Dr. Rebecca Hains
Author, professor and speaker | Children's media culture, media literacy, and media criticism
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Lifestyle branding and the Disney Princess megabrand
Did you know that Behr produces a line of Disney Princess interior paints? Here are some photos I took of Behr’s Disney Princess – Disney Color catalog. Introducing the Disney Princess bathroom: And, of course, the Disney Princess bedroom: While…
Read MoreKatniss vs Merida: Mattel’s doll versions of strong girl characters
Last month, Mattel released a Katniss Everdeen doll, inspired by the look and style of Jennifer Lawrence in the Hunger Games film. Compared with Mattel’s typical fare, the Katniss doll was refreshingly unsexualized–reflecting the character’s positive portrayal in the film (which…
Read MoreDisney Princess flowers: coming soon to a garden near you.
Imagine this scenario: Four-year-old Madison is obsessed with princesses. She wants to eat, sleep, breathe nothing but Disney Princess products, and it’s becoming a point of contention in her household. Her parents are tired of all the little battles over…
Read MorePrincess Extravagance, from Preschool to Prom
What do little girls in princess dresses and teenagers at proms have in common? More than you might think! Last week, a new survey found that nationwide, U.S. teens and their families will spend an average of $1,000 on this…
Read MoreAre the “Princess Wars” the new “Mommy Wars”?
A couple of weeks ago, Stephanie Hanes of the Christian Science Monitor called me. She had seen my post asking studios like Disney and Dreamworks to let princesses dare to dream of more, and she wanted to hear more of…
Read MoreCan a Princess Dare to Dream of More?
“When you wish upon a star, your dreams come true.” – Pinocchio, 1940 For over 70 years, making dreams come true has been a major theme of Disney. Lately, princesses have been at the center of that theme–and with princesses…
Read MoreTalking about toys: Taking child’s play seriously
On occasion, people ask me why I bother taking children’s toys so seriously. “They’re just toys, after all!” Yes, toys are just toys–but they’re so much more than that, too. Toys are a central part of children’s play, and to…
Read MoreNew at the Disney Store: Princess Dolls with Extra Sparkles! (and extra problems)
On a recent visit to my local Disney Store, I learned that Disney had just released a new line-up of Disney Princess dolls at the holidays. The new line-up was on the shelves–and so were some of their older counterparts.*…
Read More“Chess for Girls,” or how Saturday Night Live predicted the future.
Saturday Night Live’s fake commercial, “Chess for Girls” [transcript], was hilarious in 1997–but today, it strikes awfully close to home. An ultra-pink chess set that’s “not too hard, just pretty and fun”–with prancing ponies and a long-haired queen in a…
Read MorePracticing slightly subversive parenting: Toddlers and gender
Gender representations in popular kids’ storybooks make me sigh. Books based on TV programs and movies seem among the worst offenders; yet they’re inescapably popular. To manage them, I do two things: First, I keep movie- and tv-based books to…
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