Stakeholders hopeful about state of children’s programming despite setbacks

The landscape of children’s programming has taken a few hits over the past few years, but stakeholders are optimistic about the sector — and reaching out to older children is part of the playbook. The Canadian Media Producers Association’s annual Prime Time conference featured a panel on kids content as one of its final sessions, during which six industry experts opined on the state of the sector. Agnes Augustin, president and CEO of the Shaw Rocket Fund, served as moderator for the panel. She noted that over the past two years, 10 children’s networks have gone dark, including Family Channel which disappeared after 40 years. She lamented that CBC/Radio-Canada is being left to pick up the slack. “Our public broadcaster’s doing amazing work, but it can’t do it alone,” she told the audience. Catherine Winder, CEO of Wind Sun Sky Entertainment, said there is no one-size-fits-all solution to challenges faced by kids’ content producers. Children are on various platforms from broadcast television to streaming services to outlets like TikTok and YouTube. “We need to pivot as the audience tells us,” she stated. Marie McCann is senior director of children’s content for CBC Kids. She reported that her network schedules 52 hours of kids’ programming a week. “That should be the floor not the ceiling,” she asserted. Finding stories that have not been heard is essential, the conference was told. Andrea Griffith is vice president of content and development at Sphere Media and she believes producers are key. “We start with the creator and the creator’s voice,” she maintained. One of those creators is Phil McCordic, president of Windy Isle Entertainment Inc. His company produces the show Mittens and Pants, which runs on CBC Gem in Canada and other platforms around the world. It follows the adventures of Mittens the cat and its best friend, Pants the dog. “Puppies and kittens, amazing content for the internet,” he stated. “Obviously, the internet loves puppies and kittens.” Panelist Jennifer McCarron joked that when she boarded her plane to Ottawa, she was CEO of Thunderbird Entertainment. By the time she landed, she was head of animation and scripted content for Blue Ant Media, which had purchased Thunderbird. She urged producers to continue what they are doing. “What is our Canadian brand — being bold, being kind, finding authentic stories to tell to reach people,” McCarron said. All of the participants agreed that content creators must pivot to include young adults (YA), even though there was no consensus on how that category should be defined. Griffith said she is excited for what 2026 has to offer the realm of children’s programming. “When it comes to YA, I’m super gassed to be trying this because I see the potential win,” she offered. McCann said the YA demographic is not a fixed audience, and noted that it has drifted in many ways. She pointed to the CBC's reimagining of the old TV show Street Cents for a TikTok audience. “It was about studying, engaging with and listening to the kids today, giving them financial literacy in the language they understand,” she reported. McCarron said with the new configuration of her company, there will be a greater focus on YA and scripted content. “Kids deserve quality content as much as anyone else,” she said to applause from the crowd. McCordic worried about young people accessing content on platforms like YouTube. It does not look out for its audience of any age, he warned, and children do not have the necessary tools to self-regulate what they watch. “What they get is candy. The sweetest tasting candy they can get is the stuff that’s being served to them,” he stated. “The truth is we’re making broccoli. It’s better for them, but it just doesn’t taste as good.” Augustin reminded the audience that Generation Beta is being born right now, and they will be a cohort that is more comfortable with artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies. She also pointed out that reaching under-14 consumers would be difficult if the federal government follows other global jurisdictions and bans social media for minors. ppark@thewirereport.ca

Stakeholders hopeful about state of children’s programming despite setbacks

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By Paul Park
|February 3, 2026

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Stakeholders hopeful about state of children’s programming despite setbacks

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