'Sesame Street' Might Be Going On Strike

By Andrew Sanford | TV | April 17, 2024 |

By Andrew Sanford | TV | April 17, 2024 |

Sesame Street has been producing quality children’s programming since 1969. The show teaches kids about everything. It is a reliable source of fun and education. For decades, it aired on PBS, making it free for everyone with a TV to enjoy. Its characters are known worldwide. Sesame Street is a gift. A cultural phenomenon likely never to be replicated. Now, its future is uncertain.

HBO struck a deal with the Sesame Workshop in 2016. The agreement would see new episodes produced for HBO that would eventually be allowed to air on PBS. At the time, it felt like a way to ensure the show would continue in an ever-changing television landscape. Now, Variety is reporting that writers at the Sesame Workshop have been negotiating a new contract since February, and if a new deal isn’t reached by April 19th, the 35 writers will go on strike on April 24th.

The negotiating committee for the Sesame Workshop union released the following statement: “We are committed to working with Sesame Workshop to codify a fair contract for writers that embodies these values, and which allows the Workshop to continue to attract top-level talent who can artfully create stories that successfully balance entertainment, playfulness, and joy with education and enrichment. Our demands would be extremely meaningful for the affected writers, particularly those in animation who are currently being excluded from basic union benefits and protections like pension and healthcare. We hope for a speedy and amicable resolution to these negotiations so that we can continue to do the work of helping the next generation grow smarter, stronger and kinder.”

Sesame Workshop also said in a statement: “Our writers are integral members of our creative team, and we are engaged in good faith negotiations with the WGA. We’re still hopeful that we’ll come to an agreement in advance of the expiration.”

It would be embarrassing for Warner Brothers Discovery to have a picket line form on Sesame Street. However, that also supposes that someone like David Zaslav could feel embarrassment. The current WBD CEO has made it clear he cares only for dollar signs. He’s not looking to support creative endeavors, he wants to strip the company for parts so he can be showered with bonuses. Hopefully, his reign of terror won’t result in the end of one of the greatest children’s shows of all time.