Rhetoric in Contemporary Culture

HU1440 : Week 6 CALLING BLUE: AND ON THAT F ARM HE HAD A CELLPHONE Page 1 CALLING BLUE: AND ON THAT FARM HE HAD A CELLPHONE* Virginia Heffernan The author writes television reviews for newspapers. This one appeared in the New York Times. The subject is the first episode of a new sho w entitled Blue’s Room, a spin -off of the pop ular children’s series Blue’s Clues that features some of the same puppets and characters. 1. If any minority lifestyle is overrepresented in the early education of children in the United States, it’s farm life. 2. Long since agribusiness made working family farms scarcer than hen’s teeth, little Americans still sing and learn far too much about chickens, eggs, sheep, wool, dells, troughs, pigs and goats.

Not exactly news they can use. Better that kids of today be taught about ring tones, A. T.M.’s cubicles, Be st Buys and cup holders. 3. But then look at “Blue’s Room,” the first episode of the big new spinoff of the blockbuster “Blue’s Clues,” fresh out on Nick Jr. There are the puppets in overalls: Blue, and her little brother Sprinkles. And here are their tasks : shucking corn, gathering eggs, milking a cow. 4. That’s right: milking a cow. A full -dress demo has the puppets showing the audience how to squeeze the udders to fill a tin pail. This archaism is meant to be part of a progressive, cutting - edge education al television series. It’s shocking. 5. “Blue’s Room” is styled by the channel as “the ultimate play date” and a chance for viewers to enter Blue’s world: a dreamy playroom with everything fun in it, including an oafish guy named Joe (Donovan Patton, a stag e actor, who also appears on “Blue’s Clues”). It must be said that Joe’s a little bit creepy, in the way of grown men who superintend children’s shows. This effect is not lessened by his Old McDonald uniform. On the first episode he’s mostly absent and the puppets are left to do tasks he assigns them. When he comes home, they all celebrate their obsolete achievements while Joe pretends to play the banjo. 6. The farm theme, blessedly, is around for only episode one. After that the puppets get all fancy with t hemes that include music, art and transportation. But the ambition is not restricted to the content of the show. Nick Jr. is also going all out to saturate children’s media with “ Blue’s Room” HU1440 : Week 6 CALLING BLUE: AND ON THAT F ARM HE HAD A CELLPHONE Page 2 as it plans for the “ spinoff series” — in the words of the pres s release —“to roll out on multiple platforms including wireless carriers, video on demand, Nick Jr. video and DVD release.” 7. Brave new world. And we’re still teaching our children about milking cows?