GoKawiil1999 Falwell newsletter branded Teletubbies' Tinky Winky gay
The children's show Teletubbies, which debuted on the BBC in 1997, became a global merchandising phenomenon and a cultural flashpoint. Televangelist Jerry Falwell's National Liberty Journal published a piece in 1999 declaring that the purple, triangle-antenna character Tinky Winky was a secretly gay role model for children, citing the character's purse-like bag and color. Producer Kenn Viselman and others pushed back, insisting the character had no sexuality and was simply a toy-loving alien designed for toddlers.