About the Book
Children’s television was first welcomed as an electronic babysitter, then attacked for supposedly stunting cognitive development, but it has delighted nearly everyone growing up. Children’s shows define each generation’s reality. Aging Baby Boomers wax nostalgic over the foundational imagery of their youth. Millennials continue to discover new shades of meaning in the shows they grew up with. Today’s children explore their programs amidst a digital forest of evolving media.
This is the definitive social history of children’s television in America, from its inception to the present. It places iconic shows in context, examining how they reflected the concept of childhood itself. It analyzes popular shows of the present, the drivers of contemporary children’s culture, vocabulary, shared interests and norms. It’s the story of the path from Howdy Doody to SpongeBob.
Kids’ TV Grows Up is published by McFarland. It is available in softcover and ebook versions.
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About the Author
Formerly head of research for the makers of Sesame Street, Jo Holz was Senior Vice President at Nielsen and has been a television executive for NBC and Oxygen Media. Dr. Holz taught media studies at New York University, Rutgers University and Columbia University, and was Professional in Residence at the Annenberg Public Policy Center, University of Pennsylvania. She holds M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in communications from the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. She lives in Philadelphia.
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