2nd Fact Sheet Essays - Creative Works, Television Series

2nd Fact Sheet Essays - Creative Works, Television Series 2nd Fact Sheet By Dany SADER General Idea: HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sesame_Street Sesame Street is an American HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Children%27s_television_program children's television program that is known for its use of format and structure to convey educational concepts to its preschool audience, and to help them prepare for school. It utilizes the conventions of television such as music, humor, sustained action, and a strong visual style, and combines HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Henson Jim Henson's HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muppets Muppets , animation, short films, humor, and cultural references. The show, which premiered in 1969, was the first to base its contents, format, and production values on laboratory and formative research. According to researchers, it was also the first to include a curriculum detailed or stated in terms of measurab le outcomes " . The format of Sesame Street consisted of a combination of commercial television production elements and educational techniques. It was the first time a more realistic setting, an inner city street and neighborhood, was used for a children's program. At first, each episode was structured like a HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magazine magazine , but in 1998, as a result of changes in their audience and its viewing habits, the producers researched the reasons for its lower ratings, and changed the show's structure to a more narrative format. The popular, fifteen-minute long segment, HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elmo%27s_World Elmo's World , hosted by the Muppet HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elmo Elmo , was added in 1998 to make the show more accessible to a younger audience. The producers of Sesame Street expanded the new format to the entire show in 2002. Who was behind it? Sesame Street was conceived in 1966 during discussions between television producer Joan Ganz Cooney and HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnegie_Corporation_of_New_York Carnegie Foundation vice president Lloyd Morrisett. Their goal was to create a children's television show that would master the addictive qualities of television and do something good with them " , such as helping young children prepare for school. After two years of research, the newly formed Children's Television Workshop (CTW) received a combined grant of US$8 million ($55 million in 2018 dollars) from the Carnegie Foundation, the HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Foundation Ford Foundation , the HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporation_for_Public_Broadcasting Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_government_of_the_United_States U.S. Federal Government to create and produce a new children's television show. The program premiered on HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_broadcasting public television stations on November 10, 1969. It was the first preschool educational television program to base its contents and production values on laboratory and formative research. Initial responses to the show included adulatory reviews, some controversy, and high ratings. By its 50th anniversary in 2019, there were over 150 versions of Sesame Street , produced in 70 languages. As of 2006, 20 HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sesame_Street_international_co-productions international versions had been produced. Content: From its first episode, Sesame Street has structured its format by using a strong visual style, fast-moving action, humor, and music, as well as animation and live-action short films. When Sesame Street premiered, most researchers believed that young child ren did not have long HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attention_span attention spans , therefore the new show's producers were concerned that an hour-long show would not hold their audience's attention. At first, the show's street scenes the action taking place on its set consisted of character-driven interactions and were not written as ongoing stories. Instead, they consisted of individual, curriculum-based segments which were interrupted by inserts consisting of puppet sketches, short films, and animations. This structure allowed the producers to use a mixture of styles and characters, and to vary the show's pace. By season 20, research had shown that children were able to follow a story, and the street scenes, while still interspersed with other segments, became evolving storylines. Advertising strengths of this program: Early in their history Sesame Street and the CTW began to look for alternative funding sources and turned to creating products and writing licensing agreements. They became, as Cooney put it, a multiple-media institution. In 1970, the CTW created a non-broadcast division responsible for creating and publishing books and HYPERLINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sesame_Street_Magazine Sesame Street Magazine . They decided that all materials their licensing program created would underscore and amplify the show's curriculum. In 2004, over 68% of Sesame Street 's revenue came from licenses and products such as toys and clothing. By 2008,