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Ted Cruz, who had a fight with Big Bird on Twitter, was not on our 2021 Bingo card.

However, the Texas senator chirpNaming the “Sesame Street” character as the month of November announcement “Government propaganda for your 5-year-old” about the Covid-19 vaccine provided a clear example of a contemporary phenomenon: It is increasingly difficult for people to distinguish real-life characters from fictional ones.

For Aaron Bisman, vice president of audience development at Sesame Workshop, this may seem like a testament to hard work. She manages all of the “Sesame Street” social media accounts (eight on Facebook, nine on Twitter, and one on Instagram), each reflecting characters from the long-running children’s show and sharing messages in line with the show’s mission. It makes audiences smarter and kinder.

“We knew our character accounts were powerful voices that needed to be trained,” Mr. Bisman said. But deciding when and how to take advantage of each requires careful thought.

Mr Bisman said it made sense for Big Bird to talk about the Covid vaccine, for example, because he was “very happy but a little worried”. Elmo also tweeted about the vaccine, but not from personal experience. (He’s consistently 3 and a half years old—too young to be fit, but apparently old enough. Go skiing with Lil Nas X.) Bert was able to post about voting in the 2020 presidential election because he was a little older. Also, Mr. Bisman said he seemed like a devoted civic man.

Such guesses about characters and their motivations are no longer limited to writers’ rooms and social strategy meetings. Nearly everyone now speaks of fictional beings as if they were living, breathing beings walking – and sending mail – among us. Throughout the pandemic, fans have started to join in on what’s known as more. parasocial relationships Along with the stars of their favorite shows as screen time is skyrocketing and viewers are looking for comfortable TV. On social media, the blue-marked characters regularly posting only fueled this behavior.

Bisman said the “Sesame Street” accounts focus on “taking advantage of the love and nostalgia” people have for the show, which began airing in 1969 and has been a part of the lives of three generations. (By the way, the oldest of accounts has been around for over ten years.) “We’re considering building relationships,” he said, “because that’s what’s expected of any brand in the world today.”

The reboot of “Gossip Girl”, which debuted on HBO Max this summer, has a similar purpose: Based on a show that ended nearly 10 years ago, the series had an established audience of former fans who still refer to the scenes in their social media. media posts as well as a new generation of audiences to reach.

While the original show ended just before the social media boom, the writers, executive producers, and directors decided it would play a much larger role in the reboot—not just in the plot of the show, but as an extension of it. HBO Max’s social media director, Anthony Cain, said the official “Gossip Girl” social media accounts, as well as the characters themselves, are a way to “reward viewers for staying in that world.”

The five people at HBO Max are dedicated to managing the “Gossip Girl” social accounts, along with a few employees at Ralph, an external creative agency. The posts follow each character’s story closely.

“Gossip Girl” also has a team that makes the characters’ phone screens look realistic in every episode. This includes Instagram feeds, tweets, and Venmo actions – all done using prototyping software – and a Google Spreadsheet with tips posted to the Gossip Girl account in the program (Hundreds is a script by Matthew K. Begbie). Eleanor Laurence, the show’s coordinator and a scripted social media supervisor).

The characters also have an active presence on other social networks. Introvert movie buff Akeno “Aki” Menzies has an account on the movie review site letter boxBegbie is led by “Gossip Girl” showrunner Joshua Safran and show writer Eric Eidelstein. (Shortly after the movie “People” came out, Aki’s account on Letterboxd published a review reference to the Thanksgiving episode of “Gossip Girl,” which blends real and fictional universes.)

The other two characters Audrey Hope and Zoya Lott, at Goodreads. The fanfare on Audrey’s account surprised Mr. Begbie; While there was “popularity” from fans about what she read, she didn’t expect it to be the most followed account on Goodreads at some point (currently #17). Zoya’s account came after fans started asking for it.

Mr. Begbie said managing the accounts felt like “a long game of pretending”. Fans also toy by calling accounts by characters’ names, while sending private messages to recommend movies and books. “Consumers think these accounts are real,” Mr. Cain said. “They love this world, they want to stay in this world,” he added.

st. Peter B. Gregg, associate professor of emerging media at St. Thomas University, echoed this point. Dr. “Our minds don’t handle parasocial contact differently than interpersonal contact,” Gregg said. As these shows “open a special window into their world,” audiences begin to feel like they know the characters, he said.

“We all know these characters aren’t real,” Mr. Bisman said. But even Ted Lasso, whose Twitter account is as unrealistically optimistic as his character on the Apple+ show, has fans who thank him for the inspiring quotes.

Dr. “Getting people to form parasocial relationships with the characters is a good way to get them to come back to the content,” Gregg said. Ahead of Season 2, the “Gossip Girl” crew plans to reveal a few more tricks. But Mr. Begbie said, referring to one of the show’s heartbreaks, “I don’t think we’ll be seeing Max in Scruff anytime soon.”