Children\'s Cereal Advertisements: A Frosted

¶ … Children's Cereal Advertisements:

A Frosted Flakes from the 1960s versus today

Cereals, particularly sugary cereals for young children, have come under increasing scrutiny over the past decade. They often use cartoons to market products of questionable nutritional value to vulnerable consumers. To quiet some of the anxieties about the nutritional content of children's cereals, many cereal companies have come to stress the fact that their cereals have whole grains, or some other health component. However, in the 1960s, when nutrition was less of a concern, the novelty of cereal cartoon characters was more openly promoted, as can be seen in an advertisement from that era for Frosted Flakes (See figure 1),

Notice that the fact that the cereal contains sugar is proudly and openly proclaimed. The fact that Kellogg's cereal is "Gr-r-eat" is stressed, rather than any health claims pertaining to the product. The words "Sugar Frosted Flakes" are also prominently displayed. Regardless of a reader's feelings about sugar, it cannot be denied that this advertisement is both honest and artful. The cleanness of the white box and the long and perfect arc of the pale milk into the extremely large glass bowl of the cereal are almost beautiful. There is a depth to the illustration of the tiger and the photographed food that flat, cartoon advertisements of the present era often lack. The tastiness of the product is emphasized by the hungry expression of the tiger and the slogan of 'greatness.' There is a subtle whimsy in the way that the tiger pokes out of the box, hungrily eyeing the cereal.

This is in stark contrast to the current incarnation of Tony the Tiger (See figure 2). From an aesthetic standpoint, the actual drawing of Tony and the composition of the advertisement is less interesting and visually arresting. Tony is drawn in a fairly flat, stereotyped manner. Also, the deliciousness of the cereal is less emphasized, given that the cartoon tiger is not 'licking his chops' or hanging out of the cereal like the 1960s Tony. Instead, the cartoon character stresses the 'goodness' of the product he is selling with an enthusiastic pointing thumb. Tony looks more like a coach rather than a little tiger who is actually interested in the food he is promoting.

In this advertisement, cereal is not marketed as something that is tasty, but something that is medicinal in value. It is crunchy, but more importantly it has ten grams of whole grains. Why whole grains are good, and why parents should be purchasing whole grain cereal for their children is not mentioned. The presentation of the ad suggests that whole grains are something parents 'ought' to be concerned about, in an effort to encourage parents to purchase the product as well as to encourage children to beg their parents to buy it.

The contemporary advertisement is more subtle in its targeting of audience and message. There is always a question as to who is really the purchase-driver of children's foods. One school of thought suggests that children, through the 'nag factor.' drive the purchases of sugary cereals. On the other hand, some might say that it is always the parent who puts down the final dollars for the product. The contemporary Frosted Flakes advertisement shows Kellogg's savvy in understanding that it is both: Tony the Tiger's image draws children in, yet parents are comforted by the fact that the cereal apparently contains some nutritional value.

Unlike the earlier box, however, this ad is quite misleading. Its stress that the flakes are "full of energy" hides the fact that 'energy' is being used as a synonym for calories and sugar. Even a Snickers bar, after all provides energy. The advertisement of today is more holistic in its audience target. It also reveals that the way people view breakfast cereal has changed. Instead of encouraging children to eat and enjoy, people are encouraged to ask what the cereal can 'do' for their children's developing bodies. Yet presumably people are ultimately still buying breakfast cereals for their children at least partially based on taste, because if health were their sole concern, they would buy more conventionally healthy cereal like bran flakes or an organic, low-sugar children's cereal. The contemporary advertisement allows parents to 'have their Frosted Flakes' and 'eat them too' -- they can buy a cereal for their children that their children want to eat, yet be comforted in the fact that it has whole grains added to it, to make it somewhat healthy.