U.S. Senate Follows Course of Non-Regulation on Child Ads of $1.6 Billion

WASHINGTON (CN) - Sticking with the national government's reluctance to regulate business activity, two U.S. Senate subcommittees recently endorsed voluntary self-control by the big food and drinks advertisers who contributed to childhood obesity by spending $1.6 billion advertising to kids in 2006 alone, according to testimony from the FTC.

The extraordinary amount of advertising directed towards kids was reported by the FTC in testimony last week. Following the testimony, senators from the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee proposed that the companies self-regulate how they advertise to children.

The study by the FTC, released in July, is the first of its kind and is touted by the committee as being "an important benchmark for measuring the future progress of self-regulatory initiatives."

Members of the senate want companies to advertise only nutrition-based standards to children under 12, voluntarily.

They recommend that companies join the Council for Better Business Bureaus Initiative and stop promotions of food and drink that are not solely based on nutrition, all on their own accord.

The two subcommittees are part of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee.

Read the Top 8

Sign up for the Top 8, a roundup of the day's top stories delivered directly to your inbox Monday through Friday.

Email *

Submit