Media Literacy Facts
- The average child spends about five and a half hours a day using media – more than 36 hours a week (Kids and Media, Kaiser Foundation, 1999).
- Advertisers spend more than $12 billion annually on advertising messages aimed at the youth market (American Psychological Association, 2004).
- The average child watches 40,000 television commercial a year (American Psychological Association, 2004).
- 98% of movies and 45% of music videos depict illicit drugs, alcohol, tobacco or over-the-counter/prescription. Illicit drugs are mentioned in 63% of Rap songs (Office of National Drug Control Policy, 1999).
- Teens see more commercials for alcohol than for jeans, sneakers, or other teen products (Georgetown University, 2003).