Sesame Street via Christopher Street?

A Twitter from Sesame Street's Bert, longtime pal of Ernie, prompted Sesame Workshop to declare that, no, the two are not gay. In Bert's posting, he used the term "mo," referring to his hairstyle. In a Sunday (Oct. 24) story the Los Angeles Times reports: "Reading 'mo' as slang for homosexual, gay bloggers rejoiced." The paper notes that "the show's latest season feels more LGBT-friendly than ever," with guest stars including openly gay comic Wanda Sykes. But Ellen Lewis, Sesame Workshop's corporate communications v.p., told the Times that the show is not consciously trying to appeal to gay viewers. "We've always reached out to a variety of actors and athletes and celebrities to appear on the show, and our programming has always appealed to adults as much as children," she said. "Honestly, the idea that anyone would interpret [this season] that way never crossed our minds."