Latest shot against ads targeting kids ignores industry's voluntary efforts in war on obesity

Nation's Restaurant News,  Oct 29, 2007  by Paul Frumkin

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The letters that U.S. Rep. Edward J. Markey sent last month to CEC Entertainment and Yum! Brands Inc. seemed to have an ominous tone to them.

Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, chairs the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet and noted in those letters that neither CEC nor Yum had joined a voluntary effort to change the way food marketers target children with advertising. Markey had sent similar letters to Dannon, Nestle and ConAgra at the same time.

He wrote that parents had an "undeniable responsibility" to guide their children's eating habits to reduce childhood obesity and acknowledged that advertising is not the sole cause of the obesity problem. But he said food marketers can play a role in solving the problem and told them, "I urge you to do so."

He went on to say that CEC, which owns Chuck E. Cheese's, and Yum, whose brands include Taco Bell, KFC, Pizza Hut and Long John Silver's, were "notably absent" from the Children's Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative of the Council of Better Business Bureaus.

The initiative was launched in November 2006 as a voluntary effort by major food marketers to shift the mix of advertising targeting children to promote healthier eating and lifestyle habits.

Markey pointed out that McDonald's had joined the initiative and said the object of his letter was to find out whether CEC and Yum also plan to restrict their children's advertising. If that was their intention, he wanted to know exactly when they would join the initiative with efforts that "meet or exceed" those of McDonald's.

Markey hinted that if they did not take voluntary steps, the government might have to step in with its own restrictions. Information from CEC and Yum about their marketing plans, Markey wrote, would help "inform the subcommittee and the public as to additional steps that may be warranted to safeguard kids from junk food ads during children's television programming."

CEC chairman and chief executive Richard M. Frank responded by saying CEC would join the initiative. David C. Novak, Yum chairman and chief executive, said the company's advertising to children under 12 is "very limited in the United States" but that Yum would consult with the Council of Better Business Bureaus on how to comply with initiative's standards, if for some reason Yum changed the way it markets its brands to kids.

Markey issued a statement applauding CEC's action, but in the same statement chided Yum!, Dannon and Nestle for not joining the initiative, even though the latter two companies documented their many years of marketing responsibly to kids. Here's where it gets really ominous. Markey said he was disappointed that these three "are unwilling to restrict marketing to kids," adding that in light of the childhood obesity problem "the responses from these companies raise the question of whether voluntary industry action will be sufficient to combat this important public health issue."

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There's some saber rattling going on here, but Congress might just be in the mood to score political points by taking action on a hot issue as it moves into the 2008 election year.

CEC and Yum are among the restaurant brands that received subpoenas in the summer from the Federal Trade Commission, which is requiring them to disclose how they market to children and adolescents and how much they spend to do that. McDonald's Corp., Wendy's International Inc. and Burger King Holdings Inc. also were subpoenaed.

If they haven't responded already, they have only until Nov. 1 to give the FTC the information it wants. The FTC then will report to Congress on what it discovered.

To be sure, Congress would face a legal hurdle in trying to restrict advertising. Anything it would do to either eliminate or restrict certain ads during kids TV programs would be challenged as an abridgment of First Amendment rights.

That's not to say it wouldn't at least try to pass regulations. Childhood obesity is an obvious issue to exploit during an election year. It's not unreasonable to think that incumbent representatives and senators would vote to restrict advertising to some degree if that meant they could pick up a few votes from the folks back home.

And regulating ads that target kids is just the legitimate type of minor, back-burner issue which a Congress that has ignored the major issues of health care, immigration reform and the budget could yank to the forefront as a feint to make it appear that it's taking action on the grave issues of the day.

Government regulations are unnecessary, as recent developments have illustrated. Restaurants and other food marketers have shown a sincere willingness to regulate their advertising to children. Even TV networks have pledged to restrict the types of ads they carry during children's shows. NBC Universal and Telemundo said they will ban ads for unhealthful food during children's educational programs on the stations they own and operate starting June 1, 2008.