I'm in support of this petition b/c the basis for firing Melanie is completely insane. There's no rational basis for it and it is a total betrayal to the millions of children who love and adore her - as well as the parents and caregivers who trust her. That silly video done almost a decade ago is a stupid reason to remove her. They've hurt the children more than they've helped.
I seriously doubt that any of the toddlers who love Melanie on the Good Night Show are downloading and internet videos! If they are - I don't think they're watching Sprout any longer. Yes - the videos were a little on the tasteless side, but it was 7 years ago and it was all in jest. It's really not a big deal!
Actions like those of the executives responsible for this show only create a disincentive for individuals to be truthful with employers when personal actions might reflect badly on the entity. Ms. Martinez should be applauded for her demonstration of conscience, both in the videos and by notifying her bosses of them. Those that fired her should be ashamed. True justice in this case, as well as satire and irony, will be appeased when the executives' pasts become their undoing too.
Exactly what is it about an old (7 years ago!!) comedy sketch that makes her a negative contributing force in children's lives? If you scrutinized every act you've ever commited and held yourselves to the same requirements I doubt you'd have a job. This isn't even a bad act, but simply a comedy sketch. Grow up!
My 2 year old son loves Melanie. He will never see her previous work, nor would any other 0-7yr old. Even if he did see her role, he would have no idea what she was talking about. She is smart, and funny and entittled to earn an living. The videos are spoofs and very funny, and to my knowledge we done 7 or 8 years ago.
I support this petition. My children love Melanie. It sounds like PBS has caved to unwarrented pressure to fire Melanie and for that I am very disappointed.
My 2-year-old daughter absolutely loves seeing Melanie on Sprout. Melanie's firing is unconscionable at every level, and her role in these COMEDY skits should have absolutely no bearing whatsoever on her wonderful role on The Good Night Show.
because Melanie's firing was a ridiculous "knee jerk" reaction to a video my daughter would (1) never see and (2) never understand. All PBS did was cause parents grief by having to try to explain to them that Melanie is no longer on TV. If this is the litmus test PBS is going to use, then they better make sure that they stop airing "Thomas and Friends" since Alec Baldwin and George Carlin narrate. What a totally absurd outcome. Poor Melanie decides to take the issue head on by informing her employer and what does she get in return, losing her job and having the videos draw more attention than they probably ever would have had PBS simply chosen to ignore the incident.
Everyone deserves a chance to better themselves as they grow older and wiser. The actions of Melanie were 7 years ago! Give the girl a chance! My son loves her as the host of the Goodnight Show and we are very disappointed at the actions of PBS whom we have always thought to be open minded, compassionate and non-judgemental. This puts a whole new spin on how we view the network. I wonder if this isn't politically motivated and if so, am further disappointed. Bring Melanie back!
Melanie's firing is an example of discrimination against women and vile puritanical thought. Is George Carlin any less controversial and threatening to children? His comedy acts are more lewd and foul-mouthed than any of Melanie's past work ever was, and yet, his voice narrates "Thomas the Tank Engine." Who are you, PBS executives, to be so pious? Bring Melanie Martinez back!!! She is a tremendous asset to your Good Night show and our children miss her!
The show stinks without Melanie...it is not worth watching cartoon after cartoon. My daughter got so much out of "interacting" with Melanie. The spoofs, by the way, looked too tame for the likes of 'Sturday Night Live' or 'Mad TV.' There is no way my daughter would be able to see them, much less understand them. Melanie is what made "The Goodnight Show" a success, and I doubt that another host can do it justice.
I hear Melanie also gave birth to a child. What? Is the FCC and PBS going to rag on her for not being a virgin and getting pregnant? (That is sarcasm.) Besides, the show has no host now. Brilliant. As if little kids are even going to see that internet vid about "technical virgins". Show some common sense! Stuff like this makes me re-think about funding public broadcasting if all it'll do is rim some over-reactive social conservatives.
After explaining the situation to my much distraught 6 year old, she insisted I write to tell PBS what Melanie does now is good and it doesn't matter what she did before. Also, she wanted me to add "Please put her back on again. Thank you if you can put her back on." And I would like to add, forgiveness is not just a virtue for 6 year olds.
My 31/2 uear old son was dvastated to hear that Melanie was gone. We sing her goodnight song every night still and hope she returns soon.
Let's face it, everyone has a skeleton or two in their closet. Who are we to judge?
The kids are too young to even know what this is all about. It's the adults(whoever they are) that have the problem.
Please bring Melanie back
I support this petition mainly for the same reasons that everyone else have, but also for the reason that there are many actors that are hired to do childrens' shows, and these actors have played some pretty controversial roles. I believe that John Lithgow was on an advertisement for a childrens' song CD, and he played a killer on Ricochet. Shouldn't all actors be banned from kids shows or promotions if they have done R-rated movies if they fire Melanie for what she did?
How can PBSKids fire someone over; discussion of what truthfully provides them with thier target audience? Without sex, kids wouldnl't be born, therefore, no one would watch thier silly shows!
She's a good person. The "inappropriate" behavior occurred a long time ago. It's time to move on. Why should we keep punishing her? Who among us is without regrets of any kind?
I support this petition. My 2 year old son last night kept saying over and over again, "Melly, Melly, Melly" I didnt understand what he was asking for. He handed me the remote for the tv and again asked, "melly". He was asking for Melanie. Kids love her and to let her go for something they wouldnt even know about is ridiculous. Please rethink your decision.
My 18 month old son absolutely loves Melanie...Why should he have to lose that because of a short stupid video shot years ago that he would never see or understand???
The reason why I support it is because, we had a President who committed adultry, BUT he diidnt get fired. Take a look at your life, I'm sure if you look back in your life you had did something that you wasn't proud of. At least she came to you and informed you about it. You know this reminds me of when these men took a woman and brought her to Jesus and said" This woman was caught in adultry, she should be stoned! Jesus said If you never committed a sin then throw a stone. So I say unto you if you never did anything inappropriate then let her be fired. But if you found yourself in making a wrong decision bring her back to the station. She is one of the reasons why you had good ratings!
My daughter looked forward to Melanie every night and sang all her songs with her. That's not the biggest issue here. My daughter is 2, she will move on to the next activity or host of another show on different network. The bigger issue here is that Melanie Martinez was fired from a position not for anything she did in that current job, but for something she did 7 years ago, which, in my opinion, in nothing more harmless than a Saturday Night Live PSA sketch. Which, as many others have mentioned, Alec Baldwin has hosted countless times. Pure and simple, this is absurd, and Melanie has been done wrong by PBS, they should be ashamed.
My 8 year old wants to know why you fire someone for encouraging moral behavior yet you air Sesame Street shows with the Simpsons on it!! A show that my kids are not permitted to watch for obvious reasons! She says your ignorance is showing. The rest of us agree. Do you have an anwser for my daughter? I bet NOT!!
This is just one more blatant example of how the fundamentalist wacko religious right has taken over PBS. Keep your morals to yourselves and give Melanie back her job!!!
The videos are not explicit and aren't as bad as some of the work done by Baldwin or Carlin. PBS has had a history of ignoring stars' pasts. Thomas the Tank Engine was originally a part of a show hosted by Didi Conn (Of Grease Fame) the sex references in grease are much worse than the 30 second clips (albeit without the language) and the same show started with Ringo Starr as narrator who covered the almost pedophillic song "your 16, beautiful and you're mine" in the 70s not to mention his open drug use and drinking. Another PBS show had Denny Dhorety of the Mammas and the Pappas as host, the same Mammas and the Pappas who bragged about threesomes and other sexual transgressions and drug use during their performing days. They also allowed countless sex and drug references to be kept in telletubbies (the "tooter" episode in particular where the tubbies get tickled in the rear with a party favor comes to mind)and numerous other innunendos and jokes (bert and ernie anyone?!?!)meant to entertain the parents while watching with the kids. This is rediclious and a knee jerk reaction to what had been indeed an issue. If they are going to do this they should hire a new actor to dub over all the thomas skits and remove the baldwin films too. And yes that would be rediclious as well.
I have two daughters and they watch her show every night. I do not believe that whatever she has done seven years ago will in anyway change her credibility as a children figure. Please bare in mind that nobody is perfect and that is what makes humand kind so great.
I am grately appalled of the stark abject lack of principle that PBS Board and Ms. Wax demonstrated in having made a blunt decison to fire Melanie Martinez over "inappropriate" videos filmed 7 years ago. How is that so different from George Carlin narrating Thomas the tank engine shows. Based on their line of reasoning, he should also not be in any way connected with PBS Sprout kids for his many "inappropriate"actions. PBS Board and Ms. Wax are an amalgamation of everything that is wrong with America today. Let us be heard and not concede to this injustice and despicable inequality.
This is taking "PC" to a ridiculous and unnecessary level. I wouldn't have even known that was Melanie if I had come across that (and what are the chances of that, really?) without knowing who it was first.
YOU MUST REINSTATE THIS POOR GIRL AND APOLOGIZE TO HER!
pEOPLE WHO LIVE IN GLASS HOUSES SHOULDN'T THROW STONES! THEY SHOULD FIRE THE PERSON WHO FIRED HER! WHAT IS THIS WORLD COMMING TO!
This anti women, anti logic, anti latina, uncaring decision is ignorant, thoughtless and hypocritical: Carlin and Baldwin do children's videos, so what gives!!!!!
My kids love her. They'll never see some obscure spoof she may have done in the distant past, so I don't care. Bring her back, apologize to her for overreacting, and give her a raise.
Clearly she's an actor making a living and her choices early on (which are clearly not pornographic but of a comical nature) have no bearing on her views as a role model.
Fired for having a sense of humour about human sexuality? Does this mean the people that fired her are sad uptight virgins who have yet to find someone desperate enough to have sex with them?
I have 3 kids which watch the show on a regular basis and she does a great job as the host of this show. She did a funny film years ago and now you want to punish her for it. We all did silly things when growing up. This makes us humans. Bring her back
If the children who watch Sprout are accessing the videos that Melanie made, then their parents should be the one fired! This was a senseless moved by PBS.
