When “Phineas and Ferb” (rated TV-G) ended last night, The Disney Channel played a video of Selena Gomez, a Disney star from one of its shows, “The Wizards of Waverly Place.” She was singing “Naturally” from the “Kiss and Tell” album.
Gomez is 17 years old and she is beautiful. Two thoughts popped into my head while watching her, “I wish I could get my hair to look like that,” and, “Where did she get that awesome necklace?”
My next thought was, “Oh crap, my five year old daughter is watching this.” She was staring at the screen, dancing along to Selena’s moves. Off went the television.
Gomez wasn’t dressed provocatively and her moves and lyrics weren’t overt. But she was singing, “You have a way of moving me,” on Disney. And if this forty-something was coveting the pop star’s clothes, hair and accessories, then there’s a damn good chance my 5 year old was soaking it all up too.
Disney’s airing the video after a show deemed appropriate for 5 year olds, reminded me how hyper-vigilant parents must be about the media and marketing messages our children are exposed too. So it was timely that later in the night, I received an email alerting me to a new blog So Sexy So Soon, from Diane Levin, author of the book, “So Sexy So Soon: The New Sexualized Childhood and What Parents Can Do to Protect Their Kids.” There isn’t a lot of content on the blog yet, but it’s coming. I found the tip sheet to be especially helpful and I recommend parents of young girls and boys bookmark this site.
