President Barack Obama’s campaign released a video earlier today that satirized opponent Mitt Romney’s plan to cut funding for public broadcasting. Since last week’s first presidential debate—in which Romney said he would try to stop funding broadcasters like PBS—the Obama team has repeatedly mocked Romney’s plan to put Big Bird out of work.
Their latest effort opens with images of convicted financiers (like Bernie Madoff) and then jokingly links Big Bird as the “evil genius” above them. “Big. Yellow. A menace to our economy,” says a pitch-perfect attack ad narrator. “Mitt Romney knows it’s not Wall Street you have to worry about. It’s Sesame Street.”
In response, Romney’s team has released an infographic noting how many times Obama has mentioned Big Bird and Elmo at recent events, compared with mentions of fixing the American economy. (As always, take any “facts” from this presidential election with a grain of salt.)
But as Sesame Street has entered the crosshairs of American politics, the show’s producer wants no part of it. Earlier today, Sesame Workshop released the following statement:
“Sesame Workshop is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization and we do not endorse candidates or participate in political campaigns. We have approved no campaign ads, and as is our general practice, have requested that the ad be taken down.”
A spokesperson for Obama’s campaign told Politico that they were reviewing Sesame Workshop’s request.
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Blogs & Comment
Obama's Big Bird attack ad ruffles Sesame Workshop's feathers
It appears Big Bird is nonpartisan.
By Matt Lundy
President Barack Obama’s campaign released a video earlier today that satirized opponent Mitt Romney’s plan to cut funding for public broadcasting. Since last week’s first presidential debate—in which Romney said he would try to stop funding broadcasters like PBS—the Obama team has repeatedly mocked Romney’s plan to put Big Bird out of work.
Their latest effort opens with images of convicted financiers (like Bernie Madoff) and then jokingly links Big Bird as the “evil genius” above them. “Big. Yellow. A menace to our economy,” says a pitch-perfect attack ad narrator. “Mitt Romney knows it’s not Wall Street you have to worry about. It’s Sesame Street.”
In response, Romney’s team has released an infographic noting how many times Obama has mentioned Big Bird and Elmo at recent events, compared with mentions of fixing the American economy. (As always, take any “facts” from this presidential election with a grain of salt.)
But as Sesame Street has entered the crosshairs of American politics, the show’s producer wants no part of it. Earlier today, Sesame Workshop released the following statement:
“Sesame Workshop is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization and we do not endorse candidates or participate in political campaigns. We have approved no campaign ads, and as is our general practice, have requested that the ad be taken down.”
A spokesperson for Obama’s campaign told Politico that they were reviewing Sesame Workshop’s request.