Is someone sleeping on the job or is it that our society is becoming liberal? These days, condoms are advertised on FM and TV stations any time of the day in total disregard of children. On television, condom adverts are aired during prime time.
Why should gadgets meant for adults be advertised to all segments of society, including innocent children? What do children have to do with condoms?
Children do not deserve to be told about condoms unless we want to build a generation that is morally corrupt. They should not be fed with messages and images meant for adults. Normally, content meant for adult like films are broadcasted during ‘off peak’ hours when it is presumed children are not watching.
That is why some soaps are aired past 10pm. However, in case the film contains scenes that may upset children, parents are often advertised to offer parental guidance. But looking at it, what is the difference between condom adverts and most soaps? While films come with advisories, condoms adverts do not.
This begs the question, why does Kenya Film Censorship Board or any other authority, which monitors TV programmess not rate adverts? Condom adverts have made watching TV as a family uncomfortable.
At my home, when the commercials are televised, everybody stops looking at TV screen and start doing other activities hoping the advert ends soon.
The pain is children do not. They get curious because the adverts are creatively made to attract attention. They even get closer to see how the man and woman featured in the advert are holding hands. It even gets more curious for them when the couple disappear into a building.
This is the time when parents freeze and pray that they had never watched TV with their children. Often, they expect a question from their children about the advert. It is even better if the question comes since one can tell what a child is thinking, if it does not, this is a cause for worry.
Condom adverts should be kept out of TV screen especially during prime time. After all, the targeted audience knows what the gadgets are meant for.
It is time KFCB takes action to protect children from being exposed to sexual material and content on electronic media. Perhaps companies running the adverts can place them on billboards and in newspapers, where children will not come across them.
-Francis Waweru, Nairobi
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