Uh oh. It looks like someone’s in trouble for suggesting beloved Sesame Street stars Bert and Ernie were wise to check for sexually transmitted disease. Mately, a company that creates at-home HIV/STD testing kits, used the kid-friendly Muppet duo in a new campaign aimed at spreading sexual health and sexual disease awareness. The company says they are trying to target the 20 million new sexually transmitted infections identified annually by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In one of the promotions, Bert and Ernie are shown looking at test results, with the caption, “See Ernie, you’ve got nothing to worry about, everything is positive!” Only one problem with Mately’s campaign—word on the “Street” is they never got an OK from the PBS (and now HBO) franchise to use the famed Muppet duo, and that’s a big no-no. READ MORE
