A recent very pro-children’s-TV article by Emily Nussbaum in the New Yorker
might be of interest to the list. While reading it I kept thinking of Bob
Bleckman’s comment on a Mike Plugh blog post from a few months ago: «My
feeling (probably derived from Postman) is that what Sesame Street is
really teaching 3-5 year olds is how to watch television, and more
specifically, television advertising. The “content” may have been letters
and numbers, but the style was short, rapid cuts, quick subject shifts and
a host of other film/TV production techniques.»
Interestingly, in passing Nussbaum draws a contrast between Sesame Street
and some of the newer shows, essentially saying that the new shows are
better for a variety of reasons. Despite having a three-year-old, I’m not
knowledgeable about any of the shows that are the focus of the NYer review
(my daughter has just about never watched TV) so I can’t have an informed
reaction to the piece. I’m curious if any list members have seen the shows
in the review – either because they have kids, or from a critical scholarly
perspective – and how they may contrast, favorably or not, with Sesame
Street. And if the long-held critiques of Sesame Street also apply to these
newer shows, or if the new shows require an entirely different analysis.
Here’s the NYer piece:
http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/television/2012/02/13/120213crte_television_nussbaum
Blog de Octavio Islas 