Generation Barney

Generation Barney
Presentation
Hosted by	Sabrina Herrera
Genre	History
Language	English
Updates	Tuesdays
Length	32 to 44 Minutes
Video Format	YouTube (MP4)
Audio Format	All major podcast platforms, including Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc (MP3)
Production
Produced by	Meg Dalton Lily Tyson
Editor	Cassandra Basler
Project Manager	Megan Fitzgerald
Sound Designer	Jay Cowit
Theme Composer	Jay Cowit
Publication
Original Release	November 12 - December 17, 2024
Provider	Connecticut Public Radio

Generation Barney was a 2024 limited-run, seven part narrative podcast that was hosted by Sabrina Herrera. The podcast debuted on November 12, 2024 with two episodes, and released new episodes weekly every Tuesday for a limited time. Generation Barney delved into the Barney franchise while also being about nostalgic media from around the era of the nineties and 2000s and how it further shaped individuals and a generation.

The podcast was produced by Connecticut Public Radio, which is owned by Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network, which also owns Connecticut Public Television, which co-produced Barney & Friends from 1992 until 2007. Guests for the podcast included various individuals who were apart of the Barney & Friends series as well as fans, scholars, experts and outspoken critics.

Public Radio Exchange (also known as PRX) supported the podcast while the podcast was also made possible by a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Generation Barney was also sponsored by BetterHelp and Masterclass.

Synopsis

Meet “Generation Barney,” a seven-part podcast about the media we loved as kids and how it shapes us. It’s about the purple dinosaur. But it’s also about music and love and backlash and toys and nostalgia. Most of all, it’s about the television that helps us become who we are, from the station that helped launch Barney into the world.

Production

Initially, when production of the podcast first started, the crew thought about focusing just on Connecticut Public’s personal connection to Barney, given that the station helped launch and produced Barney & Friends. The team then realized the opportunity to engage with listeners beyond Connecticut and decided to use Barney as a way to explore bigger themes (such as love/hate, nostalgia, consumerism and more).

The podcast, then untitled, was officially announced on August 10, 2023. The podcast was announced to look into the the inside story of Barney. The Connecticut Public podcast development team was announced to include award-winning journalist Walter Smith Randolph, Deputy Director of Storytelling Meg Dalton, Lily Tyson, senior producer on The Colin McEnroe Show, Senior Director of Storytelling and Radio Programming Catie Talarski, and Chief Content Officer Tim Rasmussen.

Dalton and Tyson conceptualized the podcast at the very beginning, as they researched, reported and conducted over fifty hours of interviews from various sources, which became the basis of the podcast. The basis of the podcast was to explore the question of ‘how has what we loved as kids shaped us as grown-ups?’. The team interviewed thirty-eight people for the podcast.

Events

Generation Barney LIVE! was an event that occurred on December 5, 2024 at Park City Music Hall in Bridgeport, Connecticut from 5:30-9PM EST. The live event, sponsored by Connecticut Public Radio, was a 1990s themed night, featuring a meet-and-greet panel with the podcast theme and trivia. Attendees were encouraged to dress in their best nineties attire as the podcast team awarded one prize pack to the best outfit. Non-alcoholic refreshments and light bites were also included with a purchased ticket and a cash bar was available. General admission was $15 while a two for one admission was $7.50. Schedule of the event were as follows:

• 5:30-6PM - Meet & Greet includes podcast host, Sabrina Herrera!
• 6-6:45PM - Generation Barney “Behind the Scenes” panel
• 7-9PM - ’90s Trivia Night!

Episodes

No.	Title	Date	Notable interviewees	Episode Description
1	Toddler TV	November 12, 2024	Larry Rifkin, Leora Rifkin, Linda Simensky, Sherri Hope Culver and Stephen White	In the 90s, preschoolers went nuts for “Barney & Friends” — and that’s kind of by design. The people behind the show put a lot of thought into every detail, from the word choices in scripts to the behaviors Barney modeled. Barney spoke to kids in a language they could understand. And those little ones? They were also central to the creation, and evolution, of the show.
2	Dinosync		Bob West, David Joyner and Danielle Vega	For years, two men brought Barney to life. One was the voice, one was the body, and together they entertained kids around the world. Bob West and David Joyner created an iconic character in Barney, from the goofy laugh to those gravity-defying jumps. Just like the character meant so much to many of us, Barney meant a lot to Bob and David, too.
3	Love 2 Hate	November 19, 2024	Rob Curran, Melissa Click, Bob West, David Joyner, Stephen White, Lynn Zubernis, Libby Tucker and Emily Contois	Kids all over the world loved Barney. But even though Barney loved everybody, not everybody loved him back. Some parents found the character pretty annoying. Other grown-ups took things a step further. In some cases, the Barney backlash even got violent. That extreme reaction from adults? It can tell us a bit about our culture today — and how much our identities can get wrapped up in the things we love and hate.
4	Purple Capitalism	November 26, 2024	Andrew Olsen, Meredith Bak, Lincoln Geraghty, Selma Purac, Jess Nelson, Liliana Herrera and Sherri Hope Culver	On “Barney & Friends,” Barney starts off as a plush toy and then comes to life. That iconic stuffed animal wasn’t just on the small screen; it was in the homes of children around the world. Merchandise was a huge part of the show’s success. But “Barney & Friends” wasn’t the first movie or TV show to connect with fans through merch. That dates back a long time — and has a history that includes He-Man, Ronald Reagan, and George Lucas.
5	Purple Dino Puppeteers	December 3, 2024	Brandon Smith, Sebastiano Ricci, Bradley Freeman Jr. and Cedwan Hooks	For a lot of young viewers, Barney wasn’t just a character on TV. He was more like a friend. Barney even became a kind of mentor for some kids. For one group of friends, their friendship — and even careers — might’ve turned out totally different had it not been for a purple dinosaur.
6	Kid Bopz	December 10, 2024	Angelo Natalie, Kerron Stark, Bob Singleton, Liliana Herrera, Wendy Sims, Robert Dalton, Lily E. Hirsch and Valerie Carubia	“Barney & Friends” was all about the music. Barney and the kids on the show would learn about everything through song. The people behind Barney’s tunes had to make sure toddlers could easily understand what they were hearing — that meant songs had to be active, repetitive, and simple. But those same ingredients? They made some parents cringe. For a lot of them, the songs felt like torture.
7	Purple-Colored Glasses	December 17, 2024	Josh Silverman, Lynn Zubernis, Grafton Tanner, James Brooke-Smith, Kathryn VanArendonk, Kerron Stark, Ryan Lizardi, Sherri Hope Culver, Brandon Smith, Liliana Herrera and Sandra Calvert	Barney made kids feel loved. He was a friend, sometimes even a father figure, to Millennials and Gen Zers. To this day, many are finding comfort in this purple dinosaur and trying to put his values into practice. So, why do the things we loved as kids stick with us? What draws us back to them decades later?

Release

Marketing

An official trailer for Generation Barney was released on October 28, 2024. Since the release of the podcast, its gathered more than 430,000 downloads.

Reception

The audience feedback has been great, and we’ve been mentioned in newspapers and magazines around the world, ‘People’ has mentioned us twice and the Guardian newspaper in England has added the podcast to their ‘must listen’ links. — Meg Dalton, director of audio storytelling and talk shows at Connecticut Public Radio

"The Guardian" has named Generation Barney a ‘Must Listen’ podcast, and it’s been featured in the ‘New and Noteworthy’ sections of Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and NPR.

Gallery

Key Art

Original wide key art for Generation Barney.

Second variation of wide key art for Generation Barney.

Third variation of wide key art for Generation Barney.

Generation Barney LIVE!

Wide variant of Generation Barney LIVE art.

Square variant of Generation Barney LIVE art.

Episode Art

"Toddler TV" art.

"Dinosync" art.

"Love 2 Hate" art.

"Purple Capitalism" art.

"Purple Dino Puppeteers" art.

"Kid Bopz" art.

"Purple-Colored Glasses" art.

Awards and nominations

Year	Nominated Work	Award	Category	Result	Ref
2025	Love 2 Hate	Edward R. Murrow Awards	Podcast - Radio | Small Market - Region 10	Won

Trivia

• Originally, there was meant to be a bonus episode of Generation Barney, titled "Generation Barney: Mixtape", where it would've went behind-the-scenes with the podcast team, sharing how the podcast got started, what they learned along the way, and it would've included some reporting that didn’t make it into the final cut.

Videos

Trailer

Trailer- Generation Barney

Promos

Generation Barney Promotion

Generation Barney Promo

Event

Live Generation Barney Roundup

See also

• Purple Tales Podcast - a podcast hosted by Carey Stinson, a costume performer of Barney, that featured former cast and crew members of Barney & Friends and Barney & The Backyard Gang sharing behind the scenes stories from their time with the franchise.