Katy Perry's video with Elmo has been banned from Sesame Street. Don't you think this is kind of silly?

Sounds like your classic knee jerk reaction from the PC brigade. Besides, Elmo looks like he has his genitals stuck on his face, does he not? Double standards methinks :¬)

Yes. It’s those people who are thinking the naughty thoughts. I get so tired of them.

Yawn.

I thought she looked adorable. OMG – she had cleavage somewhat visible through the sheer panel at the top of her figure-skater-esque dress. I suppose all these parents ban their children from watching the Winter Olympics for the same reason.

Somewhat related, the other day we went out for dinner, and our waitress was pretty well endowed and wearing a v-neck sweater. My son got all googly-eyed and says in his best “How you doin’?” voice:

“Hey… milk!”

It is not the most scandalous outfit I have ever seen on anyone,but it is Sesame Street.
It is naive to think this wasn’t by design.

I am glad it happened. Not everything needs to be sexed up

I think “banned from sesame street” is kind of a strong way to put it…they just didn’t air it. I wouldn’t be surprised if part of the reason it wasn’t shown is because it really isn’t up to sesame street’s normal quality standards. The first time I saw it online I thought it was a joke that they had even considered airing it. To paraphrase what a youtube commenter said, the bigger danger is over exposure to mediocrity. That being said, It is too bad that Katy Perry donated time and energy into a clip that wasn’t aired….. (and the dress was a bit low for that context,but as @Seek_Kolinahr pointed out, it would have been perfectly fine for a figure skating dress)

I am not a prude by any means, but I feel the outfit was too revealing for Sesame Street. When she’s running around her boobs are bouncing; they looked like they could fall out at any moment. I don’t know what she was thinking but I would not want my toddler to watch that.

And what pray tell would your toddler do if he/she WERE exposed to such a thing? Instantly become an axe murderer?

@GeorgeGee I certainly did not suggest such a thing. My parenting preference regarding a children’s tv show is for it to not involve breasts that could fall out of clothing at any moment.

Which would mean what, that your kids learn something about the physics of clothing?

Are her breasts ectoplasmic? Because there is clearly a panel of fabric at the top of that dress.

@GeorgeGee You have an opinion just like me and neither of us are wrong. I’m not sure why you feel the need to suggest I believe my child would befall some horrible change of their personality by seeing nudity in this form. Again, this is my parenting preference. There is a time and place for everything, in my opinion, and a children’s tv show is not the place for nudity, in my opinion.

@Seek_Kolinahr My eyes saw boobs bouncing to the point of a possible slip out of the top. If there is fabric above, it is nude and the boobs would be seen if they had popped up. I’ve watched figure skating and I do not recall seeing any possible boob slips. Though again, this is in regards to a children’s tv show.

There was no nudity.

The outfit – I have no issue with. My beef is with subjecting kids to the ‘music’ of Katy Perry. :)

I agree with @free_fallin. I don’t think the outfit was appropriate for a children’s show.

Then again, why didn’t they tell her before filming? This feels like an intentional controversy.

I don’t think it was intentional, because if you have ever seen her interviewed she is a really nice person, and what else would she wear; that’s her look.

But I do think it’s ridiculous that that would be banned when music videos like Christina Aguilera (‘He’s a one stop shop, makes my panties drop’) and lady gaga can be listened to and watched by kids in the middle of the day.

Yes, especially when some of the kids that might have been watching, may or may not be having breakfast, lunch, or dinner from the exact things she was banned for.

I think that the outfit could be seen as either appropriate or inappropriate depending on the person, but either way, I think they should have gone over wardrobe with her beforehand so that they could deem what was appropriate and what was inappropriate so that she could choose her outfit according to their standards, and her time and effort wouldn’t have been wasted.

I think it’s inappropriate for a kids show. Not only inappropriate, but out of place as well. I didn’t watch the whole thing, but if the song doesn’t center around ice skating competition she looks more like she’s wearing a costume than normal clothes.

And PS I think her music fucking sucks.

I thought that the video was inappropriate, but a.) I’m an adult, and b.) I don’t have children. Mom once confessed that she was worried that we would figure out that there was no Santa Claus from the song, I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus. Her thought process was that her children would be suspicious if their mom kissed anyone other than their dad. Wrong! I never gave the lyrics a second thought.

Despite that, the video isn’t what I would consider Sesame Street quality. What is the value to a child in its content?

Yeah, this is what parents should concern themselves with, not the fact that they are into buying meni/pedi kits for their girls and are okay with bras at 6 years old.

@Pied_Pfeffer Despite that, the video isn’t what I would consider Sesame Street quality. What is the value to a child in its content?

This is an excellent point. Why is this considered good enough for Sesame Street? I mean, seriously, it’s crappy. It’s like a bad MTV video. Isn’t Sesame Street about learning?

I think it’s silly because…..why did the Sesame Street company record it if they didn’t like her outfit? Why wouldn’t they have chosen her outfit or put something similar pertaining to that in her contract for the video?

I think they didn’t think. Then someone “important” saw it and complained ..so they yanked it.

It was Sesame Street’s fault for not making sure it was “kid friendly” or whatever.

Give me a break ..there are much more serious and disturbing things on tv, regarding children, that people should be actively concerned about.

Yes! We are teaching our kids that the human body, especially the female body, is wrong, and this could lead to the situation in the Middle East where women have to be fully covered, but the confusing thing is that this is being protested by women themselves.

@Drewseph Couldn’t it also be said that we’re teaching kids that it’s okay to objectify women?

@bob_ How is it objectifying if the woman is the one who is making the decision to wear that scampy dress? That is a personal decision. No one is forcing her…

@Drewseph I actually agree with your opinion on it being a personal decision, however, others contend that it has led to greater emphasis on a physical criterion for women’s perceived self worth.

Well if the toddlers watching the show think that they should
put more emphasis on their looks, so be it, but they will probably see girls like that everywhere in real life, and I don’t hear Katy Perry saying “Look at my boobs, little boys! You should date girls that have as big boobs as me! :D” Just tell your kids whatever you want, but don’t freaking protest…

As a woman, I am not a fan of bras. I wear them as little as possible. Guess what though, I do wear a bra around kids when I know I will be around kids and I do not show off cleavage around them either. Cleavage is a sexy thing. Women are beautiful. I am bisexual and I adore the female body. However, when I show off cleavage I am well aware of the consequences of people looking at me. Sometimes I want that attention. I certainly do not want it on a children’s tv show. I would think, if Katy Perry isn’t an idiot or her stylist, that the same thought would enter their minds.

@Drewseph It’s not as simple as that. Messages can be either explicit or implicit.

I don’t know how the whole show business thing works…it would be good if Austinlad joined in on this conversation, as I think he has experience in the field.

Don’t managers suggest to their clients (performers) to do a gig? Might they sometimes show up to do the performance with little thought in mind about what they got themselves into? Let’s not point fingers at Katy or Sesame Street, or the person who posted the video for that matter, until the facts come to light.

@Drewseph Katy’s boobs are tiny. The size didn’t matter to me at all. She is running and her boobs totally almost bounce right out of the outfit….

@Seek_Kolinahr I never said there was any nudity. Perhaps you’re not understanding my point. I’m ok with that.

@bob_ and @free_fallin Yes I completely understand. I’m just saying if my kids saw it I wouldn’t get worked up. There are far worse things on TV, but yes, for it to be on Sesame Street, maybe it’s not the best choice, but I still wouldn’t protest.

@Simone_De_Beauvoir That isn’t the issue at all. This isn’t a question regarding what is most important to discuss; this is simply about the topic at hand. I realize you’re quite the activist but that has no bearing on the subject at hand. Let’s discuss the actual question and steer clear of belittling anyone for having a difference of opinion from you. Maybe you’re alright with your kids seeing this; good for you! However, I am not ok with it and it is perfectly acceptable for me to feel that way.

@Drewseph Definitely there are far worse things on television! However, this question pertains to a children’s tv show, which some of you seem to be forgetting. The standards are different there and they should be.

@Drewseph Oh, I agree with that. Thing here is, the video was now shown on the show, so the controversy is the other way around: people are protesting that it was cut.

I personally didn’t have a problem with it when I saw it. My son saw women in bikinis when he was young enough to be watching Sesame Street, so he saw more cleavage there than Katy was showing in that clip. I don’t think children think about cleavage and breasts the way adults do. I really think the children would have just enjoying the singing and dancing without giving it a second thought.

@Seek_Kolinahr Also, I have watched the video several times and I do not see how there is fabric. The only thing I see are straps and a necklace. I have zoomed in, watched it closely, asked someone around me and still my conclusion is there is no fabric.

It’s only a big deal if we make it a big deal. There is no such thing as bad publicity, unless you aren’t getting any publicity at all. Sesame Street knows this. Katy Perry knows this. The whole entertainment industry knows this. Bad publicity is still good publicity. The general public has once again fed into exactly what they wanted by making insignificant bullshit a bigger deal than it needs to be.
Sure, they could have put her in a fucking turtleneck, but that wouldn’t have gotten either of them the attention they wanted. Both the show and the performer were given more attention due to the segment being cut, than if it had actually aired if she wore something more appropriate. So, as we’re in an uproar over something that was planned, they’re laughing all the way to the bank.
Just get over it.

Sesame Street doesn’t need publicity.

Her attire was inappropriate.

@FutureMemory I don’t know about that. Sesame Street still relies on funding from Public Television. It has Nick Jr. to contend with now, and most of the characters we grew up with aren’t on the show anymore.

@free_fallin “I realize you’re quite the activist” – that was uncalled for and irrelevant to the topic. You and I didn’t seem to be talking on here, did we, and I wasn’t telling you what to find acceptable and what not to find acceptable (though thanks for sharing it with me anyway), I was just saying what I think the focus should be instead on and that the hoop-la around this issue was, to me, silly which is what the OP (which you aren’t) was asking for. Can I help you with anything else? I’m so glad you got these passive aggressive feelings off your chest though and please, in the future, try real hard to not discuss what I do and don’t do in front of my kids unless I share those details with you or we’re friends.

@Simone_De_Beauvoir You read a tone in my comment that was not there. You are an activist from what I have gathered on fluther. I commend you for that. There is no passive aggressiveness in my comment. You’re still missing the point but it’s become pointless to discuss it further with you. I’ve made clear my stance by stating it clearly. I did not hide it with an off-handed remark, which I feel you did. Your response is defensive; there was no reason to be defensive. I won’t respond to your comment regarding your kids as that was unnecessary to state.

As for the publicity comment, have Sesame Street’s ratings changed because of this? I understand the idea of any publicity is good publicity but I am curious whether this affected the ratings at all.

@free_fallin I do not follow its ratings.