Printer-Friendly Page

In light of the increasing rates of childhood obesity, Time Warner companies are responding in three ways: by limiting the use of popular characters from our children’s television shows to healthy food and beverage advertising; by launching new initiatives that focus on physical activity as part of overall wellness; and by supporting child-advocacy groups.

In August 2007, Cartoon Network established guidelines concerning how the network’s original characters may be licensed to advertise food or beverages. The guidelines state that when Cartoon Network characters are used in messages aimed at children under the age of 12, the products in those advertisements must meet nutritional criteria based on standards issued by the Institute of Medicine and U.S. Dietary Guidelines. Cartoon Network also pledged to integrate positive messages about nutrition and exercise into its own original programming. As part of this pledge, Cartoon Network added a new dimension to its “Get Animated” initiative, which was launched in 2005 to inspire kids to “get active, get healthy, and get involved.”

This new initiative, “Rescuing Recess,” was launched in 2006 in partnership with several leading child-advocacy groups. Its mission is to build greater awareness of the value of daily recess in the lives of elementary students – both for personal and social health, and for better classroom performance. “Rescuing Recess” sets out to educate parents, administrators, teachers, and students to become community advocates for healthy physical activity as part of their school wellness policies. It also uses high-visibility campaigns such as “National Recess Week” to motivate parents and community leaders to become recess monitors for their schools. In under two years, “Rescuing Recess” has received 14 nationally recognized awards for community service, program creativity, and effective communication strategies.