Table of Contents

ContentsIntroduction: Nickelodeon and the Business of Fun Heather HendershotI Economics and Marketing1 Nickelodeon Grows Up: The Economic Evolution of a Network Norma Pecora2 "A Kid's Gotta Do What a Kid's Gotta Do": Branding the Nickelodeon Experience Kevin S. Sandler3 "TV Satisfaction Guaranteed!" Nick at Nite and TV Land's "Adult" AttractionsSusan MurrayII The Production Process4 The Early Days of Nicktoons Linda Simensky5 "You Dumb Babies!" How Raising the Rugrats Children Became as Dif?cult as the Real Thing Mimi Swartz6 Diversifying Representation in Children's TV: Nickelodeon's Model Ellen Seiter and Vicki Mayer7 Interview with Geraldine Laybourne Henry JenkinsIII Programs and Politics8 Ren & Stimpy: Fan Culture and Corporate Strategy Mark Langer9 Nickelodeon's Nautical Nonsense: The Intergenerational Appeal of SpongeBob SquarePants Heather Hendershot10 "We Pledge Allegiance to Kids": Nickelodeon and Citizenship Sarah Banet-WeiserIV Viewers11 Watching Children Watch Television and the Creation of Blue's Clues Daniel R. AndersonAbout the Contributors Index

Promotional Information

The first examination of the most popular tv network for kids. Essays are both scholars as well as journalists, Nick employees, and psychologists.

About the Author

Heather Hendershot is associate professor of media studies at Queens College, City University of New York. She is the author of Saturday Morning Censors: Television Regulation Before the V-Chip and Shaking the World for Jesus: Media and Conservative Evangelical Culture.

Reviews

"The phenomenal success of Nickelodeon reveals a great deal about the changing nature of the modern media, and about changing conceptions of childhood. Nickelodeon Nation offers a comprehensive account of the channel's evolution, providing fascinating insights into production and programming, and the responses of children themselves." --David Buckingham, Institute of Education, University of London "With both dispassionate market analyses and insiders' personal accounts, Nickelodeon Nation covers the channel's history and evolving philosophies thoroughly--like a bucket of Nick's signature green slime! Even 'Nicksperts' will find new insights and understanding." --David W. Kleeman, Executive Director, American Center for Children and Media