Why Is Sesame Street Such A Controversial Lightning Rod?

[beaker]

Well yeah it's a balance between not being sterile and coddling and being zany and irreverent. All I know is Murray is the best darn new Sesame character in the past two decades IMHO

 

[Drtooth]

Dr Tooth, I'm a little confused...you said parent groups have knee jerk reactions to Sesame Street, but that you find Rosevelt Franklin and Guy Smiley inappropriate due to their behavior?

I'm not saying they should have or that I agree with the character oustings, I'm just saying, I can see why a preschool show would want to avoid something that sends a bad example. It's like why they stopped having Bert call Ernie a Meatball and stuff. And frankly, the character is much funnier without it. The way he gets so over exasperated and faints? That's why we love Bert.

And yeah it was a gross over simplification. However I will say I have great hope for the next generation, even if they are even further removed from a more organic, analog world. I fear one day everything will be one giant Matrix-esque cloud computing wetwire network, with no connection to the old ways of enjoying life. But then I also see how high schoolers now in America are in a very post racial, post homophobic mindset. Extremely open minded, shedding a lot of their parents and societies old prejudices. A lot of inner city schools are starting to turn around as well. I do have hope. And some of my complains may just be my Statler and Waldorf side.

I hate the fact that everything's on iPads, and everything's all app based, though. I worry more for the future of television, movies, and physical reading material, as there's just so much going on that's negatively affecting them all. The less people buying DVD's means the less risk films take. And I'd hate to not be able to collect comic books. Even the toy market is hurting because of apps. No wonder the prices are insane.

But on the other hand, cartoons more or less have been getting better. Even toy based cartoons have names attached. How much more organic is that? I love 1980's cartoons for the most part, but I bought the Warner Bros 1980's collection, mainly because it was at Five Below, and for the Ed Grimley cartoon. While some of the other cartoons on that disk were so insanely stupid that they were entertaining, I make special mention of The Bisketts. That has to be one of the worst things I've ever seen. Aside from the obvious "we have to make Smurf knockoffs" bit, the show has the most egregious example of "The Complainer is Always Wrong" I've ever seen. Again, I love 1980's cartoons, but that is the worst message cartoons ever made. I don't care how stupid something gets past the 80's, I'm absolutely glad cartoons aren't forcing Tall Poppy Syndrome on children anymore. Or in that case Tall Puppy Syndrome.

While everyone laughed about the Romney Big Bird thing, Sesame Workshop I realize is facing their two biggest crisis in decades: the loss of Kevin Clash and the fallout of whatever it is he may have done and the impact on their flagship brand and the recent firing of 10% of its work force. While Im glad EMTV sold the rights back to JHC and thus made Sesame its own separate thing completely...sometimes I *do* worry about the future of Sesame Street.

Sesame Street will do fine because it's too much of an institution for anyone to want to get rid of. I wouldn't doubt that the mass firings are because little kids aren't buying enough talking Elmos and PBS is only using that money it gets to outbid BBC America on terrible British Crime Shows (Sherlock is not one of them. Sherlock is freaking amazing and I'm glad I don't have to get a cable channel that barely runs British programing anymore just to watch it). PBS no longer does kid's pledge month, and it's hurting those programs.

 

[CensoredAlso]

I'm not saying they should have or that I agree with the character oustings, I'm just saying, I can see why a preschool show would want to avoid something that sends a bad example.

The thing is too often I notice authority figures concentrating on petty things like censoring TV shows while blatantly ignoring actual bullying going on in a classroom.

 

[Drtooth]

I've been saying for years, taking an easy target is a win no matter what. The obesity problem? They go after sodas over 16 ounces, but refuse to tackle any of the major factors that contribute to it culturally (there are people who have taken up community gardens, but that's another story). A company/TV show will cave in if it gives them bad PR.

As far as censorship goes, we tend to forget self censorship as well. Remember, Jim had to basically talk Joan into the Baker falling down the stairs jokes.

Still, what I said was simply dispelling the over-romanticized notion that Roosevelt Franklin was removed for some big racial conspiracy, vs. the rowdiness of students in the skit. Why they couldn't just dump the students and keep Roosevelt is beyond me, but I think it might have also been a matter of Matt Robinson leaving the show. In fact, I'd say that's the most likely part.

 

[MelissaY1]

I don't think it's so much that the show stirs up so much controversy, it's because we have too many sensitive people walking around these days, and because one parent may get offended that Katy Perry had a midriff top on singing with Elmo, the media picks up on that and blows it out of proportion. I blame the "PC Police"

 

[Drtooth]

I don't think it's so much that the show stirs up so much controversy, it's because we have too many sensitive people walking around these days, and because one parent may get offended that Katy Perry had a midriff top on singing with Elmo, the media picks up on that and blows it out of proportion. I blame the "PC Police"

I'd say the very exact opposite was the case in the Kathy Perry fiasco.

The problem is, SW listened to internet Youtube comments.

The Youtube comments section is usually where the worst people in society go to say racist, homophobic, xenophobic, terrible things that they know would get them a punch in the face if they said out loud, but since they have anonymity, they can say all the horrible, backwards things they want.

I'm sure most of those comments were by the same prudes that freaked out when Archie (a comic book character/series/company that's so incredibly fussy about keeping the characters' purity, they're insanely litigious and even sued a band for using a character name) added Kevin Keeler.

As for the media... no. it's not the PC police. it's about making everything a big fat moral panic and making sure any nuance of a news story is buried under a loud, garish headline to tick off really stupid people. I mean, look at the Paula Deen Scandal. The media hasn't gone far into the details of why she's a social pariah. They're just saying "she said teh N wordz," ignoring the huge legal case against her that's very complicated and very disturbing.

 

[beaker]

Oh man, I forgot the Katy Perry Elmo controversy. What was she suppose to wear, a burqa or berlap sack?

 

[D'Snowth]

Maybe something a teensy more approrpiate... y'know, for a kid's show?

 

[Drtooth]

Oh man, I forgot the Katy Perry Elmo controversy. What was she suppose to wear, a burqa or berlap sack?

The thing that makes it extremely idiotic is that she wore a body suit that made it look worse. But seriously, a sexy pop diva that sings sexy songs dressing sexy? Somehow that was a surprise?

I know that there are people who weren't completely crazy/stupid that did kind of have a problem with that and kinda had a point... but SW didn't quite listen to them as much as the same people who turn a commercial for Life Cereal into a not at all hateful racist rant by a not at all dangerously insane individual. There was a humongous crapstorm over a freaking Cheerios commercial with a mixed race family. And that crapstorm was over the idiotic comments a bunch of not at all wannabe KKK members we polluting on Youtube.

So basically, SW took the word of scumbags that think they're important into consideration.

 

[beaker]

It's just a normal evening dress.

Compare to Pee Wee's Playhouse Miss Yvonne