The Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood is not impressed with the way "Hello Barbie" spies on our kids.

The Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood is not impressed with the way “Hello Barbie” spies on our kids.

While kids get excited about the holiday gift-giving extravaganza, toy companies are salivating. Sure, store shelves are lined with hundreds of products designed for fun, but some game-makers managed to sneak in a few ways to spy on our families, sexualize our kids and also solidify their loyalty to cola drinks and trans-fat filled fries.

Don’t think they wouldn’t dare….

The Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood scoped out the selection this year and found six toys it’s begging us not to buy. Here are their picks:

 

Hello Barbie by Mattel
Price: $74.99

No_1Prepare your son or daughter for a lifetime of surveillance with Hello Barbie, the doll that records children’s private conversations and transmits them to cloud servers, where they are analyzed by algorithms and listened to by strangers, says the CCFC. Unlike old-fashioned toys that tax children’s imaginations by forcing them to give their dolls a personality and make up conversations, Hello Barbie will talk back to the kid so he or she doesn’t have to do any creative thinking.

 

 

“Brands We Know” by Bellwether Media
Price: $22.95/Book

No_2Brands We Know is a book that will help even the best little reader become commercialized by teaching the kid everything the tv-watchers are learning on the screens, says the CCFC. Author Sara Green seemingly researched company press releases to present relentlessly shiny portraits of Coca-Cola, Disney, McDonald’s, Nike, and more. Each book is packed with glossy product descriptions and photos, and features the author fawning over the world’s giant sugary-drink maker by saying, “With so many choices available, Coca-Cola is sure to have a beverage for every person’s taste!” Green also works to convince kids the companies are philanthropic and environmentally conscious.

 

 

Tube Heroes Collector Pack by Jazwares
Price: $20

No_3This toy immortalizes our kids by getting them to upload on YouTube videos of themselves playing video games, says the CCFC. Forget outdated concepts of heroism like selflessness, compassion, and sacrifice. Instead, this toy will teach our kids to expose the most intimate parts of their lives to content-hungry strangers, says the CCFC. As Tube Heroes tell us, “real is the new cool,” and this is the perfect toy to help your child understand that there’s nothing realer than carefully packaging your personality and (literally!) selling it to the masses in order to rack up video views.

 

 

Bratz #Selfie Stick with Doll by MGA Entertainment
Price: $24.99

No_4Concerned your little one isn’t selfie-literate yet? With The Bratz #Selfie Stick, your kids will get not only a doll but also a selfie stick so she can take real pictures with her new sexualized Bratz friend, says the CCFC. The organization jokes that it’s “great practice for her future Tweeting, Facebooking, and Instagramming of every moment!” That’s because the stick holds a lip-shaped phone holder, so the kid can take selfies in all his or her favorite poses.

 

 

 

Nerf Rebelle Charmed Dauntless Blaster by Hasbro
Price: $12.99

No_5“Are you just dying to glorify firearms in your home but afraid your daughter won’t be interested in toy guns traditionally marketed to boys,” asks the CCFC. Then here is the pretty little shooter you’ve been waiting for, it says. The Nerf Rebelle Charmed Dauntless Blaster comes with a bracelet and charms, guaranteeing your daughter will enjoy hours of stylish, accessorized gunplay. And get this: it comes with lipstick-shaped bullets.

 

 

 

Sky Viper Video Drone by Skyrocket Toys
Price: $79.99

No_6Enable your child to be the little snoop you always knew he could be with the Sky Viper Video Drone, says the CCFC. Equipped with a high-definition video camera that can capture 360 degree views from 200 feet away, the remote-controlled drone is the perfect tool for transforming your friendly neighborhood into a hotbed of discomfort and hostility, jokes the organization. Skyrocket Toys claims the toy is for kids ages 12+, but by advertising it during TV programs like Phineas and Ferb and The Sylvester & Tweety Mysteries, the company ensures that even very young children will nag their parents for their own flying spy cam, it writes.