HBO Max Cuts Down Their Looney Tunes Library

What better of a way to start off the new year than to do what you have been doing for the last year? According to The Cartoon News on Twitter, the streaming service has removed over 250 episodes of the cultural phenomenon, cutting the library in half. This was the only public widely-available access to Looney Tunes.

This is nothing new from HBO Max and mega-corporation WarnerMedia, who last year removed over 200 episodes of Sesame Street. This is a precedent of immense cultural and historical significance. These are shows that have had wide public access in the past for families. Now, are they not only behind pay walls, but the access to the full filmography is indeed limited.

The corporate aspirations to rid us of pop culture history is a concerning trend and one to watch. Those who care about culture, aim to prioritize meaningful works from the past. Those who care about their bottom line and profit may continue to cut down these works allowing space for likely, less meaningful works. Creating new content is of importance, but access to culturally pivotal works such as Looney Tunes and Sesame Street is a compromise of cultural and historical integrity.