Disney Finally Concedes Implicitly - the Baby Einstein Videos and CD's Don't Work!

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The Brian Lehrer Show / October 27, 2009 / Open Phones: Baby Einstein Refund
Open Phones: Baby Einstein Refund

Quote:

Disney is offering refunds on all of the Baby Einstein videos, admitting that they are ineffective. Are you a baby einstein user? Are you going to get a refund? What's your reaction to the news?

http://www.wnyc.org/shows/bl/episodes/2009/10/27/segments/143260

The New York Times article about the Disney:

Quote:

October 24, 2009
No Einstein in Your Crib? Get a Refund

By TAMAR LEWIN
Parent alert: the Walt Disney Company is now offering refunds for all those “Baby Einstein” videos that did not make children into geniuses.

They may have been a great electronic baby sitter, but the unusual refunds appear to be a tacit admission that they did not increase infant intellect.

“We see it as an acknowledgment by the leading baby video company that baby videos are not educational, and we hope other baby media companies will follow suit by offering refunds,” said Susan Linn, director of Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, which has been pushing the issue for years.

Baby Einstein, founded in 1997, was one of the earliest players in what became a huge electronic media market for babies and toddlers. Acquired by Disney in 2001, the company expanded to a full line of books, toys, flashcards and apparel, along with DVDs including “Baby Mozart,” “Baby Shakespeare” and “Baby Galileo.”

For the rest of the article...
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/24/education/24baby.html?_r=1

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Type: Discussion • Score: 6 • Views: 6,270 • Replies: 28

[+3] - boomerang - 10/29/2009I'm not the least bit worried about him; Mo will do just fine. The school wants him dianosed with ADD so they pooh-pooh the diagnosis we received from a incredible child development clinic at a...

I love it! I've always hated those things, but I'm sure they will continue to sell. I thought this was an urban myth, but it seems to check out and I found the coupon on the company website.

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@tsarstepan,

This was featured on the CBC on a couple of their radio programs on the weekend. I'm delighted that someone's done the research and that Disney's had to come clean about it.

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Mo didn't live with us during the years that these videos target so I never really looked into them.

I have known some people that believed they were effective. These same people will be the last to admit they were duped in their quest to build a better baby. I doubt they'll show up asking for refunds making the offer to buy-back the videos a brilliant move on Disney's part.

Just about every baby toy is billed as "educational", the ads always focus on "learning". I doubt the videos really hurt anyone. I agree that TV isn't good for little kids but seriously, sometimes you just need to keep a kid safely occupied so you can take a shower.

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@boomerang,

boomerang wrote:

I doubt the videos really hurt anyone. I agree that TV isn't good for little kids but seriously, sometimes you just need to keep a kid safely occupied so you can take a shower.

this

Quote:

Absolutely no TV for kids under 2, pediatricians advise

Quote:

This year, a review of 78 published international studies suggested infant TV-viewing can be associated with delayed language, a shortened attention span and delayed cognitive development.

Grenier said she's "almost sure" the current review by members of the Canadian Paediatric Society's psychosocial committee will result in a policy harmonization with the American Academy of Pediatrics: In 1999, the U.S. academy adopted its recommendation of no screen time for children under 2 years of age, and reaffirmed its position in 2001.

http://www.montrealgazette.com/life/Absolutely+kids+under+pediatricians+advise/2152782/story.html

has been getting a lot of coverage here in the last month or so.

1 Reply

@ehBeth,

I agree that in a perfect world children under two would watch no TV and the rest of us would watch very little.

I've never lived with anyone under 2, I've never watched one of these videos so I can't speak to either directly.

In the real world most kids are exposed to TV. Better one of these baby videos than "Fight Club" (which was on TV a time or two when I would go to pick up Mo when he was a baby) or some such thing.

1 Reply

@boomerang,

We had some -- can't remember if I bought them or if they were gifts.

I loved 'em because they allowed me to take showers. (Ms. High Needs Baby otherwise objected, strenuously.)

Other than that, pretty useless.

1 Reply

@boomerang,

Well at least a baby can deeply respect and follow the first two rules of Fight Club that are...

Quote:

Tyler Durden: Welcome to Fight Club. The first rule of Fight Club is: you do not talk about Fight Club. The second rule of Fight Club is: you DO NOT talk about Fight Club!

Unless of course, the child is some kind of Fight Club prodigy! Wink

1 Reply

@tsarstepan,

Actually he was kind of fight club kid. Thankfully that's under control now.

It just seems to me that parents are blamed for too much when they can't sit their kid down for 15 minutes of music and puppetry while they take a hot shower/mental health break. Sure, no TV is best. But a little TV is better than disaster mom/dad.

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I must have been living in a cave. This is the very first time I have ever heard of Disney so-called Einstein videos. This is all totally terra incognita for me.

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@boomerang,

I agree - I don't see that these any any different than any other toy or TV program that claim it is educational. I did get one of these videos for my younger daughter, but did not ever open it or use it. Not that I was against it - just that I never thought of putting it on for her.

I don't think they really "watched" any TV or videos until around the age of speaking at the oldest. And then it was usually PBS shows which is probably about the same sort of thing.

I'm neither for or against this sort of thing, but aren't they geared towards infants? Seems odd to have TV for an infant just in general to me.

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@Merry Andrew,

Disney bought the company in 2004. The Baby Einstein series was all the rage a few years ago. My children have outgrown the demographic, so I haven't kept up.

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@sozobe,

Yes - I agree that is basically what Teletubbies and crap like that is for - just enough time to shower or use the bathroom.

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@Merry Andrew,

Merry Andrew be glad you missed out on this particular yuppy trend.

There the butt of many jokes. Many mothers in waiting got these CD's and played them while the baby is still in the womb as if the music would help develop the brain of the fetus while in the womb.

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@boomerang,

boomerang wrote:

I have known some people that believed they were effective. These same people will be the last to admit they were duped in their quest to build a better baby. I doubt they'll show up asking for refunds making the offer to buy-back the videos a brilliant move on Disney's part.

You can count on that. The only thing more tenacious than human stupidity is human inability to admit to having done something stupid.

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@roger,

http://img.ffffound.com/static-data/assets/6/9f6912dc13eae5389b645f9de8c66b75c54744f5_m.gif

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@roger,

Quote:

The only thing more tenacious than human stupidity is human inability to admit to having done something stupid.

which explains why we have divorce courts and lawyers.

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@roger,

Shite I wonder if I still have that video - one way for me to get some loot.

1 Reply

@Linkat,

Hey, yeah! Whether they worked or not, now would be a good time to decide the didn't. Hmmm. Any good garage sales in the neighborhood?

1 Reply

@roger,

I'm gonna look at ebay

1 Reply

Disney Finally Concedes Implicitly - the Baby Einstein Videos and CD's Don't Work!

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