Elmo's Going to Corrupt Your Kids
Jun. 2nd, 2011 12:51 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
walkwithheroesDid you know Hollywood is mostly liberal? Shocking, I know.
Conservative Ben Shapiro has written a book all about the liberal agenda in Hollywood. He audio interviewed several executives in Hollywood and found out all their "secrets" - mostly that they are trying to discredit conservatives and core American values. How? Via television, of course!
When I read about this, my first thought was: Okay.
But then, I read more. . .he's got proof. Big proof! The executives Ben interviewed stated things about the shows they created and/or produced. For example: Happy Days had some hidden anti-war messages; M*A*S*H was also anti-war; Friends debunked family values by having a gay couple marry and having couple shave children out of wedlock; MacGyver had an anti-gun message, instead he used his brain to solve problems.
Okay, I am not surprised that Hollywood is more leftist than anything. I don't even find it shocking that shows like M*A*S*H had a more antiwar slant. Hell, I'm happy they do. And, I don't find shows like that to be part of some secret agenda - every piece of art has a message behind it. Wars are terrible; is it so bad to show the darker side of it? Or is it terrible to try and show people accepting others for who they are? Are to show a man using his brain to get out of tricky situations? I'm not terribly surprised that a conservative author would take these things as liberal.
But, what I am surprised with is the fact that Sesame Street is the biggest leftist, liberal agenda thing on television. Yes, Big Bird and Friends! According to Shapiro,
Shapiro says it was easy to get people to open up to him.
"There was a certain amount of stereotyping on their part in granting the interview," he told the Independent. "Many probably assumed that with a name like Shapiro and a Harvard Law credential, there was no need to Google me: I would have to be a leftist. In Hollywood, talking to a Jew with a Harvard Law baseball cap is like talking to someone wearing an Obama pin."
He went onto say this about Sesame Street,
"Shapiro is the hardest on Sesame Street, accusing creators of trying to brainwash children. One of the show's founding executives, Mike Dann, says, the longtime kids series "was not made for the sophisticated or the middle class."
"Sesame Street tried to tackle divorce, tackled 'peaceful conflict resolution' in the aftermath of 9/11 and had [gay actor] Neil Patrick Harris on the show playing the subtly-named 'fairy shoe person'," writes Shapiro, who also notes Grover breaking bread with a hippy and the socioeconomic and racial undertones in Oscar living in a garbage can."
Other liberal things that Sesame Street does: Elmo supports the Michelle Obama Children's Health thing, you know, where she wants kids to eat healthy and exercise, the show also promotes children of all cultures and backgrounds to be friendly, it has a "go green" message, among other things.
Look, the man spoke with people - he recorded them. I don't know if they knew they were being recorded, and he could have edited things about. But, he has the tapes and apparently plans to slowly leak them to conservative websites and Fox News. Okay, fine. Conservatives in Hollywood are rare, and many shows play to a more liberal audience. Also, I can understand and see how and why some creators would try and put some subtext about certain things into their shows: anti-war messages, gay rights, etc. This isn't groundbreaking stuff. He claims to have several big time Hollywood types bashing conservative authors and television hosts. Frankly, I don't care what he has to say or who said what about whom.
It's just - did he have to bring my beloved Sesame Street into the mix? Liberal or not, teaching children to accept others, eat healthy, exercise, recycle, and to save money, seems like things anyone - conservative or liberal - would want their kids to know. I guess not.
You can find more about this by doing a Google search. Both sides have written several articles about it. I got my quotes from Hollywood Reporter
Conservative Ben Shapiro has written a book all about the liberal agenda in Hollywood. He audio interviewed several executives in Hollywood and found out all their "secrets" - mostly that they are trying to discredit conservatives and core American values. How? Via television, of course!
When I read about this, my first thought was: Okay.
But then, I read more. . .he's got proof. Big proof! The executives Ben interviewed stated things about the shows they created and/or produced. For example: Happy Days had some hidden anti-war messages; M*A*S*H was also anti-war; Friends debunked family values by having a gay couple marry and having couple shave children out of wedlock; MacGyver had an anti-gun message, instead he used his brain to solve problems.
Okay, I am not surprised that Hollywood is more leftist than anything. I don't even find it shocking that shows like M*A*S*H had a more antiwar slant. Hell, I'm happy they do. And, I don't find shows like that to be part of some secret agenda - every piece of art has a message behind it. Wars are terrible; is it so bad to show the darker side of it? Or is it terrible to try and show people accepting others for who they are? Are to show a man using his brain to get out of tricky situations? I'm not terribly surprised that a conservative author would take these things as liberal.
But, what I am surprised with is the fact that Sesame Street is the biggest leftist, liberal agenda thing on television. Yes, Big Bird and Friends! According to Shapiro,
Shapiro says it was easy to get people to open up to him.
"There was a certain amount of stereotyping on their part in granting the interview," he told the Independent. "Many probably assumed that with a name like Shapiro and a Harvard Law credential, there was no need to Google me: I would have to be a leftist. In Hollywood, talking to a Jew with a Harvard Law baseball cap is like talking to someone wearing an Obama pin."
He went onto say this about Sesame Street,
"Shapiro is the hardest on Sesame Street, accusing creators of trying to brainwash children. One of the show's founding executives, Mike Dann, says, the longtime kids series "was not made for the sophisticated or the middle class."
"Sesame Street tried to tackle divorce, tackled 'peaceful conflict resolution' in the aftermath of 9/11 and had [gay actor] Neil Patrick Harris on the show playing the subtly-named 'fairy shoe person'," writes Shapiro, who also notes Grover breaking bread with a hippy and the socioeconomic and racial undertones in Oscar living in a garbage can."
Other liberal things that Sesame Street does: Elmo supports the Michelle Obama Children's Health thing, you know, where she wants kids to eat healthy and exercise, the show also promotes children of all cultures and backgrounds to be friendly, it has a "go green" message, among other things.
Look, the man spoke with people - he recorded them. I don't know if they knew they were being recorded, and he could have edited things about. But, he has the tapes and apparently plans to slowly leak them to conservative websites and Fox News. Okay, fine. Conservatives in Hollywood are rare, and many shows play to a more liberal audience. Also, I can understand and see how and why some creators would try and put some subtext about certain things into their shows: anti-war messages, gay rights, etc. This isn't groundbreaking stuff. He claims to have several big time Hollywood types bashing conservative authors and television hosts. Frankly, I don't care what he has to say or who said what about whom.
It's just - did he have to bring my beloved Sesame Street into the mix? Liberal or not, teaching children to accept others, eat healthy, exercise, recycle, and to save money, seems like things anyone - conservative or liberal - would want their kids to know. I guess not.
You can find more about this by doing a Google search. Both sides have written several articles about it. I got my quotes from Hollywood Reporter
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