Its hero was invisible and the show was off the air in three seasons. It's important to realize that such shows don't dry up because kids don't watch them. The debate has focused on getting bad stuff off. A lot of good stuff, like Nickelodeon's Nick News, gets lost in the shuffle of bad time slots and bad marketing. In turn, networks and advertisers gloomily predict the required programs will lead to dwindling revenues and audiences, complaining that educational TV is duller that Cheers' character Cliff Clavin.
Many kids agree.
Sometimes it's just boring. The Magic School Bus, Barney, and Mister Roger's Neighborhood are other hits that at he same time encourage prosocial values and learning in kids, according to a mountain of research. One of the reasons Sesame Street was so successful was that it borrowed techniques from the advertising community. There would be the chance for advertisers, writers, producers and directors to do the impossible. You could invent the shows that would teach millions of children.