Baby Bullshit

Did you really think that showing a video to your kid would make them smarter?

The Walt Disney Company is now offering refunds for all those “Baby Einstein” videos that did not make children into geniuses, though even with the extra dollars in their pocket, it doesn't make the parents any smarter. Aside from being an electronic baby sitter, the unusual refunds appear to be admission that the videos did not increase infant intellect.

Baby Einstein was founded in 1997 and acquired by Disney in 2001, when it expanded to a full line of books, toys, flashcards and apparel, along with DVDs including “Baby Mozart,” “Baby Shakespeare” and “Baby Galileo.” What, no Baby Gordon Gecko? The videos — simple productions featuring music, puppets, bright colors, and not many words, had become a staple of recent baby life. According to a 2003 study, a third of all American babies from 6 months to 2 years old had at least one “Baby Einstein” video.

In 2006, complaints were made to the Federal Trade Commission to complain about the educational claims made by Disney, and the word “educational” was dropped from their marketing. Last year, lawyers threatened a class-action lawsuit for unfair and deceptive practices unless Disney agreed to refund the full purchase price to all who bought the videos since 2004. “The Walt Disney Company’s entire Baby Einstein marketing regime is based on express and implied claims that their videos are educational and beneficial for early childhood development,” a letter from the lawyers said, calling those claims “false because research shows that television viewing is potentially harmful for very young children.” The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no screen time at all for children under 2.

An older interview with Julie Aigner-Clark, founder of Baby Einstein revealed that even she had no idea what she was doing:

"I didn't have a video background, but my husband and I borrowed video equipment and started to shoot scenes on a tabletop in my basement. I put a puppet on my hand and plopped my cat down in front of the camera. My husband and I used our home computer to edit our first video... Everything I did in the first videos was based on my experience as a mom. I didn't do any research. I knew my baby. I knew what she liked to look at. I assumed that what my baby liked to look at, most other babies would, too."

It's pretty clear that Baby Einstein was not rooted in cognitive research as they had boldly claimed and many parents believed. Worse yet, scientists at the University of Washington concluded that these videos actually hindered language development in infants. But if you really think a video is a magic bullet for your kid, don't question the refund - keep them and try it yourself.