The Daily Wire co-founder and co-CEO Jeremy Boreing took a New York Times article to task after it referred to Bentkey original Chip Chilla as "a fantasy."
The Monday article, which compares "conservative knockoff" Chip Chilla to Australian children series Bluey, discusses the "fantasy" of "boundlessly attentive fathers" featured in both series.
“There are two kids shows that stand out to the New York Times as problematic: Bentkey’s Chip Chilla and Bluey," Boreing wrote in a Tuesday X post. "And what’s so problematic? ‘Weirdly present’ fathers."
Boreing noted the article "derided" the fathers in both children's series as a "fantasy" for being "active and engaged with their children."Loading...
“Chip Chilla is the most popular show on our new Bentkey platform, and Bluey is the most popular children’s show period,” Boreing added. “It’s no coincidence that two shows that feature loving and engaged nuclear families with great values who actually enjoy being together are so popular.”
Boreing added it was "no coincidence" that "cultural gatekeepers" targeted both programs, and specifically conservative values within Chip Chilla.
“The left not only wants to add its radical agenda to kids entertainment, they want to remove good values from kids entertainment,” Boreing said. “Our culture has fallen so far and at times it might seem hopeless." “Bentkey isn’t anywhere near the level of size and influence of the NYTs and Disneys of the world, but we created it because we have hope and believe our best days are ahead of us, and that the only way we can take back the culture from the left is by building something better," Boreing concluded. Although The New York Times' Amanda Hess criticizes Chip Chilla's "traditional" conservative values, the writer equally notes both shows depict the "fantasy" of idyllic stay-at-home father figures. Hess also noted both shows contrasted other depictions of fathers as the "lazy sitcom dad glued to the living room couch watching television." "I don’t actually know any fathers like that; in real life, the fathers I know are much like the mothers I know, and we’re all competing for private toilet time," she wrote. In October, The Daily Wire launched children's streaming service Bentkey on the 100th anniversary of The Walt Disney Company. Chip Chilla was advertised as the service's flagship show along with other programs offered by Bentkey, including Kid Explorer, Gus Plus Us, Runes and A Wonderful Day with Mabel Maclay among other children’s shows. “Bentkey isn’t about teaching kids politics,” Boreing said of the launch. “It’s about childhood and wonder and adventure … [and is] dedicated to creating the next generation of timeless stories that transport kids into a world of imagination and joy, a world of content and characters that families will love and parents can trust.”
