Don't Expect Dora at Your Kid's Party

New doll of beloved character had sparked short-skirt concerns

(NEWSER) - Dora the Explorer is getting a tween update in a new doll, which trades her baby fat for a more girly, urban look, Hispanic Business reports. After concerns were sparked by a silhouette preview of the doll sporting a very short dress, parents can breathe a sigh of relief: the older version of the Nickelodeon cartoon character wears leggings under the tunic. More»

Caitlin Sanchez says she was cheated out of millions

(NEWSER) - Did Nickelodeon cheat Dora the Explorer? Caitlin Sanchez, the 14-year-old who voiced the Nickelodeon cartoon character, says it did. She's suing the network for exploiting her by way of a “bizarre, impenetrable, unconscionable” contract and for failing to adequately compensate her to the tune of millions, the New York Daily News reports. Sanchez claims she worked more than 100 events promoting the $11 million Dora brand for free, and had to spend her own money to cover her expenses while traveling across the country since she was only given a $40 per diem. More»

(NEWSER) - SpongeBob SquarePants is 10 years old, and the “happy nonsense” of the show is “as popular as ever,” Alessandra Stanley writes in the New York Times. What’s more, the wacky, uncynical cartoon has managed to do it “without having disclosed any higher meaning to Bikini Bottom.” Sure, “adults have been trying to detect some sort of subtext”—most famously a homosexual agenda—but no dice. “The mystery lives on.” More»

Cable provider keeps grip on Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, MTV

(NEWSER) - The countdown to the New Year was a frantic one for Viacom and Time Warner. The companies had set a midnight deadline in their tense negotiations to keep Viacom’s networks—which include MTV, Comedy Central, and Nickelodeon—on the massive cable provider. As the ball dropped, Viacom granted a 1-hour extension, and the sides reached a deal soon afterward, according to the Hollywood Reporter. More»

Ads aimed at winning support in Time Warner feud feature a sobbing Spongebob

(NEWSER) - Viacom is enlisting some of its best-known kid cartoon characters in a contract renewal battle with Time Warner, the Wall Street Journal reports. Viacom wants higher fees from the cable carrier for its channels, which could disappear from Time Warner's service at midnight tonight if no new deal is reached. A wave of ads debuts today featuring a sobbing SpongeBob SquarePants and a distraught Dora the Explorer, and urging viewers to contact Time Warner to demand the return of Nickelodeon and its siblings. More»