The White House is celebrating the third anniversary of the Let's Move healthy kids challenge with an old friend: Big Bird.

The beloved Sesame Street character became a talking point during the last presidential election debates regarding PBS funding. Now he's been a VIP at the White House to help First Lady Michelle Obama engage kids in her national anti-obesity program with a new PSA above (see another spot here).

Another powerhouse kids entertainment franchise is lending one of its stars to a government effort. Disney is leveraging its Princess power by hiring out Cinderella for a new spot for the Ad Council, promoting safer car seats in a new public awareness campaign you can watch below.Continue reading...

The world of the Disney Princess—which faces competition from moms and fairies even as it continues being a cash cow for Disney by captivating many girls until the age of three or so—is aiming a bit older with its "I Am a Princess" manifesto.

The video is the latest in a campaign that debuted in the third quarter of 2012, touting the values that the Disney Princess embodies. (B will this new breed of empowered, self-award Disney Princess grow up to be hipster Disney Princesses?)

Check out Disney's earlier "I Am a Princess" videos below, along with another new campaign: an international push for the upcoming Disney Infinity console, starting with this UK commercial:Continue reading...

Film: Brave
Brands Spotted: 0 (if you don't count Scotland)
Standout Placement: N/A
Most Memorable Placement (positive): N/A
Most Memorable Placement (negative): N/A
Overall Product Placement Integration Grade (1-10): N/A
Comments: Some critics have called Brave, Disney/Pixar's new film, formulaic. It's an easy conclusion to reach. The idea behind Brave appears to be taking the popularity of young women archers (cue The Hunger Games, and already a Brave-themed attraction at Disney Parks), pinching some themes from other recent popular franchises (How to Train Your Dragon, Shrek), updating the Disney Princess juggernaut, and wrapping the whole thing in the aura of an earlier epic Scottish tale of bravery (Braveheart*). But Brave's guts aren't the only formulaic element of the film.Continue reading...

Disney recently held its first National Princess Week in the U.S. with Julie Andrews and Target as the co-sponsor, and it's gearing up for its next generation of princess in the new girl-power Pixar movie that opens on June 18th: Brave, the story of "the heroic journey of Merida (voice of Kelly Macdonald), a skilled archer and headstrong daughter of King Fergus (voice of Billy Connolly) and Queen Elinor (voice of Emma Thompson)."

And despite the recent resignation of the creator of the Disney Princess product line and critics such as author Peggy Orenstein (her book's title says it all: "Cinderella Ate My Daughter") of the view of womanhood that Disney Princess represents, the female dream team at Disney is bigger than ever overseas. With that in mind, all young Disney Princess lovers, start begging your parents to play a holiday trip to London — Harrods has announced a partnership with Disney that will have the princesses dominating the store’s windows when the Christmas holiday season hits.

Of course, the princesses won’t be wearing any old get-ups. They’ll be outfitted in dresses created by such designers as Oscar de la Renta, Versace, and Elie Saab, according to a press release from Harrods.Continue reading...

Disney, undoubtedly one the brands that's best known to young children, is looking to work its marketing magic at an even earlier age by bringing new mothers into their brand family with a new venture called Disney Baby.

The company launched the business last month by going around to 580 U.S. maternity hospitals, offering new mothers a Disney Cuddly Bodysuit free of charge, reports the New York Times.

The bodysuit, resembling the popular newborn onesie, is cheerily presented to the new mother by a bilingual representative, who asks mom to sign up on the splashy Babyzone website for email alerts, or participate as "Momgineers" to help spread the word.Continue reading...