On Fri, Jun 8, 2012 at 12:46 PM, Sarah Stierch <sarah.stie...@gmail.com> wrote: > > On 6/8/12 10:17 AM, Christine Meyer wrote: > > I like this thread but have hesitated contributing to it because I'm a little > worried that you'll all laugh at me... ;) > > > Christine! I'm so glad you shared this. I know you really enjoy writing > children-based subject matter and you inspired me to rewrite the article > about the *actual* Sesame Street....street > (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sesame_Street,_New_York,_New_York) which was > really entertaining and a super fun article to write. > > While parents probably aren't seeking that out specifically (it's more of a > subject I'd use to win a bar bet with), if people use Wikipedia for medical > research, etc, why shouldn't parents be utilizing Wikipedia to research the > best media, tools and so forth for their children's lives? I also think that > one of Wikipedia's "missions" is to document this type of material - I'm sure > there is some small group of "children's subject" historians, but..
Thanks, Sarah, how nice you are. And thanks for the barnstar on my WP talk page. Those are fun to get! Re: "children's subject" historians, there are a few editors that specialize in children's literature. There is a large amount of research into children's media, and yes, WP should be a repository of it. The more editors working on these articles, the better. There's so much more that can be done for them. I've just scratched the surface by bringing [[Sesame Street]] back to FA. It was actually delisted at one point, for good reason, and it took me three years to bring it back to featured status. During that time, I improved and/or created ten more articles and three lists. I was shocked at the sheer volume of literature out there about The Show, and some very reputable scholarly lit at that. My own personal library about SS books is quite large. I have lots of stories about my experiences editing these articles, and lessons I've learned. It's been hugely fun. > > > and we get lots of good services for them, so I have more time on my hands > than parents of young children. Plus, I have an obsessive personality, so > when I get involved in volunteer organizations, I tend to be compulsive about > it. I also love writing. It gives me a great deal of pleasure to know that > topics like this that aren't well represented have been improved mostly due > to my efforts. (I also edit [[Maya Angelou]] articles.) > > I am the same way. Wikipedia = awesome outlet for OCD type behavior!!! > > While I have no children nor do I really hang out with any, I am familiar > with the show Yo Gabba Gabba! from hip friends with kids. I just found myself > disappointed that the characters don't have their own individual articles, > but, I guess they don't quite merit it at this point. > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brobee (redirect!) I love Yo Gabba Gabba. Very hip show. The challenge in creating and improving articles about it and pretty much any show is that there simply aren't good sources about it. There's a lot out there, but like my experience with The Wiggles, it's repetitive, fluffy, and promotional. The media and much of academia doesn't take children's media seriously enough. I'm knowledgeable enough about the subject now to have my own opinions, though, like how YGG is a throw-back to the days of short sketches like the early days of SS. "Blue's Clues" changed children's TV from a magazine, sketch-like format to more narrative one, with actual stories, and YGG has gone back. It's all about being cool and hip and engaging children. It proves that you don't have to have glitzy production values to be successful. And yes, I tend to have children's songs in my head all the time... ;) Christine _______________________________________________ Gendergap mailing list Gendergap@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/gendergap
