Interesting article about bilingual children’s shows, which are being shown primarily on Nickelodeon and the Disney Channel.
Nickelodeon has been leading the way in this burgeoning genre, El Tigre being its most recent entry.
“This is about a commitment to diversity,” said Tom Ascheim, the network’s executive vice president and general manager. “We’re a clubhouse where every kid is a member just by being a kid. If you believe that in your heart, you need to be sure kids can find themselves on the screen.”
The network’s No. 1 show for preschoolers, Dora the Explorer, reaches as many as 2.8 viewers 2 years of age and older and of Hispanic origin each month, including 853,000 preschoolers.
Dora and other shows that take a bilingual tack to attract Hispanic youngsters also populate their shows with Hispanic characters and themes.
Olivia’s current TV obsession is Dora’s cousin Diego – she’d watch every episode on the TiVo, twice, each day if we’d let her. As a result, she knows her pygmy marmosets and three-toed sloths, and I’ve caught her singing a word or two in Spanish since she developed this habit. If I could only get the damn theme song out of my head, it’d be great. Ah, well, you can’t have everything.
I think that a bilingual program on Nick is wonderful. It makes it so much easier for children, especially bilingual children, to feel encouraged to speak both languages. I wonder if there are any free bilingual kids programs over the internet.