The youth market is a lucrative one, influencing the spending of over $125 billion annually. Increasingly, advertisers are turning to new in-school vehicles, including "wall media" (such as wallboards), tie-in programs, product sample packages and sponsored television programming, to reach students in public high schools. School systems, strapped for cash, find offers from advertising revenue hard to turn down. The most controversial attempt to reach students in schools as consumers has been Channel One, a daily, 12-minute television news program with commericals. Channel One has been strongly attacked by media and educational experts alike for emphasizing product values like having fun and being attractive, especially at a time when schools in general are being unfavorably evaluated for students' lack of performance in basic academics. The regulation of commercial speech appears to have legal precedent and has been supported by the Supreme Court. A telephone poll surveyed every state department of education in the United States in March 1991. The survey revealed that, despite the rising tide of criticism of targeting schools for marketing attempts, only 11 states have adopted system-wide guidelines. Policy statements from these 11 states reveal certain similarities. Forty-four states allow schools to air Channel One. Most states allow local districts to decide how to handle advertising in the schools. Should a state system of schools decide to permit commercial messages to reach students, a variety of methods might be used to maintain curricular integrity, including offering critical thinking instruction concerning media and advertising. (Thirty-eight references are attached.) (HB)