December 2004-May 2005; APPC Register June 2005-November 2005
  11. ↑ APPC Register June 2004-November 2004
  12. ↑ Media Smart new address, accessed 18 November 2008.
  13. ↑ The Advertising AssociationContact us, accessed 20 November 2008.
  14. ↑ DENIC[6]
  15. ↑ Media Smart expert group, accessed 18 November 2008.
  16. ↑ Media Smart Supporters, accessed 20 November 2008
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