Why the IAB is supporting Safer Internet Day (and why it thinks you should too)
Have you ever typed “iPad baby” into YouTube?
Alex Scott
Do so, and you’ll see thousands of videos of babies and toddlers mastering technology with gusto. Children in today’s society are digital natives, more so than my own Millennial generation who can recall with fondness the sound of dial-up internet, or those monthly internet CD-ROMs that would drop through the post on an alarmingly regular basis. But imagine growing up as a young person today, immersed in digital: where researching The Tudors for your history homework could be achieved at the touch of a button. Or meeting your friends in town wouldn’t require military-style planning and organisation of when and where you would be.
However, with all of the brilliant advances that technology brings to our lives, new challenges come to the fore, and we know that parents and children are grappling with solutions to these issues. But they’re not alone. Today is Safer Internet Day, a global event which seeks to help parents, guardians and children by promoting advice and resources to help kids stay safe online.
In the UK, this daylong event has adopted an inclusive theme of “Let’s create a better internet together”. It recognises that from an outside perspective – from the perspectives of parents and carers, teachers, young people and policy makers – the digital world poses a whole series of opportunities and issues for children and that the day should provide a forum to raise awareness across these issues whilst maintaining their differences.
Kids today are using the internet to create as well as to consume, and advertising plays a huge role in supporting this. And while digital advertising is not a child safety issue in the same league as, say, cyberbullying, there are areas that need focusing on and tackling. And, to this extent, it is taken seriously by industry. In a follow up to his government commissioned review into the Commercialisation and Sexualisation of Childhood, Reg Bailey of the Mothers’ Union called on industry to dispel myths about commercial intent in digital environments. What became clear during his review was that while children may be digitally astute, parents and carers are not always confident about guiding them on media literacy when they themselves may not understand the marketing techniques in the first place.
There are of course important child-centred safeguards in place for online advertising. The CAP code, for example, provides clear rules on marketing to children, and on where marketers can or can’t place adverts for inappropriate advertising, such as age-restricted products. As well as these important safety measures, media literacy is an equally important tool for equipping consumers with the information that they need to navigate the commercial world that is around them.
At the IAB we’re huge advocates of this approach, so today we have launched a video with Media Smart called, “What does the Ad say?” which is backed by Reg Bailey, the Advertising Association and ISBA – the Voice of British Advertisers. This video aims to bring enhanced clarity on digital advertising amongst 8-13 year olds, their parents or guardians and we hope that it will get informed conversations started in the home. And for those that want to know more, “What does the Ad say?” is complimented by the Media Smart, Digital Adwise Parent Pack, which provides further information as well as links to resources.
So join us today in supporting this important initiative, and help “create a better internet together”.
Alex Scott is the IAB's public policy manager