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The Conversation ·For the curious

You Can’t Shield Kids From Scary News – Here’s What ‘Sesame Street’ and Other Children’s Shows Did After 9/11

by Julie Dobrow, Teaching Professor, Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development, Tufts University

Published 2026-09-08 18:34:37+00:00

How do you explain a tragedy to a child who already knows you are afraid?

0:00 / 9:08 · Narrator Sulafat

Context

Parents rush to turn off the television or lower their voices when bad news breaks, hoping to shield children from the details. But kids absorb the anxiety anyway. Published on 8 September 2026, the essay revisits how producers at Sesame Street handled the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. The writer asks a practical question about raising kids through crises: if hiding a frightening event is impossible, how do adults translate a distressing world into age-appropriate reassurance?

Show notes

An overview of how children's television programs like Sesame Street and Arthur adapted their broadcasts after the September 11 attacks to help young viewers process trauma. It draws on child psychology to explain how producers used age-appropriate storytelling rather than avoidance to address childhood fears. These historical examples provide practical methods for parents managing their children's exposure to frightening news.

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