Margaret Blanchard - 4/18/2019

The Peabody Board of Jurors revealed today nine Entertainment winners and a Children’s winner for programs released in 2018. The honorees include a children’s superhero saga focused on empathy; darkly comic immersions into the male and female killer mind; welcomed reformulations and expansions of standup comedy and political entertainment shows; and expansive creativity in a show that might best be described as Afro-surrealism meets Parliament Funkadelic.

The board also named “Sesame Street” winner of an Institutional Award for 50 years of educating and entertaining children in the U.S. and around the world. Conceived by Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett, “Sesame Street” premiered in 1969 with wide-eyed optimism and determination to make a difference. Structured on the belief that a children’s TV show could help close an achievement gap in preparation for school, while also teaching about the values of diversity, mutual respect, and empathy, it remains one of the 1960s greatest offerings. Its central messages are about appreciating locality, accepting and valuing difference, and learning how to be a massive bird’s friend when you’re a green trash monster. And yet it teaches these lessons, day in and day out, alongside functional lessons about basic math, spelling, logic, patterns, and a love of music, art, and dance. “Sesame Street” is also honored for its advocacy role in reminding citizens and politicians why public broadcasting is necessary and valuable, challenging us to make a difference and to be good, caring people while we do so.

Representatives of the company will join fellow Peabody Award winners, including Rita Moreno, recipient of the Peabody Career Achievement Award presented by Mercedes-Benz, at a red-carpet celebration on Saturday, May 18 at Cipriani Wall Street in New York. Ronan Farrow will serve as host. The presenting sponsor is Mercedes-Benz, the official automobile of the 78th Annual Peabody Awards Ceremony. Variety is the exclusive media partner.

Winners in News/Radio & Podcast/Web/Public Service programming will be announced on April 23, which will round out this year’s Peabody 30.

Entertainment winners, including Children’s programming, include:

2018 Children’s Winner

Steven Universe

Cartoon Network Studios (Cartoon Network) On its surface, Rebecca Sugar’s animated series develops a complex mythology centering around the Crystal Gems—“polymorphic sentient rocks” who protect young Steven and his human friends from cosmic threats. But in this earnest fantasy epic and superhero saga, empathy is perhaps the most important superpower, something our real-world human society needs now more than ever. Available Online:

