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''Sesame Street'' international co-productions are educational children's television series based on the American ''Sesame Street'' but tailored to the countries in which they are produced. Shortly after the debut of ''Sesame Street'' in the US in 1969, television producers, teachers, and officials of several countries approached the show's producers and the executives of Children's Television Workshop (CTW) about the possibility of airing international versions of ''Sesame Street''. Creator Joan Ganz Cooney hired former CBS executive Mike Dann to field offers to produce versions of the show in other countries. The producers of these shows developed them using a variant on the CTW model, a flexible model of production based upon the experiences of the creators and producers of the US show. The model consisted of the combination of producers and researchers working together on the show, the development of a unique curriculum, and extensive test screening of the shows. The shows came to be called co-productions, and they contained original sets, characters, and curriculum goals. Different co-productions were produced, depending upon each country's needs and resources. They included both dubbed versions of the American show and versions created, developed, and produced in each country that reflected their needs, educational priorities, and culture. For example, the first HIV-positive Muppet, Kami, from the South African co-production ''Takalani Sesame'' was created in 2003 to address the epidemic of AIDS in South Africa, and was met with controversy in the US. By 2006, there were 20 co-productions in countries all over the world. In 2001, there were more than 120 million viewers of all international versions of ''Sesame Street'', and by the US show's 40th anniversary in 2009, they were seen in more than 140 countries. ==History== A few months after the 1969 debut of ''Sesame Street'' on PBS in the US, producers from Brazil, Mexico, Canada, and Germany requested that the organization responsible for the show's production, the Children's Television Workshop (CTW) create and produce versions of ''Sesame Street'' in those countries.〔Cole ''et al.'' p. 148.〕 Even before the American show's debut, the CTW established an international division, which oversaw its licensing in other countries. According to Gregory J. Gettas, the division immediately developed four main licensing policies: (1) like the American version, all foreign versions had to be broadcast without commercials; (2) any changes would have to meet high production standards, which protected the CTW's proprietary interests; (3) all versions had to reflect the country's cultural values and traditions; and (4) all changes would have to be approved, initiated, and supervised by a local committee working with the CTW.〔Gettas, p. 57.〕 Many years later, co-creator Joan Ganz Cooney recalled, "To be frank, I was really surprised, because we thought we were creating the quintessential American show. We thought the Muppets were quintessentially American, and it turns out they're the most international characters ever created". Mike Dann, a former CBS executive whom Cooney had hired as a CTW vice-president and her assistant, was assigned to field offers from other countries to produce their own versions of ''Sesame Street''. Dann's appointment led to television critic Marvin Kitman stating, "After he () sells (Street'' ) in Russia and Czechoslovakia, he might try Mississippi, where it is considered too controversial for educational TV".〔Davis, pp. 209—210.〕 By summer 1970, Dann had made the first international agreements for what the CTW later called "co-productions". 38 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation television stations broadcast ''Sesame Street'' to Canada's English-speaking provinces. The Armed Forces Radio and Television Network agreed to air the first 130 episodes of the US-made show for children of military personnel serving in 16 countries, including Iceland, Greece, Ethiopia, and South Korea. During his tenure at CTW, Dann also made agreements with several Caribbean nations, Mexico, Australia, Japan, the Philippines, France, Israel, and Germany.〔 He later told author Michael Davis, "I was aggressive and I knew people around the world".〔 During the same period there were discussions about broadcasting the US version in England or producing a British version of Sesame Street but British broadcasters found the show too controversial and rejected the idea. The American version was broadcast throughout the UK on a limited basis starting in 1971, but went off the air in 2001. As of 2006, there were 20 active "co-productions".〔 CTW vice-president Charlotte Cole, in 2001, estimated that there were more than 120 million viewers of all international versions of ''Sesame Street'',〔Cole ''et al.'', p. 147.〕 and by the show's 40th anniversary in 2009, they were seen in more than 140 countries.〔Gikow, p. 263.〕 In 2005, Doreen Carvajal of ''The New York Times'' reported that income from the co-productions accounted for US$96 million. Cole stated, "Children's Television Workshop (CTW) can be regarded as the single largest informal educator of young children in the world".〔Cole ''et al.'', pp. 169—172.〕 Studies conducted on the effects of several co-productions (Mexico in 1974, Turkey in 1990, Portugal in 1993, and Russia in 1998), found that viewers of these shows gain basic academic skills, especially literacy and numeracy, from watching them.〔Cole, pp. 169—172.〕 In 2001, the Workshop introduced ''Sesame English'', a series focused on teaching children and their families the basics of the English language and on familiarizing them with some aspects of American culture. As of 2009, it aired in several countries, including Japan, Korea, and Italy.〔Gikow, p. 255.〕 In 2003, in response to the epidemic of AIDS in South Africa, the co-producers of ''Takalani Sesame'' included the first preschool AIDS/HIV curriculum. They created the first HIV-positive Muppet, Kami, to confront the stigma of HIV and AIDS in South Africa. According to the documentary, ''The World According to Sesame Street'', the reaction of many in the US surprised Sesame Workshop. Some members of Congress attacked ''Sesame Street'', Sesame Workshop (previously, the CTW), and PBS. According to co-producer Naila Farouky, "The reaction we got in the US blew me away. I didn't expect people to be so horrible ... and hateful and mean".〔 The controversy in the US was short-lived, and died down when the public discovered the facts about the South African co-production, and when Kofi Anan and Jerry Falwell praised the Workshop's efforts.〔 Gettas explained what he called "Sesame Street's unprecedented appeal abroad"〔Gettas, p. 55.〕 was its broad appeal and adaptability to other cultures. Gettas stated, "Here is a program that speaks to them in their own language, on their level, and with respect for their intelligence".〔 According to Cooper Wright, the Sesame Workshop's vice-president of International Co-Productions in 2006, the "mission" of the co-productions was to "help children reach their highest potential".〔 The producers were further galvanized to accomplish this goal after the events of 9/11. Cooney stated, "Our producers are like old-fashioned missionaries. It's not religion they're spreading, but it is learning and tolerance and love and mutual respect".〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Sesame Street international co-productions」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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