ABSTRACT

In 1970, a department of "nonbroadcast" materials was organized at Children's Television Workshop (CTW) to explore the role that books, toys, recordings, and magazines might play in the extension of the message and the educational mission of the newly established television program, Sesame Street. This department supported the earliest vision of Joan Ganz Cooney, founder of CTW, to create a "multiple media institution." One and one half years of preparation had gone into the development of nonbroadcast materi­ als with steps similar to those taken by research for the television show. This included: a feasibility study to determine whether such a department was vi­ able; seminars with a subcommittee of the CTW advisory board plus new ad­ visors for this purpose; the establishment of educational goals for nonbroadcast materials; testing various approaches to the development of these materials; determining staff requirements; and finally, going into pro­ duction. Thirty years later, the print materials produced by CTW have been an enduring part of the legacy of Sesame Street. Print media include three mag­ azines-Sesame Street Magazine (for young children of Sesame Street viewing age), Sesame Street Parents (aimed at English-speaking parents), and Padres de Sesame Street (for Spanish-speaking parents)—as well as a range of books for children. All of these publications have derived from the curriculum goals of the television program and have utilized the characters, style, tone, and some of the features of the program.