Top 10 Most Controversial Sesame Street Moments

“Sesame Street” (1969)
In 2010, Katy Perry filmed a kid-friendly version of her hit song “Hot N Cold” with Elmo. Unfortunately for the singer, her music video drew a lot of heat when it premiered on YouTube. The criticism was squarely focused on Perry’s costume. A lot of adults thought the low neckline and length of the dress were both inappropriate for kids. Although the song was supposed to air with the first episode of Season 41 of “Sesame Street,” the show decided to pull it from air. In the aftermath, Perry took the news in stride. She even appeared on “Saturday Night Live” to make light of the controversy.

“Sesame Street” (1969)
A Muppet with autism named Julia arrived on Sesame Street during a digital campaign in 2015 before debuting on the TV show in 2017. Prior to her first live-action appearance, members of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network backed the character. But the relationship between the organization and the show soured in 2019. That year, “Sesame Street” released PSAs with Autism Speaks that promoted the group’s 100 Day Kit. This controversial guide has been criticized for inaccuracies, encouraging parents to react negatively to their child’s diagnosis and more. But “Sesame Street” still pushed on with the PSA’s. Although the Autistic Self Advocacy Network proceeded to distance themselves from the show, Julia fortunately remained.

“Sesame Street” (1969)
Actress Margaret Hamilton is best known for playing the Wicked Witch of the West in the 1939 film “The Wizard of Oz.” She went on to reprise the role for a 1976 “Sesame Street” episode. Thanks to Hamilton’s frightening makeup and intimidating acting, the show received tons of letters that claimed she was too scary for young audiences. This negative response was as harmful to the episode as water was for the wicked witch. “Sesame Street” producers decided to pull the wicked witch’s story from their rotation and never let her darken the neighborhood on tv again. The episode became incredibly hard to find in the decades after its debut.

“Takalani Sesame” (2000-)
When the South African version of “Sesame Street” - known as “Takalani Sesame” - wanted to address the HIV/AIDS crisis that was affecting people in the region, they brought in a new character. In September 2002, they introduced Kami, an HIV-positive puppet. They aimed to use the character to promote awareness of and decrease stigma associated with the disease. However, not everyone was so welcoming: based on their incorrect belief that HIV/AIDS is spread primarily by the LGBTQ+ community in the U.S., conservative critics condemned a character like Kami appearing on a children’s show because she might inspire tolerance and acceptance of that community. They also threatened to pull funding from the American version of the show if a similar character were ever introduced. However, the character was never intended for American audiences. Kami weathered the controversy and continues to appear on shows outside the US.

“Sesame Street” (1969-)
In 2005, rumors spread that Cookie Monster would go on a diet and be renamed as a healthier type of monster. It all began when Grover joked to Jimmy Kimmel that Cookie Monster was on a healthy diet. This prompted longtime fans to worry that the sweet character was giving up what he loved or even changing his name entirely to reflect the organic foods he was eating. After rumors spread like wildfire, Cookie Monster had to confirm he wasn’t changing anytime soon. This sweet story wasn’t the only controversy surrounding the character. (xref) In early episodes of “Monsterpiece Theater,” he held a pipe and ate it at the end. Before home release, the shots with the pipe were edited out and reshot.

“Rechov Sumsum” (2006-)
Now known as “Rechov Sumsum,” this version of “Sesame Street” was made for Israeli audiences. In 2006, the show introduced an Arab-Israeli puppet named Mahboub who spoke both Hebrew and Arabic. He was meant to pave the way for kids from different backgrounds to accept each other in the midst of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. Initially, Mahboub was met with protests and criticism over concerns that his existence might be a strong political statement. But he soon became a staple of the show. Although he had less frequent appearances in “Shalom Sesame” in 2010, he still managed to make the roster.

“Sesame Street” (1969-)
In a 2007 episode, Oscar the Grouch reported on breaking stories from the Grouchy News Network. After making several calls saying that the content was too clean and happy, Grundgetta declared that she would no longer watch GNN. She would instead watch Pox News, because it was a “(insert broll for Trashy news show”). The joke came and went without much backlash until a rerun in 2009. After hearing the joke, outraged adults wrote to PBS and claimed that the skit was clearly taking shots at Fox News. Five days after the episode aired again, PBS staffer Michael Getler published an article saying that the parody probably should have been left out.

“Sesame Street” (1969-)
Although he first appeared in 1971, Mr. Snuffleupagus was believed to be imaginary for many years. Big Bird could just never get humans to see Snuffy. It wasn’t until the seventeenth season that all the adults believed and acknowledged him. While this plotline seemed innocent enough, the reason it was brought to an end stemmed from serious news reports. At the time, stories about young people being mistreated were on the rise. This led to concern that kids would look at the fact that no one believed Big Bird and not tell the truth about real harm that came to them. To remedy this mistake, the adults finally acknowledged Snuff. The adults also apologized to Big Bird for not believing him.

“Sesame Street” (1969-)
Despite being heavily featured in earlier seasons, Roosevelt Franklin isn’t seen much on “Sesame Street” nowadays. The main reason the Muppet was pushed out of the spotlight is because of how he was portrayed. Some Black parents felt that Franklin’s interest in scat music, his speech patterns and grammar were exaggerated stereotypes of Black people’s interests and characteristics. Others felt he wasn’t doing enough to address real issues affecting people of color. After the network received the divided feedback, they pulled the polarizing character from the main cast in 1975. However, Roosevelt still appeared on rare occasions at later points in the franchise.

“Sesame Street” (1969-)
Played by Will Lee, Mr. Hooper was a beloved “Sesame Street” cast member that appeared in the series from the very first episode. Sadly, he passed away in 1982 while the show was still going. Lee’s death put the kid’s program in a difficult position. Although they could say Mr. Hooper moved away or recast the role, “Sesame Street” decided to be honest with its audience. On the 1983 Thanksgiving episode, Big Bird learns that Mr. Hooper passed away. This daring episode made the team nervous that it would be too much for its young audiences. And after its release, it did receive some criticism for discussing death. But thankfully, it was eventually received positively and became a milestone for the show.