The World According to Sesame Street

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07/09/2013 A view of Sesame Street that we don't see...the creation of adaptations for world markets. This isn't a case of American corporate domination but rather the attempt to ensure that certain values about child education are prized world wide. Very interesting. See more 08/30/2011 Fascinating, touching, and eye-opening! See more 12/29/2010 I saw The World According to Sesame Street a few years ago on PBS. It is a really fascinating documentary about how Sesame Street gets exported around the world. Each time out, the creators don't simply do a language translation, they instead build a new show with mostly new characters that is customized to the local culture and local educational issues. The creators' philosophy behind this is that Sesame Street was not intended to be an explicitly American product, or rather, did not need to be. Also, just as importantly, they feel that kids are basically taught and conditioned to hate, which then perpetuates all the crap that goes on in the world. And since all kids love TV and colorful characters, Sesame Street can be an experiment to teach young kids a more open positive attitude before they ever get exposed to hate and bigotry. Trying to get the show done can involve a lot of politics. In the case of the Kosovo Sesame Street, ethnic divisions and conflict were still very raw at the time the show was being put together. The show was put together in two different language versions to address the different ethnicities. Although people of different ethnicities worked together on the show, the external situation made things very difficult, and so it was decided to essentially bring in a large portion of the US version, since it would help produce a more neutral format relative to the severe political issues going on in Kosovo. In the case of the Bangladeshi version, production went full speed ahead with new muppets and large beautiful sets, but the main issue was trying to secure the approval of the government, which runs the main TV station. In order to really, really localize the show, a segment was included that has traditional Bangladeshi puppets and music. Also talked about was Takalani Sesame, the recent successful South African version. It was agreed upon that since the kids grew up with HIV/AIDS all around them, getting them educated about the disease as early as possible could only be a benefit. An HIV-positive muppet called Kami was created. It went over well in South Africa, but here in the US, some political commentators and religious types were initially appalled and even accused PBS of being immoral. It's a classic case of taboo, bigotry, and jumping the gun all rolled together that happens all too often here in the US. The documentary is very worth checking out. It shows how education and entertainment can come together in a very positive way. See more 07/10/2009 This movie gave me a greater appreciation of one of my favorite childhood shows. It makes me want to work for them. I think everyone should see it. See more 03/02/2009 I want to work for Sesame Street when I grow up. See more 12/10/2008 OK, so this film is made by Sesame and they do acknowledge their position as "colonizers." That being said, fascinating film, powerful stories , wonderful children and tons of colorful otherworldly Muppets that alone make the film worth a watch. Viva la Sesame! See more Read all reviews

The World According to Sesame Street

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