The Other Parent: The Inside Story of the Media's Effect on Our Children

In The Other Parent: The Inside Story of the Media's Effect on Our Children, James Steyer explains that as media companies have become dominated by merger mania and quarterly profits, kids and families have been unwittingly left as the big losers. The Federal Communications Commission requires broadcasters to offer educational children's programming as one of the "public interest obligations" that justify free use of precious public airwaves. Unfortunately, there has been little enforcement of these obligations. Steyer offers an insider's account of how the industry has turned children's media into little more than a "giant marketing machine." He describes how the FCC--a player in the rampant deregulation of the 1980s that led to vastly increased violence, sex, and commercialism in the media--is loosening even further the restraints and obligations of the broadcast industry. Finally, Steyer highlights those championing better educational content for children and presents concrete proposals for changing the media landscape. Jim Steyer is president of JP Kids, a children's media production company, and founder of Children Now, an advocacy group. The Other Parent is receiving considerable attention, including May 20th appearances by Steyer on "Oprah" and the "Today Show."

Participants

• James Steyer