School
Commercialism: From Democratic Ideal to Market Commodity.
Alex Molnar. New York: Routledge,
2005. Pp. 177. $17.95, paper. ISBN: 0-415-95132-1. TEL: 212-216-7800 •
FAX: 212- 643-1430
Pizza Hut’s Book It! Program rewards students with pizza for meeting
their reading goals. Toys “R” Us paid a Kansas school $5 for each
student who took its toy survey. Cisco Systems donated Internet access to
a California elementary school, asking in return for the school choir to sing
the company’s praises while wearing Cisco t-shirts. Kids today face
a barrage of corporate messages in the schoolhouse.
In this book Alex Molnar traces marketing in American schools over the last
25 years, raising serious questions about the role of private corporations
in public education. Since the 1990s, Molnar says, commercial activities have
shaped the structure of the school day, influenced the curriculum, and determined
whether children have access to computers and other technologies.
He argues against advertisers’ assertions that their contributions are
a win-win proposition for cash-strapped schools and image-conscious companies.
From the marketing of unhealthy foods to privatizing reforms such as the Edison
Schools and Knowledge Universe, this book tracks trends that are more pervasive
than many parents realize and shows how we might recapture schools to serve
the public interest better.
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