So yesterday, Christianity Today Online posted my comments on the "Is SpongeBob promoting homosexuality" brouhaha.  One of the comments I made was that New York/DC-based kids media folks like Sesame Street and Nickelodeon were going to come under increasing pressure to positively portray sexual indentity diversity alongside racial and gender diversity.  I predicted that this issue could ultimately split the currently unified world of children's programming into two distinct worlds – one for "Red states" and one for "Blue states."  (Or, more accurately, Red counties and Blue counties.  Or, even more accurately, secular liberals and religious conservatives.)

So what happens today?  There's story in today's New York Times about a fight between PBS national and the Boston PBS mega-affiliate WGBH over just that issue!  WGBH, producer of PBS kids hit "Arthur" and the new spin-off "Postcards from Buster" produced an episode of the latter show where Buster visits a lesbian family.  PBS national, knowing how many conservatives will be offended, is currently refusing to distribute that episode nationwide.  As you would predict, WGBH is going ballistic, planning to distribute the episode nationally themselves.

Hoo-boy!  We're in for some fun!  Just remember, I called it first…

Phil