McDonald’s is sponsoring “Sesame Street.” Ralph Nader doesn’t like it. This is a conundrum. On the one hand, kids are fat enough and don’t need to be reminded of junk food like McDonald’s. On the other hand, PBS needs money to fund worthy programming like “Sesame Street.”
When I was a kid, I don’t remember any sponsors on “Sesame Street” which isn’t saying much other than my memory sucks but there’s something that just doesn’t feel right about McDonald’s sponsoring “Sesame Street.” Do kids really need to be exposed to McDonald’s at age two? Do already time-starved parents need another excuse not to cook and order fast food instead? There’s no real reason why McDonald’s shouldn’t be able to sponsor PBS programming and despite what that fat dude thought when he sued McDonald’s for making him fat, it’s people who make people fat, not McDonald’s. Sure the marketing engine is huge and hard to ignore but does that mean McDonald’s voice should be censored?
There’s no right answer here other than what I stated previously: it just doesn’t feel right for McDonald’s to sponsor “Sesame Street.” There has to be some point during their younger years where kids are insulated from the barrage of marketing. A period of peace and innocence should be enjoyed before the marketing engine takes hold and screams at you until you are dead.
