The Real Reasons Why Networks Canceled Shows People Liked Watching

Reading Rainbow Cost Too Much & Didn’t Explicitly Teach Kids How To Read

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Reading Rainbow launched on PBS Kids in 1986. The main purpose of the program, which was hosted by LeVar Burton, was to encourage kids to read. It was the third longest running children’s show on the network’s history, following Sesame Street and Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood.

It was canceled in 2006, and reruns were pulled completely in 2009, mostly because of budget issues and because it was difficult to measure its educational effect on kids. But in 2012, the Reading Rainbow App was a huge success in the iTunes App store. A Kickstarter campaign launched in 2014 and the show is expected to make a comeback.