The Death of Saturday Morning Television

[TMC]

http://tv.groups.yahoo.com/group/Dea...ng_Television/

Saturday morning cartoon is the colloquial term for the animated television programming which was typically scheduled on Saturday mornings on the major American television networks from the 1960s to the 1990s.

Parents' lobby groups like Action for Children's Television appeared in the late 1960s. They voiced concerns about the presentation of violence, anti-social attitudes and stereotypes in Saturday morning cartoons. By the 1970s, these groups exercised enough influence that the TV networks felt compelled to lay down more stringent content rules for the animation houses.

Critics have complained that this proceeded to the point where the very depiction of conflict and jeopardy and the basic elements of drama and suspense were severely restricted, and the artists were left with few avenues of expression. The prohibition against the depiction of anti-social elements often prompted conformist stories, such as in the Smurfs series, where almost any individual initiative often resulted in trouble for the group and therefore had to be avoided.

However, the decline of the timeslot truly began in the mid 1980s for a variety of reasons, including:
*The rise of first run syndication animated programs, which usually had a greater artistic freedom, and looser standards
*The increasing popularity of home video
*The rise of cable TV channels like Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network

Because of FCC-mandated regulations that began in the mid-1990s, broadcast stations were forced to program a minimum of three hours of children's educational/informational ("E/I") programming.

To help their affiliates comply with the regulations, broadcast networks began to reorganize their efforts to adhere to the mandates, so its affiliates wouldn't bear the burden of scheduling the shows themselves on their own time.

[Ireneparalegal]

Deja vu...isn't there a thread like this already? I know there is, people posted on it.

[Big3sCompanyFan]

Yeah, not to mention today's cartoons SUCK!! I still miss the Bugs Bunny Road Runner hour on Sat. mornings eventhough I'm no longer a kid!!

[jimpickens]

The PC thugs really messed things up didn't they.

[Schmoopie]

I agree that cartoons just aren't what they used to be. The characters are drawn too lifelike! Give me Snoopy and Charlie Brown any day!

Andrea