Playing with Power in Movies, Television, and Video Games: From Muppet Babies to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

This highly original analysis of children's interaction with media combines detailed descriptions of shows like "Muppet Babies" and "Garfield" with a sophisticated commentary on the global economy. In an age when most authors writing about children and the media talk only about violence, this book presents a much more comprehensive account of how media shape the way children perceive the world. It includes a fascinating and at times humorous description of her own son's interaction with media (television, movies, and video games) from infancy to age eight. It provides the only convincing account of why the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were so popular. No wonder "Mother Jones" chose it as one of a hundred books recommended to President Clinton on his assumption of the presidency. What is so satisfying about this book is that it is as entertaining to the layman--a must for parents--as it is to the specialist in cultural studies. In clear prose, Kinder makes all her material entirely accessible, without jargon.