National Geographic Kids

I had a subscription to National Geographic's original kids magazine, World, when I was a child. In fact, I still have a couple dozen issues from about 25 years ago, which my 5 years old son has enjoyed looking through.

A few months ago, I looked on the web to see if World still existed. Happily, it did, now renamed National Geographic Kids. I ordered a two-year subscription for my son.

I wanted so much to like it. But the damn thing is chock full of advertising for candy, video games and movies, and in a way that makes it hard to separate the selling from the educating. It is a little repulsive, actually, the level to which the advertising is carried.

As I sit here in front of my computer, I am looking wistfully at a May 1982 issue of World magazine. Within which, there is not one stich of advertising.

What happened?

The magazine is one huge ad. Even the feature stories are all about selling some popular culture fad. A great example is a story about how the Incredible Hulk "evolved" from its comic book roots through its TV show to its currently released movie version. Most of the feature stories are like this. They are selling current films or pop singers, not teaching your children anything. I cannot describe how bad this magazine is.

Try Ranger Rick! Or check out KidsDiscover. Great magazine $20.00 a year no ads!

Buy National Geographic Kids Now

I'm so glad we didn't buy a subscription to National Geographic Kids magazine without checking it out at the news stand first! It truly seemed like there were more pages of ads than of actual CONTENT in this magazine.

If you're looking for a good kids' magazine about nature & wildlife, try one of the National Wildlife Federation's excellent publications. My kids enjoy Your Big Backyard (for ages 3-7) and Ranger Rick (for kids 7 & up), both of which are available through Amazon.com or

Kids Discover magazine (for 6-12 year olds) is another favorite with my children (and me) and contains great science & social studies articles without the commercials of NG Kids. You can subscribe through Amazon or

Read Best Reviews of National Geographic Kids Here

When I was young I had a subscription to the National Geographic kids magazine which was at the time called "World" magazine. It was interesting, and I held onto my subscription for nearly 8 years. My parents remembering how much I enjoyed this magazine, bought my daughter a subscription to the latest incarnation of this magazine. The National Geographic Kids. It is SUCH a disappointment. While I don't think there are actually any more ads in this magazine than any other, there are far too many "articles" that act as full page advertisements for Movies & Television shows. They also have a monthly calendar that spends more time announcing birthdays of celebrities and movie release dates (?) and fun facts about pop stars(?)than historically or scientifically relevant dates. In the January 2004 edition only 24 of the 40 pages were free of ads or movie/television related articles/images. The articles are without depth. Most of the information in this magazine is segmented into "sound byte" sized chunks. It is more like an "Entertainment Weekly" for kids. National Geographic should be ashamed put its name on such an obvious attempt to feed our kids even MORE pop culture. We will not resubscribe!

Want National Geographic Kids Discount?

I am truly appalled that National Geographic would squander it's reputation by putting out such a low quality publication. Never again will I assume that the National Geographic name confers high quality or intellectual integrity. I found what little educational content there was to be dumbed down and lacking in focus. I also found both the excessive amount and the type of "tween" targeted advertising to be inappropriate for a supposedly educational magazine.

Before subscribing, I had only seen seen "samples" of this magazine, but the samples are not at all like the real thing. The samples had more pages of educational content than the real magazine.

When we received a subscription as a gift, I was appalled at both the excessive amount and the type of advertising not at all appropriate for younger elementary students, nor in any way related to the supposedly educational focus. I was so disturbed by the content of some of the ads for violent video games and inappropriate movies, that I did not even show the magazine to my son.

As a science educator, I decided to quantify my impression, so I counted the advertising pages vs. the actual educational content and the non-educational pop culture drek (star interviews, movie reviews, product reviews). In the 56 page issue I reviewed, there was only 21 pages of "educational content" (including the cover and some pretty lame trivia), ads took up 17 and 2/3 pages and there were 12 and 2/3 pages of non-educational pop culture drek and thinly disguised marketing (including star interviews, movie and product reviews, non-educational jokes or puzzles). The last 4 and 1/3 pages included crafts (2 pages), one educational puzzle (1 page) and the publishing info & contents (1 and 1/3 pages).

Draw your own conclusions. I'm cancelling our subscription AND I'll look twice at any kid's products marketed by National Geographic in the future. They (National Geographic) have lost the confidence of a former lifelong fan.

Save 62% Off