The measure of authority someone wields can sometimes be witnessed by their ability to openly partake in undesirable, potentially illicit activities, spanning a considerable duration, with no attempt to conceal their actions. A striking representation of this is illustrated by former movie mogul, Harvey Weinstein. His notorious conduct, although concealed behind the glitz and glamour of Hollywood, was a clandestine truth concealed for over thirty years, with references to it even making their way into the Oscars’ routine humour, yet no action was taken to address the issue until relatively recently.
Regrettably, the process that finally brought Weinstein down was embedded in a considerably larger, and paradoxically destructive phenomenon known as the ‘Me Too’ movement, that, in many respects, resulted in more damage than resolution. The numerous issues associated with this movement are extensive and do not necessitate revisiting at this moment. However, one glaringly blatant oversight of the ‘Me Too’ movement now forcefully commands attention – its apparent disregard for the disturbing prevalence of pedophiles.
The topic of pedophilia, especially in regard to its high incidence in the society’s upper echelons, is often shrouded in silence. You may articulately condemn perceived ‘toxic masculinity’ and sexism as much as you desire, but when the discussion of pedophilia is broached, it is frequently seen as a fringe conspiracy, connecting you unfairly to ‘Q-Anon’ narratives.
Attempts to usher in the notion of widespread pedophilic influences in sectors including Hollywood, academia, and popular media are often met with disdain. Dismissing such claims as baseless while staunchly arguing them as promoting hate speech, despite the proven instances of child exploitation within these domains over several decades, represents a deeply systemic issue.
Undeniably, children’s mainstream entertainment has often been complicit in the sexualization and mistreatment of its young audience. This issue has been hiding in plain sight, but is now experiencing increased exposure. There has been a recent premier of the opening episodes of a revealing documentary series showcasing the underbelly of Nickelodeon – the children’s network that dominated the television screens of numerous youths during the 90s and early 2000s.
The series titled ‘Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV’, offer a somewhat disturbing, yet enlightening study into the range and scale of child exploitation within the entertainment industry. It works to demystify a shameful aspect of the industry that our younger generations have been subject to – certainly an endeavor worth attention for its rigorous research and impactful presentation.
However, the most striking part about Nickelodeon’s past actions lies in their transparency. The network, in several occasions, has opted not to shroud their controversial content. Some of the most unsettling portions of the documentary feature scenes that Nickelodeon aired publicly or freely posted to online platforms many years ago.
For instance, there is the noteworthy show named ‘Victorious’, starring a young Ariana Grande. The sequences from this show, presented in this documentary, serve as profound examples of the issue at hand, attesting not only to the problems in Nickelodeon but also more broadly in the entire children’s entertainment industry.