I promise this blog won't end up revolving entirely around Blue Peter, however, in light of all the recent press slating the show I thought it only fair to write another post.
Ok so the show's producers have made some mistakes, but after 49 years as one of the nation's most loved programmes, surely we can all give it some leeway?
The institution which has arguably played a large role in the formation of most British journalists' childhood, is now being turned on by its 'offspring'.
The show that could for many years do no wrong, now appears, in the eyes of the press, to be able to do no right.
Here I am referring to the furore that has erupted due to the failure to use an original recording of the show's anniversary theme-tune.
Isn't it time we let sleeping dogs (or cats!) lie?
At least another Great British children's television institution is enjoying positive reviews ...........
Thursday 27 September 2007
Tuesday 25 September 2007
The Way the Cookie Crumbled
No blog about children's media would be complete without some reference to the Blue Peter cat fiasco.
In the wake of the recent phone-in fixing scandals, to suggest more care ought to have been made in the decision to forgo the winning name goes without saying.
However, the reason to ignore the results of the actual vote still appear rather illusive.
If, as multiple sources have suggested, the successful name for the kitten, now known as 'Socks', had in fact been 'Cookie', I am at a loss why the production team decided to ignore the viewer vote.
Surely where a cat is concerned biscuits and clothing are equally obscure sources of name?
Or am I naively ignoring the realities of naming a being?
After all many parents spend 9 months umming and ahhing between two or three names, only to decide on a previously unconsidered moniker the second they see their newborn.
As the CBBC site clearly explains, the production team felt 'Socks' more appropriate once they came to appreciate the kitten's personality.
I will refrain from attempting to suggest how one's personality may be found to embody something you wear on your feet, however, I will suggest that, should this have really been the case, then honesty would have been the best, and simplest, policy.
Honesty is paramount with children.
Children will not respect you, or in fact even listen to you, if they don't feel like you are telling the whole story.
The only thing more patronising than being told half a story, is being told that you cannot hear the other half because you are too young.
To be honest I don't even understand the full story and I'm 23!
Whilst the BBC is to be applauded for its damage limitation - a statement both on the website and on the show itself, and the introduction of a new cat to be christened with the original winning name -some doubts still surround whether 'Cookie' was in fact the name which the crew carefully side-stepped.
Certain sources, including The Sun, have suggested that the winning name had in fact been 'Pussy'.
This version of events does lend itself more to understanding why the production team avoided using the viewers' choice.
Furthermore, as an student whose friends' courses have often seemed to involve 'modules' of sofa-hogging, daytime television endurance, and wasting free mobile-phone minutes, it does not take a great stretch of the imagination to understand how, had 'Pussy' been an option available to voters, the innuendo-ridden name may have quickly become the favourite.
If this was in fact the case, then why on earth was 'Pussy' ever even an option?!
Whilst Blue Peter has arguably very successfully moved with the times, and shed all suggestions of its quaint, twee beginnings, surely some degree of responsibility and decorum must remain with regards to such potential vulgarity? Children these days grow up far too quickly. They are regretfully audience to all manner of adult language, imagery and humour. Blue Peter has always struck me as a haven away from the harsher edges of reality. Like a straight-laced and well-educated, yet energetic and wordly nanny, the show should be there to highlight all the fun and nice elements of being a child, rather than rush children hurriedly into adulthood in the way that many other areas of the media do.
Charly Lester
In the wake of the recent phone-in fixing scandals, to suggest more care ought to have been made in the decision to forgo the winning name goes without saying.
However, the reason to ignore the results of the actual vote still appear rather illusive.
If, as multiple sources have suggested, the successful name for the kitten, now known as 'Socks', had in fact been 'Cookie', I am at a loss why the production team decided to ignore the viewer vote.
Surely where a cat is concerned biscuits and clothing are equally obscure sources of name?
Or am I naively ignoring the realities of naming a being?
After all many parents spend 9 months umming and ahhing between two or three names, only to decide on a previously unconsidered moniker the second they see their newborn.
As the CBBC site clearly explains, the production team felt 'Socks' more appropriate once they came to appreciate the kitten's personality.
I will refrain from attempting to suggest how one's personality may be found to embody something you wear on your feet, however, I will suggest that, should this have really been the case, then honesty would have been the best, and simplest, policy.
Honesty is paramount with children.
Children will not respect you, or in fact even listen to you, if they don't feel like you are telling the whole story.
The only thing more patronising than being told half a story, is being told that you cannot hear the other half because you are too young.
To be honest I don't even understand the full story and I'm 23!
Whilst the BBC is to be applauded for its damage limitation - a statement both on the website and on the show itself, and the introduction of a new cat to be christened with the original winning name -some doubts still surround whether 'Cookie' was in fact the name which the crew carefully side-stepped.
Certain sources, including The Sun, have suggested that the winning name had in fact been 'Pussy'.
This version of events does lend itself more to understanding why the production team avoided using the viewers' choice.
Furthermore, as an student whose friends' courses have often seemed to involve 'modules' of sofa-hogging, daytime television endurance, and wasting free mobile-phone minutes, it does not take a great stretch of the imagination to understand how, had 'Pussy' been an option available to voters, the innuendo-ridden name may have quickly become the favourite.
If this was in fact the case, then why on earth was 'Pussy' ever even an option?!
Whilst Blue Peter has arguably very successfully moved with the times, and shed all suggestions of its quaint, twee beginnings, surely some degree of responsibility and decorum must remain with regards to such potential vulgarity? Children these days grow up far too quickly. They are regretfully audience to all manner of adult language, imagery and humour. Blue Peter has always struck me as a haven away from the harsher edges of reality. Like a straight-laced and well-educated, yet energetic and wordly nanny, the show should be there to highlight all the fun and nice elements of being a child, rather than rush children hurriedly into adulthood in the way that many other areas of the media do.
Charly Lester
An Introduction To The Blogger
Hello and welcome to 'One I Wrote Earlier'.
My name is Charly Lester, and I'm a whole two days into a MA course in Broadcast Journalism at the University of Westminster.
Like most of my generation I've aspired to becoming a Blue Peter presenter as long as I can remember (suddenly the blog name begins to make sense!).
However it's not just the funky badges and amazing holidays which appeal to me.
Despite having reached the ripe old age of 23, I am still fascinated by children's television, radio, books and magazines.
Furthermore, I find the ever-increasing supply of other media available to children astonishing.
Finally, I think it is important to keep in mind those sources of media accessible by children which are not necessarily targetted towards them as an audience.
I plan to use these pages as a voice-box for my ideas and opinions of children's media.
I like to think I can understand children -
Since the age of 13 I have been a Brownie Leader, and have also helped with Scouts, Beavers, Guides and Rainbows.
At 16 I worked as a Children's Birthday Party Host at a Bowling Alley.
During Sixth form I worked as a Children's Party Entertainer, dressing up each weekend as a fairy/ princess/ astronaut/ cowgirl / pirate, etc etc.
In my Gap Year I taught English to 3-8 year olds in a remote Chinese province.
Finally, since the age of 14 I have worked on local and hospital children's radio stations.
In 1999 I was asked to speak at a House of Lords Select Committee Meeting on the topic of children's media.
I believe that the best way to communicate with children is to talk to them as equals, and to be a honest and open with them as possible.
I also believe children learn best from doing.
I think it is imperative that from an early age children have exposure to, and the opportunity to try, a infinite variety of different activities, challenges and skills.
Finally, as adults I think we're all responsible for the lessons which we inadvertantly teach youngsters, be this through our own behaviour as role models, or as a result of the imagery and information which we enable them to access and digest.
Over the course of this blog I will debate and disect current affairs in the children's media.
I will look at topics and influences of relevance to kids, and seek to find out whether we all look back at the television we watched as children with rose-tinted glasses, or whether the quality of children's media has in fact changed, for better or for worse.
My name is Charly Lester, and I'm a whole two days into a MA course in Broadcast Journalism at the University of Westminster.
Like most of my generation I've aspired to becoming a Blue Peter presenter as long as I can remember (suddenly the blog name begins to make sense!).
However it's not just the funky badges and amazing holidays which appeal to me.
Despite having reached the ripe old age of 23, I am still fascinated by children's television, radio, books and magazines.
Furthermore, I find the ever-increasing supply of other media available to children astonishing.
Finally, I think it is important to keep in mind those sources of media accessible by children which are not necessarily targetted towards them as an audience.
I plan to use these pages as a voice-box for my ideas and opinions of children's media.
I like to think I can understand children -
Since the age of 13 I have been a Brownie Leader, and have also helped with Scouts, Beavers, Guides and Rainbows.
At 16 I worked as a Children's Birthday Party Host at a Bowling Alley.
During Sixth form I worked as a Children's Party Entertainer, dressing up each weekend as a fairy/ princess/ astronaut/ cowgirl / pirate, etc etc.
In my Gap Year I taught English to 3-8 year olds in a remote Chinese province.
Finally, since the age of 14 I have worked on local and hospital children's radio stations.
In 1999 I was asked to speak at a House of Lords Select Committee Meeting on the topic of children's media.
I believe that the best way to communicate with children is to talk to them as equals, and to be a honest and open with them as possible.
I also believe children learn best from doing.
I think it is imperative that from an early age children have exposure to, and the opportunity to try, a infinite variety of different activities, challenges and skills.
Finally, as adults I think we're all responsible for the lessons which we inadvertantly teach youngsters, be this through our own behaviour as role models, or as a result of the imagery and information which we enable them to access and digest.
Over the course of this blog I will debate and disect current affairs in the children's media.
I will look at topics and influences of relevance to kids, and seek to find out whether we all look back at the television we watched as children with rose-tinted glasses, or whether the quality of children's media has in fact changed, for better or for worse.
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