Times are hard, even for the most beloved children’s TV stars, amid federal budget cuts.
After the Trump administration terminated education grants this week that have long funded PBS Kids, a fake LinkedIn post has been trending online from Sesame Street star Elmo, announcing that he’s seeking employment.
“Unfortunately Elmo was recently laid off because of the federal budget cuts,” the Muppet began in the since-deleted post that has been shared on X. “Elmo worked at Sesame Street for 45 years. Elmo is sad. Elmo loved his time at Sesame Street.”
Elsewhere in the post, which is impossible to read in any voice other than Elmo’s, he lists some of his professional skills. “Like hugs. Elmo LOVES giving hugs. Elmo can also recognize the letter E, spell his name, feel empathy, sing ‘Elmo’s Song’ and ask how you are doing.”
Noting that he’s “open to full-time or freelance roles,” the fake Elmo added, “If you hear of any opportunities, or want a hug, let’s connect. And if you want to help Elmo and his friends, please urge your local congress person to save Public Media.”
“While Elmo is sad, Elmo is excited for what’s next,” the post concluded. “And one more thing: Elmo loves you.”
On Tuesday, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting announced that the Trump administration has terminated the Ready to Learn education grant, which has long been used to fund PBS Kids programming.
Madi Biedermann, deputy assistant secretary for communications at the Department of Education, said that they “cancelled ‘Ready to Learn’ grants to PBS that were funding racial justice educational programming for 5-8 year-old children. This is not aligned with Administration priorities. The Trump Department of Education will prioritize funding that supports meaningful learning and improving student outcomes, not divisive ideologies and woke propaganda.”
Sara DeWitt, senior vice president and general manager of PBS Kids, said in a statement, “The decision by the Department of Education to abruptly end the Ready to Learn grant will have an immediate and profound impact on the service PBS provides to families and children across America. This decision removes a critical resource public television has used to enable us to create high-quality, educational PBS Kids content while opening up worlds of possibilities for millions of kids across the country. We will continue to fight in order to maintain our essential service.”
Last week, Trump signed an executive order ordering the CPB to end federal funding to PBS and NPR. But the CPB and those networks have challenged the president’s authority to do so, as Congress directly authorized and funded CPB to be a private nonprofit corporation wholly independent of the federal government. Trump also ordered other federal agencies to end funding to public media.
