Takeaways:

1. The Kids Media Club podcast is currently accepting sponsorship opportunities for interested parties.
2. Listeners can engage with the podcast via LinkedIn or the official website for strategic conversations.
3. Chris Heatherly, an influential figure at Disney, shared profound insights during our discussion on children's online safety.
4. The conversation surrounding online safety for children remains critical and unresolved after two decades.
5. The challenges faced by Club Penguin in moderating content are similar to those currently confronted by Roblox.
6. We believe that empowering parents to monitor their children's online activity is essential for ensuring their safety.

Links referenced in this episode:

1. kidsmediaclubpodcast.com

Companies mentioned in this episode:

1. Disney
2. Club Penguin
3. Roblox
4. Pinterest
5. Sago Sago
6. Takaboka

In this episode, Andy, Jo and Emily sit down with Chris Heatherly — former Disney executive, Club Penguin General Manager, and the man who ran the world's biggest kids' playground for nearly a decade. What follows is a candid, fascinating look at one of kids media's great "what ifs."

Chris traces his journey from overseeing Disney's toy business to becoming the custodian of Club Penguin, the safe, customisable multiplayer world that, at its peak, boasted 200 million registered avatars and 300,000 concurrent players. He talks about the early days of the platform, the innovative toy-to-game codes that predated today's digital unlocks, and how a fan-created myth about blurry in-game artwork spawned Card Jitsu — a trading card game that briefly outsold Pokémon at Toys R Us.

But the conversation goes deeper than nostalgia. Chris reflects honestly on why Club Penguin was ultimately shut down in 2017: a combination of the mobile transition (Club Penguin was built by artists who could code, not engineers), Disney's wider mismanagement of its games portfolio, and — perhaps most tellingly — corporate leadership that simply didn't understand the value of community. "I had suits ask me, 'what's the value of community?'" he recalls. It's a question that still stings, given what platforms built on exactly that principle are worth today.

There's also a moving thread running through the episode about what Club Penguin was really for. Chris describes a mission to protect children's innocence in a media landscape that's constantly pushing maturity down to younger audiences. He shares a quote from a focus group participant — a girl who said that at school she wasn't the most popular, but on Club Penguin she could be whoever she wanted — that became the team's north star. That ethos extended to the platform's charity work too, with millions donated through the Coins for Change initiative, and an unusually rigorous commitment to making sure the money actually made an impact.

Club Penguin may be gone, but as Chris points out, pirate servers running the game today have more active players than ever played during its official peak — and a new generation of lore has grown up entirely after his time. The nostalgia is real, and it's earned.

Key Takeaways

1. Community is a product feature, not a side effect. Club Penguin's lasting cultural impact came from genuine human connection — moderators who replied to kids' emails, a team that listened to its audience, and leadership that treated the playground metaphor seriously. Platforms that stripped out those elements to cut costs never managed to replicate the magic.
2. Artists who code build differently than engineers who design. Club Penguin's charm came from its creative-led origins. The comparison with Disney Infinity — a technology-first project — is instructive: one is still talked about with affection; the other isn't.
3. User-generated culture is powerful, and ignoring it is expensive. Card Jitsu, one of Club Penguin's biggest hits, came directly from fan speculation. Disney's corporate structure struggled to understand how a platform could generate its own IP from the ground up — a lesson that Roblox and Minecraft would later prove at enormous scale.
4. Corporate short-termism kills long-term value. The decision to shut down Club Penguin is presented here as one of the clearest examples of a business prioritising spreadsheet logic over strategic vision. Chris left Disney partly because he refused to be the one to close it.
5. Protecting children's innocence is a genuine editorial position — and a commercially sound one. The longevity of Club Penguin's cultural footprint suggests that audiences — and their parents — are hungry for platforms that hold that line.

1. Part two of this conversation continues next week.

This episode brings Andy, Jo, and Emily back together after a busy fortnight that saw the Kids Media Club divide and conquer — Emily and Andy heading to KidScreen in San Diego while Jo hosted the Kids and Teens Summit at MIP London. Here's what they came away with.

The hierarchy is gone — and that's now official. Both events reflected something the podcast has been saying for a while: TV no longer sits at the top of the kids media food chain. YouTube, Roblox, and broadcast were all on equal footing — on the panels, and in the rooms. That shift from polite tolerance of digital platforms to genuine integration feels like a genuine turning point.

KidScreen got intentional about YouTube and Roblox. Rather than token sessions, this year's programming offered real depth — from 101-level introductions to developer showcases — signalling that the industry has accepted these platforms as core infrastructure for young audiences, not add-ons.

Jonathan Haidt's keynote caused friction. The Anxious Generation author's appearance divided the room, given that the very conference schedule celebrated platforms he believes are harmful to children. It made for an interesting tension — and a useful reminder that the debate around kids, screens, and wellbeing is far from settled.

Social media bans: well-intentioned, but complicated. The team unpacks the nuance that came out of both events and the Children's Media Foundation day. Outright bans may actually let platforms off the hook. The COPPA regulations are held up as a cautionary tale — well-intentioned legislation that may have done unintended damage to the kids content ecosystem, with YouTube monetisation for children's content reduced to around 30% of what it once was.

Kids media is facing a potential market failure. TV commissions for children's content were down 20% in 2025 — more than double the decline seen in other genres. Combined with reduced YouTube monetisation, the financial incentive to make content specifically for kids is shrinking. Some producers are already quietly dropping the word "kids" from how they describe themselves — something the team finds genuinely alarming.

Roblox is getting ahead of the crosshairs. Andrew Bareza from Twin Atlas (the studio behind Creatures of Sonaria and various Lego activations) addressed safety concerns directly and clearly at MIP London — walking through the toolsets Roblox is rolling out and demonstrating how brand-safe, purposeful activation on the platform is very much possible.

The BBC and YouTube partnership: a front door, not a full commitment. Jo hosted the BBC and YouTube in a fireside that got unexpectedly candid. The BBC's suite of seven YouTube channels won't simply mirror their broadcast output — the strategy is promos, tactical full episodes around new series launches, and some YouTube-first commissions (including a Next Step micro-drama). The goal is to use YouTube as a gateway to iPlayer, though whether a generation raised on YouTube will follow that path remains an open question.

The Sidemen are rewriting the rules on appointment viewing. Long-form content, licensed TV formats (a Family Fortunes rework pulled from Fremantle's archive got 3 million views in 24 hours), and a focus on watch time over view counts — the Sidemen's keynote at MIP London was a masterclass in how creators are evolving into something closer to TV studios, and why that matters for the future of format licensing.

Despite a lot of hard truths, both events left the team with a clear impression: the people still in the room are passionate, pragmatic, and not going anywhere without a fight.

Episode Summary:

In this bonus episode, Andy Williams and Emily Horgan join Eric Calderon of Surviving Animation for a candid debrief straight from the Kids Screen conference floor in San Diego. With a smaller-than-usual attendance, a shifting industry landscape, and more than a few big questions hanging in the air, the three take stock of what Kids Screen looks like now — and what it might need to become.

Key Takeaways:

1. Smaller crowd, better conversations. Attendee numbers were down, but the quality of conversations was up. The frantic "hard sell" energy of previous years gave way to something more honest — people asking each other how they're really doing and what they're trying next.

2. The old guard model is done. The days of "what does Netflix want?" panels are over. This year's conversation centred on anime, K-pop, webtoons, Roblox, and YouTube — and crucially, the buyers in the audience were the ones taking notes.

3. The audience is there. The business model isn't. Platforms like YouTube and Roblox have the kids. Nobody has quite figured out how to build a sustainable revenue model around them yet — and the group are refreshingly honest that no one left San Diego with the answer.

4. Jonathan Haidt stirred the room. The keynote took a hard line against social media and called out Roblox and micro-drama sessions directly. The reaction was mixed — some applauded, some walked out. The group discuss whether a blanket ban approach is too blunt, and make the case for a more graduated, age-appropriate ladder of access instead.

5. Kids Screen itself is at a crossroads. With attendance below a thousand and a move back to Miami on the horizon, the conference is grappling with an identity question: if the traditional buyer-seller marketplace no longer functions the way it used to, what is the event actually for? The group land on a compelling answer — relationship deposits. You're not closing deals, you're laying groundwork.

6. Do the thing, don't just attend the session. Sitting in on a YouTube strategy panel no longer counts as a YouTube strategy. The studios generating the most excitement were the ones actually experimenting on new platforms — making mistakes, learning fast, and trying again.

7. Humility is the new competitive advantage. Whether you're a veteran studio or an independent creator, approaching new platforms with curiosity rather than authority is what separates those who are adapting from those who aren't.

The mood heading into 2026? Cautiously determined. As Eric puts it: stop surviving, find the fix.

Let me know if you'd like to adjust the tone, length, or structure of any section.

In this special live episode, recorded at KidsScreen in San Diego, Andy and Emily take to the stage to moderate a deep-dive panel on one of the most talked-about new preschool IPs in the market right now: BeddyByes.

Born out of the very relatable chaos of lockdown-era bedtimes, BeddyByes is a new show from Jam Media designed to help young children wind down — and it's been built with real intention, from the ground up. Joining Andy and Emily are John Rice, CEO of Jam Media and co-creator of the show; Richard Goldsmith, EVP of Kids and Family at Blue Ant Media, who handles worldwide distribution; and Vienna Downs, also from Blue Ant, leading consumer products and licensing.

Together, they walk through the full journey of bringing BeddyByes to market — from the initial creative spark and the challenge of pitching a "bedtime show" to broadcasters, to landing deals with the BBC, RTE, Disney Junior, and Moose Toys. The panel covers the deliberate, step-by-step distribution strategy, what it really takes to build authentic consumer products around a new IP, and why owning a clear niche might just be the smartest move a brand can make right now.

It's an honest, energetic conversation about what it looks like to build a franchise the right way — with great content at the centre and the right partners around the table.

This week the Kids Media Club team is back for another Host’s hangout - Andy returns from a ski holiday (not in a cast, luckily) — and he's joined by co-hosts Jo and Emily for a wide-ranging house chat covering some of the biggest stories shaping kids media right now.

The conversation kicks off with something that still surprises people even when they hear the numbers: YouTube has just had its biggest year for ad revenue ever, pulling in $40 billion. Add in the YouTube TV subscription tier — now revealed for the first time in Google's earnings — and the total climbs to $60 billion, making YouTube the second largest TV subscription service in the US.

The team unpacks what this means for how we think about YouTube. It's not the disruptive upstart anymore. It's building tailored content packages — including a kids-specific bundle featuring Nickelodeon, Disney Channel and PBS — and increasingly talking and behaving like a traditional broadcaster. Sound familiar? That's roughly the same trajectory Netflix took, and we all know where Netflix ended up.

Closely related to all of this is the BBC's recently announced partnership with YouTube, bringing seven new BBC kids channels to the platform.

The group agrees it's genuinely mutual. YouTube gets the credibility boost of having the world's foremost public service broadcaster as an official partner — no small thing at a moment when social media platforms are under intense regulatory scrutiny. The BBC, meanwhile, gets reach (especially globally, where those three letters carry less weight with younger generations than they once did) and access to YouTube's expertise in creator-led content — an area where the BBC openly acknowledges a skills gap. The Creator Lab initiative and the ongoing Last Pundit Standing project are all part of that upskilling effort.

Recording on Safer Internet Day (10 February), the team touches on the fast-moving world of platform regulation. Australia — first mover on age restrictions for under-16s on social media — has now requested an urgent meeting with Roblox over child safety concerns, potentially bringing Roblox into the same regulatory frame as other social platforms in France and the UK.

Rather than viewing this purely as threat, the group notes that Roblox, Discord and others are actually accelerating their own age verification and safety rollouts in response. The pressure may be producing faster, better tech than the platforms would have developed on their own timetable. Whether it's enough to get them out of the regulatory crosshairs is another question.

This sparks a broader thought: could regulatory pressure push more platforms towards subscription models, where identity verification is structurally easier to enforce?

From there the conversation takes a wonderfully nostalgic detour into Club Penguin — the beloved, chaotic, genuinely safe online world for kids that Disney acquired and then, the team argues, fundamentally misunderstood.

The diagnosis? Disney saw Club Penguin as a promotional platform rather than as an IP or community in its own right. They didn't invest in a proper mobile transition at the critical moment. And crucially, they couldn't see its long-term potential because they were busy counting Frozen and Star Wars money. The comparison that lands hardest: Club Penguin could have been Roblox. Disney is now investing heavily in Fortnite as its digital parks equivalent — the very thing Club Penguin might have become with patience and strategic vision.

This leads into a broader discussion of Disney's new CEO Josh D'Amaro, the question of whether Disney has a genuine new IP problem (spoiler: the group thinks yes), and what the Eisner era did differently

This week the Kids Media Club welcomes Sarah DeWitt, SVP and GM of PBS Kids, for a conversation that covers a lot of ground — and covers it brilliantly.

For international listeners, Sarah begins by unpacking how PBS actually works: a network of 330 member stations across the US, locally run but nationally coordinated, funded through a mix of voluntary public donations, corporate underwriting (with strict nutrition and advertising rules), and federal grants. It's a model unlike anything in the UK or Ireland, and understanding it makes what comes next all the more striking.

Sarah explains the two major federal funding cuts that have hit PBS Kids hard — the dissolution of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the abrupt termination of the Department of Education's Ready to Learn grant, a $100 million, five-year programme that has quietly underpinned some of PBS Kids' most beloved shows. Super Why, Odd Squad, and the brand new Phoebe and J all owe their existence, in part, to shifting presidential education priorities channelled through that grant. With it gone almost overnight, PBS Kids has cut close to 30% of its content staff and is now looking at halving its development pipeline by 2028 and 2029.

But the conversation is far from doom and gloom. Sarah talks about the extraordinary public response — kids running lemonade stands and sending in their pocket money — and shares that 82% of US voters, including 72% of Trump voters, say they value PBS for its children's content. She's also busy exploring new territory: philanthropic foundations, commercial licensing, and international co-production opportunities that PBS had never needed to pursue before.

There's also a rich discussion about what public service media can do that commercial broadcasters simply won't — from Carl the Collector, a show with a lead character on the autism spectrum that sparked a seven-year-old to ask his parents if he was autistic, to the challenge of creating developmentally appropriate short-form content that pushes back against the addictive mechanics now baked into so much of kids' media.

It's one of those episodes where the hosts keep trying to get back on track and keep getting beautifully derailed — and you won't mind one bit.