Abstract What fantasies are stimulated in young minds by famous singers and bands? How do you explain the fact that top models such as Claudia Schiffer and popstars like Michael Jackson have been recognised not only by Colombian middle and upper class children, but also by indigenous and black kids who have never ventured outside their isolated villages? What are the consequences on children's minds of the different types of violence they encounter in their everyday lives and to which they are exposed in their daily consumption of commercial TV? Why do urban children in Colombia never talk about indigenous Colombians and Afro Colombians? What opinions do kids have about news items such as September 11 or the deaths of children caught in the crossfire of conflict? In what ways do the images of popstars, the mothers of young soldiers who have been kidnapped by the guerrilla or the report on a recent street demonstration merge with the daily life of children in Colombia and shape their ideas and images about society?