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Toymakers Play Games With Regulations

Call for more safety testing a cynical move, Slate critic contends

By Jonas Oransky,  Newser Staff

Posted Sep 12, 2007 12:01 PM CDT
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(Newser) – The toy industry’s new safety-testing push may succeed in rebuilding trust, but it’s likely to leave dangerous ways unchecked—and the big guys know it, argues Slate’s E. Marla Felcher. The current scandals are matters of enforcement, not of the regulations themselves, but the new call for third-party testing looks, superficially, like a step forward.

"Why is the toy industry now calling for third-party testing?" Felcher asks. "The short answer is Christmas." Parents may be impressed with the industry's concern; indeed, testing could hasten discovery of hidden dangers. But the proposed system wouldn’t check for design flaws—the culprit in 76% of recalls—and the big companies would know how to skirt it anyway.

Three-year-old Allison Banda plays with a car containing a Polly Pockets doll while other items in the collection sit nearby on a table in the living room of the home of the little girl's family in the west Denver suburb of Lakewood, Colo., on Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2007. Polly Pockets,...
Three-year-old Allison Banda plays with a car containing a Polly Pockets doll while other items in the collection sit nearby on a table in the living room of the home of the little girl's family in the...   (Associated Press)
Joy Mirasol of the public relations firm hired by Mattel, shows a recalled toy car named Sarge Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2007 in Manila's financial district of Makati. The U.S. toy-making giant Mattel recalled some models of Polly Pocket, BArbie, Batman and other Chinese-made toys from Asian markets as part...
Joy Mirasol of the public relations firm hired by Mattel, shows a recalled toy car named "Sarge" Wednesday, Aug. 15, 2007 in Manila's financial district of Makati. The U.S. toy-making giant Mattel recalled...   (Associated Press)
A woman looks at Barbie dolls in a department store in Beijing Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2007. A Chinese official said Wednesday that manufacturers in China and American toy giant Mattel Inc. are both responsible for recent recalls of millions of lead-tainted toys worldwide. Li Zhuoming, executive vice chairman of the...
A woman looks at Barbie dolls in a department store in Beijing Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2007. A Chinese official said Wednesday that manufacturers in China and American toy giant Mattel Inc. are both responsible...   (Associated Press)
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China banning lead paint in toys
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On Capitol Hill, Mattel CEO defends company's policies
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US • Money

 
toys • recall • product safety • Mattel • lead • toy recalls • Christmas

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