"ten things every brand should know about asian american youth"

I missed this when it was published a few weeks back... a press release from SnapDragon consulting, a "brand insights firm": Ten Things Every Brand Should Know About Asian-American Youth. These insights were developed in partnership with performer and artist Kate Rigg, who spoke with hundreds of Asian American youth about their experiences and thoughts about growing up in America. Here are some key insights:

1. Many Asian-American youth feel excluded and misunderstood by most brands. It's made worse by the fact that they see advertisers actively wooing the African-American and Hispanic markets.

2. Mixed race kids are proudly identifying as Hapa, a once derogatory word in Hawaiian to mean "half." Hapa is also slang for marijuana in Japanese (spelled Happa). Hapa is supplanting terms like Amerasian, biracial, and blasian.

3. Asian-American youth are secret fans of "easy listening" adult contemporary music. Lite FM is a hidden passion.

4. There's a "hero gap" among Asian-American kids, which is being filled for many by activists from other cultures. Martin Luther King is a role model and hero to many young Asian-Americans.

5. Most Asian-American kids refer to white people as "white people" the same way African-Americans do.

6. Underage gambling is huge. The "new" American poker obsession is nothing new to Asian-American kids. Gambling has a long history in Asian culture. Many students Rigg spoke with are avid online gamblers and card players. Some organize private online poker tournaments.

7. Asian-American kids want an end to the hyper-nerdy images of themselves on TV and want to see more punked-out skater and graffiti DJ images which reflect a different energy. The feeling is: Enough with the math geeks, future doctors and violinists. Asian-American kids crave street credibility -- not just academic accolades.

8. Asian-American kids universally hate the question: Where are you from -- especially since the answers are usually something like "Westchester" or "Boston."

9. All things Korean are hot and getting hotter. Fashion. Foods. DJs. Online communities. Korea is the new Japan.

10. The 15 minutes of seemingly benign American Idol fame for William Hung had a surprisingly negative effect on Asian-American students. There's a feeling that Hung perpetuated the worst stereotypes about Asian people and gave non-Asians permission to indulge in two years of racial stereotyping and mocking.

There you go. Interesting, but definitely nothing we already didn't know. And now... this information can be used for the glorious good of capitalism.

And man, while we're on it, I really have to agree with number 10, the William Hung thing. Like I've said many times, he's the living stereotype that will just not go away. I guess that's why I was so hopeful about Paul Kim making it to the top 24 on American Idol. The guy made it clear that he was there to address those stereotypes, and make sure American knew that there was more to us Asians than that goofy guy who sang "She Bangs." And he was going to do it the old-fashioned way, with solid talent. But alas, America didn't give him a chance to get further: 'American Idol' contestant Paul Kim says song choice, illness got him bounced. Hey, at least there's still AJ Tabaldo and Sanjaya Malakar competing in the top 20...