Primary Times – Who Needs a Distributor??
September 27, 2009 by Joe Fogarty · Leave a Comment
It’s that time of year when hundreds of schools will receive an unsolicited bundle of Primary Times magazines, full with advertisements aimed at children and their parents. Unlike ordinary publications, Primary Times does not have a distributor or retail outlet through which to deliver its advertising – it uses the school secretary and teachers to hand out the magazine, for free, and place it into childrens’ school bags.
The role of a school secretary is not to distribute commercial magazines aimed at children and parents. We recommend that schools refuse to accept unsolicited deliveries of Primary Times, refuse to incur the cost of recycling them and demand that they be returned to sender.
Primary Times is of negligible educational relevance and heavily orientated towards commercial advertising. It does not belong in schools and should be exposed as exploiting schools to deliver cynically packages advertising to children in class.
An Post go Nuts for Sales to Schoolchildren.
September 8, 2009 by Joe Fogarty · Leave a Comment
The first week of the new school year and another letter from a Marketing Manager – this time from An Post asking teachers to promote their Cyril the Squirrel savings scheme which they assure us is easy to set up and maintain.
While secondary schools may have to contend with AIB looking to “build” branches in their schools, Irish primary schools are not immune to financial orientated marketing schemes. An Post – the State owned post office – appear determined to reach children from 5 – 12 in school and to avail of teachers as salespeople for their initative. Read more
AIB’s “Build a Bailed-Out Bank Challenge”
September 3, 2009 by Joe Fogarty · Leave a Comment
Unabashed by its toxic debts, beleaguered shareholders and allegations of gross mismanagement, AIB persists in approaching Irish secondary schools to teach students “money-management” and “key business skills”.
Putting Manners on the Marketers.
September 3, 2009 by Joe Fogarty · Leave a Comment
As the new school year 2009-2010 begins, Irish schools are faced with the withdrawal of grants, proposals to decrease the main capitation grant and the realisation that the much-hyped €252 million investment in computers and technology has evaporated into thin air. While commercial schemes proliferated during the years of economic boom in this county, they are likely to endure much longer than our short-lived Tiger era and may seek to exploit the funding shortage in schools.
In an article in the Sunday Business Post, the Campaign for Commercial-Free Education lays down its unapologetically straighforward position – we’re for commercial free education for all Irish children, no if’s, but’s or ambiguity. We believe in a commercial-free space for children to grow, develop and learn to critically assess the world around them without the intrusion of ads, marketing or commercial interest. We seek to defend, in our own small way, the core democratic and child-centred mission of public schools – to deliver messages and experiences solely for the benefit of children and with no other agenda, hidden or apparent.
Read the Article by Catherine O’Mahony in Sunday Business Post, August 30th 2009
Token Gestures Cash In On Primary Schools
January 12, 2009 by Joe Fogarty · Leave a Comment
As the 2009 school year gets underway marketers have lost no time in targeting Irish schools with commercial schemes. Designed to exploit the lack of funding available to schools and maximise sales at a typically lean time of year, these schemes are discriminatory, self-serving and pressurising. The Campaign for Commercial-Free Education condemns advertising promotions which seek to boost profits at the expense of school time and energy.
Irish Daily Mail Free Kits for Kids:
SuperValu Kids in Action: Read more
Broadcasting Complaints Commission to Rule on CCFE Complaint
December 19, 2008 by Joe Fogarty · Leave a Comment
The Broadcasting Complaints Commission is to consider a complaint by the Campaign for Commercial-Free Education concerning a report on RTÉ’s news show News2Day (19 Nov 2008) about the “Doodle 4 Google” promotion in schools.
The complaint proposed that RTÉ’s coverage of this latest marketing promotion to target Irish schools was both commercially biased and lacking in objectivity or balance. RTÉ have rejected the complaint and the BBC will meet on 26th January 2009 to decide.
Read the complaint made by CCFE. Read more
