Comments on: Diet by Disney? http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/2012/07/04/diet-by-disney/ Responses to Media and Culture Fri, 12 Feb 2016 19:35:04 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.7.5 By: Lindsay Hogan http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/2012/07/04/diet-by-disney/comment-page-1/#comment-220223 Fri, 06 Jul 2012 03:51:43 +0000 http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/?p=13616#comment-220223 Thanks so much, Morgan! You’re absolutely right about the Mickey Check working on levels that appeal to both kids and adults – that’s a great point (I mean, how Disney, right?). Your point about actually labeling it with “…and fun, too!” made me laugh. That seems as much for the parents as the “Good for you” label, too, when I think about it. I mean, a.) kids are pretty skeptical about anything that has to actually *label* itself as fun; that usually means it’s NOT fun, and b.) a huge number kids in their target market are under the age of 6 and can’t read yet; the Mickey head and the Disney-font logo in the top do much of the work appealing to kids that age – the Mickey head outline is even angled almost exactly the same as the Disney Channel, Disney Jr., and DisneyXD on-screen logos, making for much easier recognition.

As for the licensing, I’m interested in how it pans out, too – I’m *sure* it will be something promoted & augmented by familiar Disney faces across all its platforms, so it’ll be fun to see how they integrate that across their holdings. I don’t think Disney has developed/branded its own food products outside of the resorts, at least as far as I know? And from reading the press releases & coverage of the new criteria/Mickey Check logo, it sounds like they’re mostly interested in having other companies slap the logo on to existing packaging as part of a licensing or a co-branding deal (i.e. Iger said something along the lines of “Disney is looking forward to working with food and beverage companies to help them bring their products in line with the stricter Disney health standards.”). I imagine it working as another lucrative way they generate revenue from leveraging the broadly cross-generational appeal of the Disney brand, with minimal overhead on their part, really. But who knows! Maybe we’ll see some Selena Gomez saltine crackers, or some Bella Thorne protein shakes…good for you, and fun too! 🙂

]]> By: morgan http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/2012/07/04/diet-by-disney/comment-page-1/#comment-219688 Thu, 05 Jul 2012 15:19:59 +0000 http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/?p=13616#comment-219688 Great post!
The launch of the Mickey Check logo is also interesting in that it most definitely is simultaneously geared toward kids and adults. It’s colorful and friendly, but also a little text-heavy for a simple stamp of approval. The text reads like it’s meant for kids (as people who can’t consume anything unless it is “fun?” hmmm), but its presence there at all suggests an appeal to parents/guardians, to remind them that Disney always has kids’ best interest in mind and (hint hint) that they can too just by locating this logo and purchasing foods that bear it. The logo isn’t as kid-friendly/synergistic (is that a word?) as it could be, at least not in this iteration–not incorporating characters, not including Mickey’s smiling face. It also seems ready-made to appeal to consumers who might be unaware of what the check stands for and even to those who don’t like being advertised to, since here the idea is that Disney is appealing directly to kids/parents with its new standard of nutrition. It will be interesting to see how the logo/licensing develops from here, since I can only imagine that sooner than we might expect this logo will be augmented by (and no doubt promoted by) familiar Disney characters and/or Disney Channel/XD/Radio Disney actors/popstars thus saturating the mainstream by bringing those faces and names into the wider realm of (youth/adult) consumption, or that Disney will begin branding its own food product lines in lieu of licensing (that hasn’t happened yet, right??)….

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