Reason Online published a list last week calling out the ten most absurd Time Magazine cover stories over the past 40 years, and “Beware of the Poke Mania” came in third.
“This Time cover story breathlessly warns that children are printing counterfeit cards, cheating friends and classmates, and even stabbing one another over Pokemon trading disputes,” Reason Online says about the November, 1999 Time story.
Time’s article goes as far as to say, “The ease with which [children] slip into cunning and thuggery can stun a mergers-and-acquisitions lawyer.”
However, Reason Online (as their name implies) takes a more reasonable look at the “Pokéocracy”, stating that the magazine never actually presents any substantiating data for this horrible fad that is ruining America’s youth. RO even mentions a BBC story done on Pokémon during the U.K. Poke-craze that explains how Pokémon could teach children economic lessons such as supply and demand, exchange rates and bubble bursting (No, they don’t mean the Water-type move).
I remember picking up this copy of Time when I was a 10-year-old waiting in the doctor’s office. I’m pretty sure the entire article was crafted solely to capitalize on the first wave of Poké-fever in the U.S. and maybe get a few people to pay attention to Time again.
[Reason Online - Top 10 Most Absurd Time Covers ] [Time - Beware the Poke Mania ]
wow TIME was pretty absurd if the cover story was pokemon… but it is pretty weird that TIME thought Pokemon fever needed to be adressed jeez…
Absurd!?! Please!
Take a look at the other TIME covers, this ain’t nothing surprising. News is an entertainment industry, and the public just loves to be terrified of everything.
It’s such a low-blow, though (rymes) they find the tiniest hints of evil, and inflate them for the public. I doubt they even take the time to learn about what they’re adressing.
Didn’t I mention this piece in the forums a week ago?
Anyway it’s too good to resist. I especially like how they stuck Poliwhirl dead center to show how he and his little Pocket Monster pals are hypnotizing your kids …
Ya, like they want you to believe that pokemon is hypnotizing people. But it has all passed now…. i think
looks to me like they want to divert people (kids) from reading things that arent american made. Was this article printed during WWII?????
Poke…..mon Poke….mon WHAT? U think im hypnotized Poke…..mon
Dang you Hypno you really hypnotized me into loving that little yellow chu.
I acully read this once, and its the only time ive ever read.
so let me get this straight… people stabbed each other for cards? And I don’t really think this is absurd… it’s just Pokemon getting way too much attention. Would they of said that if it were Yu-Gi-Oh or Digimon? i doubt it.
*Facepalm*
Ugh, the media….
Wow. This just sounds like they needed more readers, so they blew it out of proportion.
I… I didn’t mean to beat him up. I just wanted his POGEYMANZ card…
This is both absurd like everybody said, but also hilarious that they would publish such crap.
Haha, I saw this on the forums the other day. xD
This is funny if you ask me. I…am…hypnotized.
But of course, how can we let children play such corrupting rubbish? I demand that more children play Grand Theft Auto for a better, purer upbringing.
/sarcasm
“I didn’t give you my Alakazam for nothing… hand over the Holofoil Clefable and no one gets hurt…”
Oh my god…it’s a childrens game, not freaking DRUGS. XD
I remember reading this in the dentist office as a kid! I was amazed to find out the actual beginnings of Pokemon and what they based it off of. Oh such good memories…
I don’t remember this issue at all but I thank it’s funny how everyone went after Pokemon and not Digimon since they both came here at the same time.
i dont get why they sat that pokemon has ruined a lot of ppls lives just look at star wars has done worse