See below for the UK Media Smart broadcast commercial

Video MPEG (size 4.8Mb)		 Media Literacy

The Responsible Advertising and Children Programme believe that educating children to understand the purpose and context of advertising is crucial. Initiatives like the UK 'Media Smart' programme play an important role in helping children develop the skills to critically interpret commercial communications in the context of their daily lives. The RAC promotes education as the key vehicle through which children may be better equipped to interact with the world of media.

Media Smart® is a media literacy programme, initially focused on advertising. Its objective is to provide children with the tools to help them understand and interpret advertising, so that they are able to make informed choices.

Launched in November 2002, Media Smart® was designed for primary school children aged 6-11 years old and is the first UK media literacy programme to run inside the classroom and the home using broadcast and written educational materials.

More about Media Smart UK can be found at: http://www.mediasmart.org.uk/media_smart/index.html

The Responsible Advertising and Children Programme is the platform by which Media Smart has been promoted and developed in other markets. Media Smart projects are already being launched in Belgium, The Netherlands and Germany.

 

 

 

 

 

“Media Smart acknowledges the power of advertising and attempts to empower the consumer. And it is an example of an industry taking responsibility for its own actions. It is enlightened self-interest.”
Tessa Jowell, UK Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Speaking at the launch of Media Smart, 13 November 2002

“On the same subject [media literacy] I would like to refer to an interesting initiative: Media Smart. This is a non profit media literacy programme for UK primary school children, initially focused on advertising, which was launched in November 2002.”
Viviane Reding, EU Commissioner responsible for Education and Culture, Speaking at “Minors and media: towards a more effective protection”, 10 September 2003

“The most important role of Media Smart is to develop and provide schools, on request, with teaching materials for teachers and parents. There is also a media literacy infomercial on TV on 10 satellite channels in the UK, which encourages children to think about what they see on TV and to question whether or not it is real.”
European Commission, Second Evaluation Report on the application of Council Recommendation concerning the protection of minors, 12 December 2003

“In England the education campaign Media Smart turned out to be successful…This campaign was initiated by the industry itself. It would be a good thing if Dutch business used this knowledge and experience so that such a campaign (maybe in cooperation with an independent party, for instance 'Kennisnet') can be carried out in the Netherlands as well.”
Dutch Ministry for Education, Culture and Science, December 2003

“Media Smart, the advertising industry initiative to increase children’s awareness of issues surrounding advertising – Ofcom offers advice and guidance where appropriate and will promote the use of their classroom resources”
Ofcom's strategy and priorities for the promotion of media literacy, 1 June 2004