Disney Co admits fraud...sort of..... (Baby Einstein Videos)

[Stuart G]

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/24/education/24baby.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

This article is at the Huffington Post and the New York Times.

After reading this article, it seems that the Disney Co has admitted fraud..sort of. Evidently, these baby videos never worked and it was sort of a scam. Now, the company will give refunds. Kinda sad, all of what they were saying was... lies

From the article..

"In 2006, Ms. Linn’s group went to the Federal Trade Commission to complain about the educational claims made by Disney and another company, Brainy Baby. As a result, the companies dropped the word “educational” from their marketing. But the group didn’t think that was enough.

“Disney was never held accountable, and parents were never given any compensation. So we shared our information and research with a team of public health lawyers,” Ms. Linn said."



According to the article, one third of the families with babies had these things.

[hlthe2b]

1. Remember when the REPUG founder was honored by Bush*

at his state of the union address? Barf.... she was a typical RW shyster, aided and abetted by Disney. Shame.

[Berry Cool]

3. I remember it well. She was held up as the kind of entrepreneur we should all admire

and, it was implied, that we all could be if we just got up off our lazy duffs, and then there would be no poverty in America.

How appropriate that she turns out to have been a charlatan, just like the president who honored her and held her up as an ideal example of the American entrepreneurial spirit.

ed: typo fix

[peekaloo]

4. Sure do. Bu$h promoting anything with Einstein in the title has to be a lie.

:-)

[CoffeeCat]

5. It sounds like she was aided and abetted by our government...

Bush had her (and no one else) present at one of his State of the Union addresses. She
was the founder of the company that made those Baby Einstein videos.

I bet, if some digging is done--it will be discovered that her husband is some lobbyist or
she has some big connections to the Republican party. How does someone like that get singled
out--for spotlighting at a State of the Union address????

Something stinks. Something really stinks.

Also, those videos are a joke! I remember complaining about them when she was at the State of the
Union speech. These videos do not work. The end result is that vacuous parents who want their
child Harvard-bound--plop their BABIES and TODDLERS in front of the television--instead of reading
to them or spending quality time with them. That's so sad!!!

Literally, this woman is helping to create the next generation of tv-addicted, slovenly couch
potatoes--when the Republicans were trying to pass her off as some kind of amazing entrepreneur
who made babies smart!

Can't wait to unearth just exactly what her connections are.

[MiniMe]

8. I think it was at a State of the Union speech

Another Fail Georgie

[seabeyond]

2. cuddling, parent/baby time. that is all they are for.

i told niece they were not going to create the einstien, further, not productive having baby at such young age in front of tv. about the only good those things are is for parent to being spending play time with baby. that doesnt hurt either....

[CoffeeCat]

7. but those videos do not encourage parent time...

...those videos are used as babysitting devices. Many parents plop in a
video, put their child on a blanket and do whatever...

Parents who really want to spend one-on-one time with their babies--read to them,
lay down on a blanket with them, take them places.

They don't turn on a video.

[seabeyond]

9. jump start toddler and other computer games. sons and i would take half hour

to an hour, depending on their attention span and they would sit on lap as i went thru clicking on stuff, kissing on, hugging, and pointing out different stuff. repeating words, color, shapes ect....

IF a parent uses them with child, it is just another something with connection adn play. if parent uses any of this stuff as babysitter, .... about worthless

that is what i am considering. i would suggest there are many parents down on ground with baby.

not that it will make baby genius, which is the point of article, but it is connecting time and play

so much of baby, toddler, kid time in play is learning.

[vi5]

6. People believed that?

Was there anyone who actually believed they made your baby smarter? My kids both loved them as did all my nieces and nephews but it had nothing to do with making them smarter. It was just cute, soothing video images.

Hell, I'm not gonna lie when I watched those things and saw how much kids loved them I kicked myself for not thinking of it first. Film people's hands playing with toys and put cheesy casio keyboard music on top of it? Brilliant.

[seabeyond]

10. yup... they believed and self righteous in their creating their genius, as opposed

to parents that didnt, lol