David Cameron criticises 'irresponsible' media and marketers
Prime Minister David Cameron has described marketers as ‘irresponsible’ in their targeting of children in advertising campaigns.
In discussing the ‘well being’ of Britain and how it could be improved, Cameron has accused the media and marketing industry of ‘inappropriate sexualisation’ of children to promote products.
“We saw an irresponsible media and marketing free-for-all justified on the argument that it was good for growth - with little thought about the impact on childhood," said Cameron.
He also criticised the use of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by business, saying that it was “an incomplete way of measuring a country’s progress and said that it did not show how growth is created.
"When a country is hit by an earthquake, that can increase GDP, because of the extra spending on reconstruction afterwards. When a city is torn apart by crime and disorder, that can increase GDP, because of all the extra locks and security people buy. When a person falls ill, that can increase GDP, because the cost of buying drugs and paying for care counts as economic activity. Destruction, crime, disease – in a very crude way, all these things can amount to progress in terms of GDP."