Common Sense Media Announces Newest Common Sense Seal for TV Honorees
Netflix leads the way with quality programming for kids 8 and under.
San Francisco -- Common Sense Media, the nation's leading nonprofit organization dedicated to helping kids thrive in a world of media and technology, is announcing its newest honorees receiving the Common Sense Seal for TV. This distinction recognizes TV shows that premiered between October 5, 2017, and April 30, 2018, and offer exceptional media experiences for families to watch, talk about, and learn from together.
Of the 35 new Seal honorees, about a third (11) are from Netflix, by far the most from any network. The streaming service's offerings on this list lean strongly toward shows for preschoolers (age 3 to 4) and young grade-schoolers (age 6 to 7), as do the majority of this season's Seal honorees overall (24). Of the seven honorees for tweens (age 8 to 12), two are from Netflix (The Big Family Cooking Showdown and Alexa & Katie).
Among the other networks honored, YouTube Red, YouTube's streaming subscription service, earns kudos for two shows: one that's appropriate for tweens and up (Roman Atwood's Day Dreams) and one for teens (Step Up: High Water). The CW makes its debut on our Seal list with Black Lightning, an edgy superhero show for teens that addresses race and class.
Diversity on TV is an ongoing topic of discussion, and this year's crop of honorees features a handful of shows starring racially diverse characters. Two are geared for younger kids (Craig of the Creek and Alexa & Katie) and two are for teens (Black Lightning and On My Block) -- and all of them provide positive messages and emphasize character strengths. Neurodiversity also continues to be a subject of interest, and a new show based on the experiences of children with autism (Pablo) marks the first time since Sesame Street introduced a character with autism that a show geared toward preschoolers has highlighted the disorder.
Storylines featuring music and theater also made a strong showing among our honorees. Five shows bring performing arts and imaginative creativity to the forefront: two for preschoolers (Beat Bugs: All Together Now and Muppet Babies), one that's great for tweens and up (the musical special Jesus Christ Superstar), and two for teens (Rise and Step Up: High Water).
"We are so pleased that Netflix has stepped up to provide great shows for preschoolers and young kids, and we'd love to see more quality programming from all the networks for tweens and teens," said James P. Steyer, founder and CEO of Common Sense. "This is a golden age for children's TV, and we're excited to be able to showcase the best of the best for families."
Since it introduced the Seal for TV in the fall of 2015, Common Sense Media has given the honor to nearly 200 outstanding shows and movies/specials. This sixth installment adds 35 titles that not only meet Common Sense Media's highest editorial standards for entertainment value and engagement but also deliver important themes, messages, and role models.
The Common Sense Seal for TV honorees are:
TITLE
NETWORK
AGE
DEBUT DATE
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie
Amazon Prime
3
11/7/2017
Click Clack Moo: Christmas at the Farm
Amazon Prime
4
11/28/2017
Sigmund and the Sea Monsters
Amazon Prime
6
10/11/2017
Planet Earth: Blue Planet II
BBC America
6
1/20/2018
Craig of the Creek
Cartoon Network
6
3/30/2018
Black Lightning
CW
14
1/16/2018
Muppet Babies
Disney Junior
4
3/23/2018
The Magical Wand Chase: A Sesame Street Special
HBO
4
11/11/2017
The Simone Biles Story: Courage to Soar
Lifetime
9
2/3/2018
One Strange Rock
Nat Geo
8
3/26/2018
Genius Junior
NBC
7
3/18/2018
Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert
NBC
12
4/1/2018
Rise
NBC
14
3/13/2018
A Storybots Christmas
Netflix
3
12/1/2017
Super Monsters
Netflix
4
10/10/2017
Beat Bugs: All Together Now
Netflix
4
11/13/2017
Llama Llama
Netflix
4
1/26/2018
Trolls Holiday
Netflix
6
12/6/2017
The Boss Baby: Back in Business
Netflix
6
4/5/2018
DreamWorks Home: For the Holidays
Netflix
7
12/1/2017
Trolls: The Beat Goes On!
Netflix
7
1/19/2018
The Big Family Cooking Showdown
Netflix
8
11/3/2018
Alexa & Katie
Netflix
10
3/23/2018
On My Block
Netflix
14
3/16/2018
Top Wing
Nick Jr.
4
11/6/2017
Hey Arnold!: The Jungle Movie
Nickelodeon
7
11/23/2017
Anne of Green Gables: The Good Stars
PBS
7
11/23/2017
Ready Jet Go!: Holidays in Boxwood Terrace
PBS Kids
4
12/11/2017
Pinkalicious and Peterrific
PBS Kids
4
2/19/2018
Arthur and the Haunted Tree House
PBS Kids
5
10/23/2017
Odd Squad: World Turned Odd
PBS Kids
5
1/15/2018
Pablo
Universal Kids
5
4/2/2018
Top Chef Junior
Universal Kids
9
10/13/2017
Roman Atwood's Day Dreams
YouTube RED
9
11/22/2018
Step Up: High Water
YouTube RED
14
1/31/2018
About the Common Sense Seal
Seal selections are determined by Common Sense Media's in-house team of seasoned reviewers, editors, and child-development experts based on our proven rubric for independent, age-based ratings. Common Sense has applied these ratings to more than 31,000 reviews of movies, TV shows, and other media since the organization was founded in 2003. The Common Sense Seal for TV, which is released each spring and fall, is an expansion of the Common Sense Seal initiative, which launched in October 2014 with a Seal for movies and has honored 161 films and specials to date. More information is available at /seal.
About Common Sense
Common Sense is the nation's leading nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of kids and families by providing the trustworthy information, education, and independent voice they need to thrive in the 21st century. Learn more at commonsense.org.
Press contact:
Karen Zuercher
415-582-6623
[email protected]
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