Sesame Workshop’s Whit Higgins on 55 years of Sesame Street and keeping the iconic show relevant in an ever-changing media landscape.

Whit Higgins

It’s been 55 years since the launch of classic children’s series Sesame Street. And in 2024, Sesame Workshop, the non-profit group behind the hit show, is busy producing season 56.

“It’s just amazing when I say that, right?” says exec VP and head of global enterprises Whit Higgins, referring to the 56^th season. “We say it all the time so it feels normal, but then I say it to other folks and they’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, 56 seasons, that’s amazing.’”

Sesame Street and its characters have touched the lives of millions of children since 1969, and spawned a variety of spin-off shows such as Mecha Builders, The Furchester Hotel and Cookie Monster’s Foodie Truck.

Season 56 of Sesame Street will be different to the previous seasons though, in that for the first time the programme will switch from a magazine format to a show comprising two longer, more narrative-driven segments that are joined together by a new animated series called Tales from 123.

“Every five to 10 years, our production and development team looks at what we need to do with the show to make it engaging for the kids and families of that time. They look at how viewing has evolved, how tastes have evolved and what we need to do to make sure the show remains relevant,” Higgins says.

As Sesame Street has evolved in line with audience viewing habits, so has Sesame Workshop’s distribution strategy. Whereas the kids of 1969 may have been loyal to one linear broadcaster, that’s certainly not the case in the age of streaming and social media.

Sesame Street has touched the lives of millions of children since 1969

“The increasingly fragmented media environment presents a complex challenge. Meeting children and parents where they are means on streaming, YouTube, TikTok, WhatsApp and whatever comes next,” Higgins says.

“As is so often the case, that challenge also offers tremendous opportunity. We still accomplish a great deal with mass media, a tried and true one-to-many approach. But when you think of Sesame Street, Mecha Builders, and all of our other shows and specials, today we can reach different audiences in new ways, with one-to-few and one-to-one technologies.

“We have been working on a multiplatform strategy for the past few years and trying to achieve as much platform ubiquity as we possibly can. We’re continuing to focus on that so we’re accessible to kids and families everywhere.”

In the UK, for example, Sesame Street can be found on Amazon Kids+, while pay TV channel Sky Kids recently debuted Sesame Workshop’s preschool series Bea’s Block and music show The Musical World of Mr Zoink.

Mecha Builders, one of several Sesame Street spinoffs

Elsewhere, Paramount-owned Channel 5’s preschool block Milkshake! airs Mecha Builders, while the BBC’s preschool channel CBeebies broadcasts The Furchester Hotel. Broadcaster Tiny Pop, meanwhile, airs Elmo’s World, Cookie Monster’s Foodie Truck and Elmo & Tango’s Mysterious Mysteries.

“In the UK we are across all platforms with a great variety of content, ultimately allowing us to deliver on our mission of helping kids grow smarter, stronger and kinder with the content we think they need today,” Higgins says.

A priority for Sesame Workshop at the moment is using its content to support the emotional wellbeing of children, especially as awareness of mental health increases.

“We have seen the toll that Covid and just the world we live in is taking on kids. Everybody recognises that there’s a mental health crisis generally across society, but there hasn’t been as much recognition of the impact that kids have felt,” Higgins says.

A recent priority for Sesame Workshop has been an awareness of mental health issues

“So we’ve really focused on that and believe we can play a meaningful role in helping to address that, both in terms of giving kids and families coping mechanisms and ways to deal with emotions and anxiety, and in bringing awareness and recognition and giving people that licence and freedom to talk about it.”

As 2024 rolls on, Sesame Workshop intends to continue expanding the ‘Sesameverse’ with new shows and local adaptations of existing programmes, as well as building new IP. The company is currently in production on a reimaging of EB White’s classic children’s novel Charlotte’s Web for Warner Bros Discovery’s streaming platform Max.

Sesame Workshop will also continue to build its international business via its offices in Munich, Shanghai, Tokyo and Mexico City, while extending its multiplatform strategy into areas like gaming and social media.

Sesame Workshop’s Whit Higgins on 55 years of Sesame Street and keeping the iconic show relevant in an ever-changing media landscape.

Whit Higgins

It’s been 55 years since the launch of classic children’s series Sesame Street. And in 2024, Sesame Workshop, the non-profit group behind the hit show, is busy producing season 56.

“It’s just amazing when I say that, right?” says exec VP and head of global enterprises Whit Higgins, referring to the 56^th season. “We say it all the time so it feels normal, but then I say it to other folks and they’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, 56 seasons, that’s amazing.’”

Sesame Street and its characters have touched the lives of millions of children since 1969, and spawned a variety of spin-off shows such as Mecha Builders, The Furchester Hotel and Cookie Monster’s Foodie Truck.

Season 56 of Sesame Street will be different to the previous seasons though, in that for the first time the programme will switch from a magazine format to a show comprising two longer, more narrative-driven segments that are joined together by a new animated series called Tales from 123.

“Every five to 10 years, our production and development team looks at what we need to do with the show to make it engaging for the kids and families of that time. They look at how viewing has evolved, how tastes have evolved and what we need to do to make sure the show remains relevant,” Higgins says.

As Sesame Street has evolved in line with audience viewing habits, so has Sesame Workshop’s distribution strategy. Whereas the kids of 1969 may have been loyal to one linear broadcaster, that’s certainly not the case in the age of streaming and social media.

Sesame Street has touched the lives of millions of children since 1969

“The increasingly fragmented media environment presents a complex challenge. Meeting children and parents where they are means on streaming, YouTube, TikTok, WhatsApp and whatever comes next,” Higgins says.

“As is so often the case, that challenge also offers tremendous opportunity. We still accomplish a great deal with mass media, a tried and true one-to-many approach. But when you think of Sesame Street, Mecha Builders, and all of our other shows and specials, today we can reach different audiences in new ways, with one-to-few and one-to-one technologies.

“We have been working on a multiplatform strategy for the past few years and trying to achieve as much platform ubiquity as we possibly can. We’re continuing to focus on that so we’re accessible to kids and families everywhere.”

In the UK, for example, Sesame Street can be found on Amazon Kids+, while pay TV channel Sky Kids recently debuted Sesame Workshop’s preschool series Bea’s Block and music show The Musical World of Mr Zoink.

Mecha Builders, one of several Sesame Street spinoffs

Elsewhere, Paramount-owned Channel 5’s preschool block Milkshake! airs Mecha Builders, while the BBC’s preschool channel CBeebies broadcasts The Furchester Hotel. Broadcaster Tiny Pop, meanwhile, airs Elmo’s World, Cookie Monster’s Foodie Truck and Elmo & Tango’s Mysterious Mysteries.

“In the UK we are across all platforms with a great variety of content, ultimately allowing us to deliver on our mission of helping kids grow smarter, stronger and kinder with the content we think they need today,” Higgins says.

A priority for Sesame Workshop at the moment is using its content to support the emotional wellbeing of children, especially as awareness of mental health increases.

“We have seen the toll that Covid and just the world we live in is taking on kids. Everybody recognises that there’s a mental health crisis generally across society, but there hasn’t been as much recognition of the impact that kids have felt,” Higgins says.

A recent priority for Sesame Workshop has been an awareness of mental health issues

“So we’ve really focused on that and believe we can play a meaningful role in helping to address that, both in terms of giving kids and families coping mechanisms and ways to deal with emotions and anxiety, and in bringing awareness and recognition and giving people that licence and freedom to talk about it.”

As 2024 rolls on, Sesame Workshop intends to continue expanding the ‘Sesameverse’ with new shows and local adaptations of existing programmes, as well as building new IP. The company is currently in production on a reimaging of EB White’s classic children’s novel Charlotte’s Web for Warner Bros Discovery’s streaming platform Max.

Sesame Workshop will also continue to build its international business via its offices in Munich, Shanghai, Tokyo and Mexico City, while extending its multiplatform strategy into areas like gaming and social media.