Salon.com > Lisa Moskowitz

What kind of mother are you?

Mon, 28 Feb 2000 17:00:00 +0000

According to Sales and Marketing Management magazine, women in the United States control 80 percent of all household buying decisions. In the category of single-parent households headed by mothers, the percentage is even higher. These are heady numbers, the kind that drive advertisers to probe, speculate and scramble to find images that will compel women to buy lots of stuff.

Traditionally, advertising geared toward mothers has been watered down to appeal to broad marketing stereotypes such as "Supermoms" or "Happy Homemakers." As established categories readily accepted in consumer circles, they were easy to keep using -- until recently.

Motherhood is now being acknowledged as a package that requires more diverse wrapping than the history of advertising might suggest, according to Denise Fedewa, a vice president and planning director at Leo Burnett, one of the world's largest advertising firms. As part of LeoShe, a team at Leo Burnett that profiles women to find out what kind of marketing messages prompt them to get out their wallets, Fedewa says that mothers, like any other consumer group, are now defined not just by motherhood, but by income, age, upbringing, employment and marital status.

“Pokimon: The First Movie”

Fri, 12 Nov 1999 17:00:00 +0000

In the opening scenes of "Pokimon: The First Movie,"
an entire island goes up in smoke. Fires rage. Humans
run for cover. Mewtwo, the most powerful Pokimon in
the world, is having an identity crisis. Engineered
from ancient Pokimon DNA, this rampaging catlike
Pokenstein has no purpose beyond serving as a specimen for scientific study.
That makes him really mad. After all, hostile Pokimon
with malicious psychic powers have feelings, too. So
Mewtwo decides to destroy all humans, enslave all
Pokimon and take over the world. But our fearless
heroes, Ash, Misty and Brock, and their loyal
Pokimon -- Pikachu, Squirtle, Bulbasaur and others --
find a way to save the day.

Seventy-six minutes, 151 fantastically mutated
animal-like monsters and five expert points of view
later, I'm still not sure I really get the
whole Pokimon thing. But I'm an adult, so it doesn't
really matter. Now my five experts, they matter -- and
they had plenty to praise and dis about "Pokimon: The
First Movie."

Disney rocks!

Tue, 24 Aug 1999 16:50:00 +0000

I don't remember my first Disney experience. I rode
through this rite of childhood in a baby carrier on my
dad's back, gurgling and snug. A big hairy head
blotted out most of the Magic Kingdom; the
occasional white-gloved, honk-nosed Disney character
pranced along the periphery.

So if I couldn't really appreciate it, why were we
there? My parents wanted to go. They were both 27 at
the time -- young Angelenos; I was 3 months old.
It was June 1969 and the wonderful world of Disney
consisted of a single theme park -- Disneyland -- just
down the road in Anaheim. It was a day trip, a quick
jaunt. An easy invitation to act like a kid -- even if you weremarried and a new parent.

My mom's favorite ride was the Mad Tea Party, so that was our always our first
stop. You sit in enormous teacups that whirl violently
around and if you really want to make yourself sick,
there's a wheel in the middle you can turn that will
spin you even more. When I got a little older, my mom
took me on that ride and I almost threw up. She sat
across from me in the cup, laughing like crazy.

Schoolyard cowboys

Wed, 02 Jun 1999 18:00:00 +0000

America's children are fascinated with guns. They are emblems of our culture and almost as easy to come by as a driver's license. From images of cowboys galloping across the Wild West, rifles slung across their backs, to Woody Harrelson letting loose with a semiautomatic in "Natural Born Killers," guns are symbols of freedom, independence and power.

The recent school shootings in Littleton, Colo., and Conyers, Ga., have highlighted the potential for children to commit violent acts. Since February 1996, there have been seven such highly publicized shootings across the country. The perpetrators were all described as depressed, white males between the ages of 11 and 18. In the aftermath, we wonder about their lives, their psychological makeup and how they were raised.

But what about younger children who might not exhibit any "telltale" signs of aggression? Would a preschooler pick up a gun and shoot another child or himself? According to Marjorie Hardy, assistant professor of psychology at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pa., the answer is yes -- especially if your child is a boy.

Time for One Thing: Acupuncture

Wed, 14 Oct 1998 19:00:00 +0000

In the moment before the needle pricks the skin, time slows and
thickens. All I hear is my blood pumping mercilessly in my ears and the
rational, earthbound side of my brain screaming at me to bolt, to jerk
my leg or arm or foot away.

But just before instinct robs me of my trust in this foreign method
of healing, in this acupuncture, I head the nervous impulses off at
the synapse pass. I breathe deeply and swallow the heady smell of
sandalwood and orchids, dried rhododendron leaves and ginger root. I
remember that pain, if experienced at all, will be temporary, while
the release of qi in my tangled, blocked up veins will heal me.
Before I can even think about exhaling, the needle is tapped in.

I remember my sister being terrified of pins and sewing needles as
a kid. I used to chase her around the house with an unhooked safety
pin, giggling as she shrieked. I even pricked myself once to show her
that it didn't hurt, despite the fleck of blood that welled up out of
my broken skin. She never believed me. Now, as I undergo this
voluntary pricking, I find myself on the edge of the same hysteria
that threw her into such a frenzy.

A mother's guide to gunk

Wed, 30 Sep 1998 08:28:00 +0000

When I was old enough to voice my discontent over the dreaded pixie cut
-- a hairstyle my mom thought was cute but I thought made me look like
a boy -- I grew my hair long as an act of rebellion. The problem with long
hair on a hyperactive 5-year-old, of course, is knots -- the kind that
no amount of gentle maternal comb-tugging can smooth away. Only a healthy
dose of Johnson & Johnson's No More Tangles and a good yank could
dissolve my rat's nests. But even this remedy failed when I engaged in the
charming habit of chewing my hair and my gum at the same time. You
can imagine the outcome.

There's no training course for parents on how to dislodge a matted wad
of gooey pink gum from a child's hair without using torture or a pair of
scissors to cut out the offending glop. After trying to pick my hair out of
the clot strand by strand, my mom finally headed for the refrigerator.
First she tried mayonnaise -- something slick to counteract the stickiness.
When that didn't work, she went for the peanut butter. Miraculously, that
did the trick.

Hot Flash: I want your sex

Tue, 15 Sep 1998 19:25:00 +0000

When I was 4, my mom announced that she was pregnant. I was ecstatic
-- finally I'd have the little brother I'd always wanted. There was no
doubt in my child-mind that the baby would be a boy. My parents already
had a girl, so why would they need another one? I just assumed they
would ask the baby gods for a boy and be granted their wish.

Needless to say, when my sister was born, I was devastated. I
had been replaced by a gurgling bundle of joy who, by all accounts, had
the rosy cheeks and ringlets of an earthbound angel. I couldn't hack
the competition. I packed my suitcase and tearily headed out the door,
a self-proclaimed orphan.

I eventually got over my replacement complex and learned to love my
little sister. A natural selection was made and now I can't imagine life
without her. But for those older siblings -- and parents-to-be -- who
want to challenge nature, a formidable weapon is at hand. Last week,
doctors at the Genetics & IVF Institute in Fairfax, Va., led by Dr.
Edward Fugger, announced that they can sort sperm in such a way that
will allow couples to choose the sex of their babies. But how ethical is
gender selection, and is it safe?

I want your sex

Tue, 15 Sep 1998 19:00:00 +0000