The Council on Communications and Media (COCM) was founded in 2007 by joining the Committee on Communications (COCOM) with the Section on Media (SOM). The creation of the COCM reflects not just an acknowledgement within the AAP of the importance of media within the world of pediatrics, but also how important media issues have become in our clinical and everyday lives.
What We Do
As a united group, the COCM aims to amplify the voice of the Academy, both nationally and locally and to serve as a resource for health care professionals, parents, and health journalists by bringing them the information they need about media-related issues and how these relate to children's overall health and well-being.
Media has a huge influence in shaping contemporary American culture. Our patients and their families are overwhelmingly exposed to media – so much so that media exposure has become a public health issue. The COCM strives to influence what messages the media send to children and to teach children and families how to analyze media messages. Our overall mission involves policy development and dissemination, education, professional networking and development, and community outreach and advocacy.
We hope this site will become a useful tool for anyone interested in the impact of media issues on children, both in and out of the Academy!
Hear directly from our members about why they joined COCM.
Our Work in Action
What does the AAP really do? Where does the work of AAP show up in all our communities?
You may hear these questions from friends, patients, even colleagues. Sometimes the work and campaigns from AAP are obvious and sometimes they're not. If you look closely enough, just under the fibers in the fabric of our communities, you’ll notice the impact of all of the AAP campaigns right there. The AAP has impacted decisions across the nation, including when Disney agreed to not have actors smoke cigarettes in movies. Every time you hear a group talk about helping kids watch TV less and move more, that’s our work in action.
In addition, the COCM has developed tools for pediatricians and families to talk to children and young people about healthy media use. This includes the Family Media Plan, sponsored by AT&T, and a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services grant funded center for excellence on social media.
Learn more about some of the COCM’s accomplishments and programs:
Last Updated
04/11/2023
Source
American Academy of Pediatrics