Granny Ranny's Coming Attractions

BabyFirstTV the only premium network in the United States dedicated to providing rich, positive content for babies and toddlers, is an honored recipient of an iParenting Media Award for one of the “Greatest Products of the Year for 2006.” After evaluating hundreds of products by their experienced reviewers team, iParenting Media classifies BabyFirstTV as a superior product in the children’s television category among only seven other winners.

“We are proud and delighted to be an iParenting Media Award Winner,” said Sharon Rechter, executive vice president, Business Development and Marketing and one of BabyFirstTV’s founders. “The feedback and recognition we have received from our subscriber base has been incredibly positive and earning this award further demonstrates BabyFirstTV’s mission of providing high-quality, engaging and delightful content for babies and their parents.

With support from its Advisory Board of leading experts in children’s education, psychology and development, BabyFirstTV ensures its programming is of high quality and appropriate for children under the age of three. The Board provides their “stamp of approval” on all BabyFirstTV programs to verify they offer a safe, positive learning environment with no commercials, no violence and no over-sensory stimulants.

Featuring 80 percent original content and programming from popular children’s DVDs, BabyFirstTV provides opportunities for parents to bond, learn and explore with their baby. With interactive subtitles and unique color-coded programming that demonstrates the educational value of each program from language to math to music, BabyFirstTV provides parents with the tools to transform television into an active learning opportunity with their child. The network also offers a series just for parents offering tips and advice on various parenting topics.

“I think this is a fine channel,” said an iParenting Media Award’s reviewer. “Many of the segments are charming and certainly educational. Several of the segments introduced original ways of presenting ideas and the graphics were nice too.”

The network is currently available for $9.99 a month on DirecTV and DISH network and offers hundreds of hours of high-quality original programming including award-winning DVD content for less than the price of a single baby DVD.

About BabyFirstTV

BabyFirstTV is the first network in the U.S. dedicated to providing rich, innovative and inspiring content designed to enhance baby’s development in a delightful and engaging way. Supported by leading child development experts, the network is specifically tailored to meet the needs of babies in a safe and engaging commercial-free learning environment. Featuring 80 percent original content, BabyFirstTV offers parents a positive way to bond with baby and help foster learning and development. BabyFirstTV is a distinguished iParenting Media Award winner of one of the “greatest products of the year in 2006.” For more information, go to www.BabyFirstTV.com.

New York, NY (PRWEB) November 6, 2007 — Reaching new audiences nationwide, IFP, the producer of the Gotham Awards announced today that it has signed a three-year sponsorship agreement with The New York Times at the premiere level, which will include the creation and national distribution of an annual eight-page Gotham Awards special advertising section. This year’s awards will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 27, at Steiner Studios in Brooklyn.

The Gotham Awards honor independent film. The New York Times will preview the 17th Annual Gotham Award nominees, current and past honorees and the public events that are planned leading up to the awards in a special advertising section, to be published in the newspaper on Tuesday, Nov. 6.

“The New York Times has been a leading supporter of the Gotham Awards since their inception and we’re thrilled to take this relationship to the next level,” said Michelle Byrd, executive director of IFP. “It’s an exciting opportunity to bring even greater recognition to the best independent films and the people behind them.” “As a major supporter of independent film and filmmakers, The Times is delighted to commit our resources as a premiere sponsor of the Gotham Awards,” said Virginia French, group vice president of advertising, The New York Times.

For the first time, the ceremony will be held in Brooklyn, the heart of New York City’s resurgent film industry. IFP also recently announced new distribution partnerships with Netflix, the Documentary Channel and NYC TV — New York City’s public television station — that will bring this year’s Gotham Awards ceremony to an estimated audience of more than 20 million viewers, the widest ever for the Awards.

Along with moving the award ceremony to Brooklyn, IFP is also launching the Gotham Awards Independent Film Series, a month-long series of public events, including conversations, retrospectives and screenings highlighting Gotham Award nominees and honorees. The events will be held from Nov. 6 to Nov. 27 at leading cultural institutions throughout the city, including the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art, the Brooklyn Academy of Music and the IFC Center. Nominees for this year’s Gotham Awards, announced on Oct. 22, include Craig Zobel’s “Great World of Sound,” topping the list with three nominations; Sean Penn’s “Into the Wild”; and Noah Baumbach’s “Margot at the Wedding.”

A total of 28 films received nominations in six categories: Best Feature, Best Documentary, Breakthrough Director, Breakthrough Actor, Best Ensemble Cast and Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You. In addition to the competitive awards, the Gotham Awards will also present Gotham Tributes to six individuals in recognition of their influential work in the film industry.

Sponsors of the Gotham Awards include: Axium, The New York Times, Deluxe, NYC TV, Rainbow Media and Variety. The award ceremony will be broadcast locally via NYC TV during the first week of December. Additional digital content from the show and surrounding public programs related to the Gothams will be carried on IFP’s Web site at http://www.ifp.org/.

IFP’s mission is to nurture and celebrate independent film and filmmakers, and to foster a vibrant and sustainable independent filmmaking community. IFP seeks to empower individuals with the language of film and enrich the world of film with a diversity of voices. It passionately believes that creating opportunities for independent, original and often controversial films to be made and seen is an essential part of a free, open and intellectually curious society. It is a not-for-profit organization headquartered in New York City with 10,000 members throughout the world. More at http://www.ifp.org/.

About The New York Times CompanyThe New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT), a leading media company with 2006 revenues of $3.3 billion, includes The New York Times, the International Herald Tribune, The Boston Globe, 15 other daily newspapers, WQXR-FM and more than 30 Web sites, including NYTimes.com, Boston.com and About.com. The Company’s core purpose is to enhance society by creating, collecting and distributing high-quality news, information and entertainment.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics in a report issued in October, 2007: Consistent, heavy television viewing (more than two hours a day) throughout early childhood can cause behavior, sleep and attention problems. In the new study, “Children’s Television Exposure and Behavioral and Social Outcomes at 5.5 Years: Does Timing of Exposure Matter?” researchers assessed data from the Healthy Steps for Young Children national evaluation effort pertaining to the effects of early, concurrent and sustained television exposure at age 2.5 years, and again at age 5.5 years. The effects of having a television in the child’s bedroom were measured at age 5.5. Sixteen percent of parents reportedthat their child watched television more than two hours a day at age 2.5 years only (early exposure), 15 percent reported that their children watched more than two hours of television daily at 5.5 years only (concurrent exposure), and 20 percent reported more than two hours of television viewing daily at both times (sustained exposure). Forty-one percent of children had a television in their bedroom at age 5.5. Sustained television viewing was associated with sleep, attention and aggressive behavior problems, and externalizing of problem behaviors. Concurrent television exposure was associated with fewer social skills. Having a television in the bedroom was associated with sleep problems and less emotional reactivity at age 5.5. Early exposure to television for more than two hours a day, which decreased over time, did not cause behavior or social problems. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends no television viewing for children under age 2, and no more than two hours of daily media exposure for ages 2 and older.

Take Sesame Street with you on the road – to the supermarket, to the doctor’s office, your car, the gym. The Sesame Street podcast is a new series of free, portable video episodes focusing on listening, reading comprehension, and vocabulary building. Sign up to get the video episodes automatically delivered to your computer or video-enabled media player. http://www.sesameworkshop.org/podcasts

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 31, 2007
Parents are taking a more active role in the lives of their children than they did 10 years ago, according to data released today by the U.S. Census Bureau. For example, in 2004, 47 percent of teenagers had restrictions on what they watched on television, when they watched, and for how long, up from 40 percent in 1994 (Table 11).

A Child’s Day: 2004 examines the well-being of children younger than 18 and provides an updated look into how they spend their days. This series of 30 tables published by the U.S. Census Bureau is based on the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) and addresses children’s living arrangements, family characteristics, time spent in child care, academic experience, extracurricular activities and more.

According to this latest look into the lives of children, about 68 percent of 3- to 5-year-olds had limits on their television viewing, an increase from 54 percent in 1994. More children 6 to 11 found they, too, were living with restrictions on television: 71 percent in 2004 compared with 60 percent 10 years earlier.

In 2004, 53 percent of children younger than 6 ate breakfast with their parents every day (Table 7). That compared with only 22 percent of teenagers who ate breakfast with their parents each morning. Those percentages increased at the dinner table, where 78 percent of children younger than 6 ate dinner nightly with their parents, compared with 57 percent of teenagers.

According to the current data, parents continued to exert a positive influence on their children in other ways. Seventy-four percent of kids younger than 6 were praised by their mother or father three or more times a day (Table 6). The same was true for 54 percent of children 6 to 11 and 40 percent of 12- to 17-year-olds.

Children 1 to 2 were read to an average of 7.8 times in the previous week of the survey (Table 9), while children 3 to 5 were read to an average of 6.8 times in the previous week.

Other highlights:

About half of all children 1 to 5 are read to seven or more times a week; 53 percent for 1- to 2-year-olds, and 51 percent for 3- to 5-year olds.

The percentage of children participating in lessons, such as music, dance, language, computers, or religion, went up for 6- to 11-year olds, from 24 percent in 1994 to 33 percent in 2004 (Table 13).

From 1994 to 2004, the percentage of children who changed schools went down for 6- to 11-year-olds, from 30 percent to 26 percent. For 12- to 17-year-olds, the percentage of children who changed schools dropped from 52 percent to 42 percent (Table 17).

From 1994 to 2004, the number of children 12 to 17 who repeated a grade declined from 16 percent to 11 percent. For children 6 to 11, the rate remained the same at 7 percent.

SIPP produces national-level estimates for the U.S. resident population and subgroups, and allows for the observation of trends over time, particularly of selected characteristics, such as income, eligibility for and participation in transfer programs, household and family composition, labor force behavior, and other associated events.

With Halloween just behind us, people in the USA have started gearing up for its next food-centric holiday, Thanksgiving. PBS KIDS and PBS KIDS GO! will offer a full plate of great kids’ content on November 22 and 23 with specials encouraging sharing, friendship and fun.

On Thursday, November 22, PBS KIDS GO! features a special holiday presentation of Arthur’s Missing Pal, Arthur’s first-ever CGI movie. On Friday, November 23, the PBS KIDS preschool destination celebrates “Friend Day” with friendship-themed episodes followed by a two-hour Wordgirl marathon on PBS KIDS GO!. At pbskids.org, kids can send ecards to friends in celebration of “Friend Day.”

Descriptions:

ARTHUR’S MISSING PAL, Thursday, November 22 on PBS KIDS GO!

Arthur, like you’ve never seen him before, stars in his FIRST-EVER CGI movie. When Arthur’s dog Pal disappears, Arthur must enlist the help of his friends to track him down. While Pal discovers his newfound freedom, Arthur discovers how much he misses his dog. Good thing Arthur has the gang to turn to — especially his best friend, Buster Baxter who dusts off his old detective gear to get on the case. This canine quest leads Arthur and Buster across Elwood city, deep into the bowels of an ice cream factory, past a giant cow on ice skates, and right up to the point where all hope seems lost. Could the solution to this caper, though, be right in front of Arthur’s eyes? And why has D.W. been acting so funny lately? One thing’s for certain, Arthur is determined to get to the bottom of this case. Follow Arthur, Buster and all their friends through the streets of Elwood City as they sniff out clues and chase after leads…and learn a valuable lesson about friendship, teamwork and responsibility.

PBS KIDS FRIEND DAY shows – Friday, November 23

CURIOUS GEORGE
Monkey Underground – When George stumbles across a gopher hole in the field near the country house, he suddenly finds himself inside a secret world of underground tunnels. Just below the mounds, Mama, Papa, and Junior Gopher have found a hiding place away from Mr. Gopher Getter – the man who plans to de-gopher the entire field. George warns his new pals about the looming trap. But only if George can dig super monkey-fast, and in the correct direction, will he be able to save his gopher friends from being removed from their home.

Cat Mother – Professor Wiseman entrusts George with Lucky, a tiny kitten too young to take care of herself. It’s love at first sight for Lucky when she meets her first dog – Hundley, the proud lobby dachshund. But it’s not such a fast friendship for Hundley, who sneezes when Lucky affectionately rubs against him. Hundley’s allergic to cats! Lucky is inconsolable, having to stay away from her new friend, so George decides to build a substitute dog for Lucky. Can George use his sharp investigation and engineering skills to create an exact Hundley replica?

CLIFFORD

Fan Mail – Emily Elizabeth writes a fan letter to her favorite pop star and discovers — with the help of Mr. Bleakman — that sometimes wishes do come true.

Hooray for Cleo – Cleo withholds information and makes everyone think she’s a beachball playing star.

SUPER WHY!

The Little Red Hen – “Not I!” “Not I!” “Not I!” is all Red’s friends say when she needs their help gathering apples! This is a super big problem. The Super Readers take off into the story of the Little Red Hen, whose friends won’t assist her either! The Super Readers are willing to lend a hand to The Little Red Hen, but will anyone help Red?

DRAGON TALES

Moving On – Cassie is devastated when her favorite big sister, Sophie, heads off to cooking school. Every spot in Dragon Land reminds Cassie of her sister and makes her sad all over again. Cassie ends up feeling better when she decides to teach her little sister how to cook Goo-Berry Pudding, just like Sophie taught her.

Head Over Heels – Quetzal asks the friends to take a bowl of gazpacho to his sick brother. Along the way, they have to pay a toll to Trumpy the tollbooth troll. Emmy doesn’t know how she will pay. The toll is one cartwheel, and she can’t do one. Her friends give her tips and Emmy keeps on trying, and finally gets good enough to pay the toll.

WORDGIRL Marathon – Friday, November 23 on PBS KIDS GO!

Tobey or Consequences – While Tobey has a babysitter, WordGirl and Tobey get into a battle of words on a real-live match of the game show “Crash or Pie.”

High-Fat Robbery – The Butcher is hosting free barbecues as diversions to help him carry out his crimes; WordGirl takes him down, after discovering his meaty powers are neutralized by tofu!

You Can’t Crush City Hall – Chuck the Evil Sandwich-Making Guy is threatening to smush City Hall with his giant sandwich press… unless WordGirl can guess his secret code-word in time!

Two Brain Highway – WordGirl must track down Dr. Two 2-Brains after he escapes from the Prison Warden’s life-size maze, the same week there just happens to be lots of rare cheese to steal from events around town.

Coupon Madness – Granny May goes on a crime spree by using her coupons printing-press to get things for free… WordGirl has to track her down and foil her plan.

When Life Gives You Potatoes… – Dr. Two-Brains has escaped from prison again! WordGirl must find him before he perfects his latest weapon… a ray that can turn gold into cheese. (Luckily, so far, he’s only succeeded in turning gold into potato salad.)

Mouse Army – Dr. Two-Brains has created an army of super-smart mice – but they’ve become too smart! WordGirl must step in and save the city before the mice take over.

Super-Grounded – Becky is grounded for not cleaning her room; when she sends Captain Huggy Face in WordGirl’s place to battle the Butcher, he feels like chopped liver.