If you judge what's hot by the amount of discourse in the public realm then it seems Sesame Street may well be what's "in" among Hipsters. Who knew Cookie Monster and Elmo would be causing the kind of stir usually reserved for Russell Brand and Mel Gibson.
In case you have been home watching only PBS (which didn't air the segment in question), let me give you the rundown. Katy Perry sang a sweet new rendition of Hot and Cold with her buddy Elmo. But her outfit (tame for Ms. Perry) was deemed too racy for the preschool set -- who seemingly have never seen their mothers in a sundress. The video has been relegated to youtube. Lest Elmo be the only furry friend to create a fury, Cookie Monster appeared to have his jars runneth over as well. You may just open your door this Halloween to a scantily clad tween in a slutty cookie monster costume. As the description promises:
She did it all for the cookie.
She's blue, she's beautiful and she's hungry -- for love! This sassy Cookie Monster costume will turn heads at your next costume bash. Includes plush blue minidress, character face headband and bright blue knee highs with white bow accents.
So why is Sesame Street suddenly the raciest property around? Did some marketing whiz dream this up as a way to get buzz going among tot-toting twenty somethings? Probably not. But what it does show is that the lines continue to blur between adult and childhood fare, and between what is and isn't considered appropriate. So it seems to be okay for a 13-year-old to wear a sexy cookie monster suit out at night, knocking on strangers' doors; but it isn't okay for a pop artist known for her outlandish get-ups to wear a slightly revealing dress while teaching about changing friendships? Hm... The mixed messages we continue to send our children are probably as bad as any costume or video we focus our attention on. Perhaps instead of worrying so much about everyone's behavior, we should focus on our own.