Sesame Street is continuing its trend of groundbreaking TV – the show is introducing a character with autism.
The four-year-old character, named Julia, will be introduced next month!
Jeanette Betancourt, Sesame Workshop’s senior vice president of U.S. Social Impact, spoke about the addition to the popular children’s show.
“In the U.S., one in 68 children is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder,” Jeanette said (via the Chicago Tribune). “We wanted to promote a better understanding and reduce the stigma often found around these children. We’re modeling the way both children and adults can look at autism from a strength-based perspective: finding things that all children share….Just as we look at all children as being unique, we should do the same thing when we’re looking at children with autism.”
The first episode to introduce Julie – titled “Meet Julia,” airs Monday, April 10 on HBO.
Prepare for new episodes of Sesame Street on HBO this fall!
According to THR, the classic children’s show has inked a deal with the premium channel for five new seasons.
Not to mention, the deal also includes licensing to over 150 past hours of the show and a spin-off Sesame Street Muppet series, which will be produced by HBO.
But don’t worry, Sesame Street will continue to air on PBS and any new episodes by HBO will “be made available to PBS and its member stations after a nine-month window.”
“Our new partnership with HBO represents a true winning public-private partnership model,” Sesame Workshop CEO Jeffrey D. Dunn said in a statement. “It provides Sesame Workshop with the critical funding it needs to be able to continue production of Sesame Street and secure its nonprofit mission of helping kids grow smarter, stronger and kinder.”
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