America is a corporatized society defined by our culture of consumerism, and the youth market is one of the groups that corporations target most. By marketing directly to children, through television, movies, radio, video games, toys, books, and fast food, advertisers have produced a "kinderculture." In this eye-opening book, editor Shirley R. Steinberg reveals the profound impact that our purchasing-obsessed culture has on our children and argues that the experience of childhood has been reshaped into something that is prefabricated. Analyzing the pervasive influence of these corporate productions, top experts in the fields of education, sociology, communications, and cultural studies contribute incisive essays that students, parents, educators, and general readers will find insightful and entertaining. Including seven new chapters, this third edition is thoroughly updated with examinations of the icons that shape the values and consciousness of todayrs"s children, includingTwilight, Barbie, hip-hop, Disney, McDonaldrs"s, and many more.

Shirley R. Steinberg is the director of The Paulo and Nita Freire International Project for Critical Pedagogy at McGill University and has been Research Professor at the University of Barcelona. Her most recent books include: Boy Culture: An Encyclopedia; 19 Urban Questions Teaching in the City; Diversity and Multiculturalism: A Reader; Christotainment: Selling Jesus Through Popular Culture (Westview Press); and the award-winning Contemporary Youth Culture Encyclopedia.