ARTICLES: Abu Dhabi Media Summit: what the Big Bird controversy means for children's media

Sesame Workshop CEO says children’s learning should be non-partisan; defends public-private partnership but calls for more federal backing.

Move over, Bill Gates. Who would have thought Big Bird would emerge as the most buzzed-about media figure at this week’s Abu Dhabi Media Summit?

The giant yellow avian icon, star of educational TV showSesame Street, hit the political landscape last week when US Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney ruffled feathers by singling out the show for potential federal funding cuts.

“Big Bird is fine. Being 8’2” tall he’s used to attention but not to this extent,” said Melvin Ming, president and CEO of Sesame Workshop, who spoke to the Abu Dhabi conference via satellite from New York.

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ARTICLES: Big Bird declining all media appearances after debate thrusts him into presidential campaign

"Saturday Night Live," Jimmy Fallon, Piers Morgan, the "Today" show and "Good Morning America" all asked for appearances from the "Sesame Street" character on Thursday after he was unexpectedly thrust into the presidential campaign by Mitt Romney.

Sesame Workshop says the giant yellow Muppet is declining all appearances, but there was this tweet from Big Bird on the Sesame Street account: "My bed time is usually 7:45, but I was really tired yesterday and fell asleep at 7! Did I miss anything last night?"

Yes, Bird. During Wednesday's debate with President Barack Obama, Romney called for cutting federal funding to PBS, despite saying, "I love Big Bird." It renewed a long-running debate over subsidies to public broadcasting.

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ARTICLES: Sesame Street opens door to children - in Chinese

When the head of the company that produces the award-winning children's program Sesame Street visited its production set in China last month, everything looked the same as it does in the US original -the colorful, furry Muppets, the catchy music and the fun but educational story lines.

But one difference stood out on this Sesame Street in Shanghai: All of the Muppets were speaking Mandarin.

"We were proud of it because the content was authentically Sesame, and authentically Chinese," said Melvin Ming, CEO of Sesame Workshop."It was a win."

Sesame Street was relaunched in China in December 2010 - 13 years after its debut in China. Sesame Workshop has a team of Chinese producers and writers in Shanghai - all trained by the New York-based nonprofit - who are responsible for putting Big Bird Looks at the World and Fun Fun Elmo, a new series, on the air.

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NEWS / CHILDREN'S TV: Popular children’s show Sesame Street debuts in Afghanistan

Big Bird is flying to Afghanistan — along with some of his of favorite friends.

The hit children's show "Sesame Street" debuted in the war-torn country on Thursday, featuring Elmo, Big Bird and Grover, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

The beloved American show has spread around the world with different focuses for each country. For example, in Northern Ireland, where it airs on the BBC, Hilda the Irish hare and her "Sesame Tree" friends work to teach about cooperation. In Indonesia, "Jalan Sesama" works to celebrate the country's "unity through diversity."

Its aim in Afghanistan is to improve education for children there and is scheduled for an initial run of 26 episodes, the AFP reported.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/popular-children-show-sesame-street-debuts-afghanistan-article-1.986346#ixzz1ffCNm6iY

PROJECTS: Sesame Street Nigeria

With the goal of supporting Nigeria's basic education needs, Sesame Workshop developed the children's television series Sesame Square, broadcast on the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA).

The first season, which debuted in May 2011, consists of 26 thirty-minute episodes that focus on curricular goals tailored to the developmental needs of Nigerian children. Season 2 broadcast is scheduled to begin in May 2012.

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