Back in 1994 Ken and Gail Heffner told us about their version of “interactive media” in their home. If they were watching TV with their children and a commercial came on they would all point at the screen and shout, “That is a lie!”. True interactive media, eh.
A few years later I began studying advertising and our consumer, commodified culture more in-depth. A common approach for advertisers is to present something that we long for — loving relationships or true joy — and equate finding it with purchasing/consuming their product.
So the above caption is the blasphemous message that I saw the other day. The first lie is that joy can be purchased. And the second lie is that joy can be found in over-processed chicken pieces. (A third lie is how our economy is propped up by artificially cheap oil…etc.) This is a bastardization of the word Joy — especially in this season where as a Christian I celebrate with my faith community the Joy of One who came among the lowly to bring Joy and Peace and Light and Life.
Or maybe we got it wrong. If the wise men really wanted to bring joy why didn’t they bring chicken nuggets, a Large soda, and french fries!
So fellow parents I implore you to deconstruct the pervasive ads that your children are absorbing unconsciously throughout their days. There is more power when it comes in the back door of their unconscious . So I encourage you to drop the silly rule of no pointing and encourage your kids to be watchful this Advent/Christmas season and to sing out together “THAT IS A LIE!”
