Sesame Street decided to cancel an upcoming spot that included clips featuring Elmo singing with a revealingly buxom Katy Perry after receiving complaints after the video was initially posted on YouTube. This was far from Kermit and Pam Anderson singing It’s Not Easy Being Green as a duet. However, the initial backlash (how dare they show Elmo and cleavage), the resulting counter-backlash (how dare they censor women’s bodies), and the widespread coverage all served to send a very strong message to parents with kids under 5. No matter how you get to Sesame Street, you’ll find nothing but wholesome, happy content there. This is welcome relief to parents concerned with the media’s aggressive sexualization of their 5 year old daughters.
And while I’m not so cynical to believe this was a deliberate public snookering by Sesame Street Marketing execs, the following comment left on CNN Entertainment is not entirely implausible:
“I smell a publicity stunt! She would have been supplied with a costume by none other than the wardrobe department at Children’s Television Workshop. Then they got some negative comments from the YouTube test video, and it’s a media hit for them and for Perry.” -CJ
