House to cut funding to PBS and NPR!!

Hello all,

I know most of you either have kids who watch PBS or listen to NPR so this effects YOU!! The House of Representatives is threatening to slash a good bit of the public funding for NPR and PBS, which includes funds for commercial-free childrens shows, documentaries, and news programs. If you don't want these programs to be slashed also, send an email or call your local Representitave NOW!!

Here's a web page explaining what I am talking about.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/tv/229300_kcts21.html

Go here to find your local Representative.

http://www.wyes.org/federal%20funding%20help.html

Or just fill out a form on this page.

http://www.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/

This will be voted on the 22nd which is TOMORROW!!! ACT NOW!

(Edit: Sesame Street reference removed to avoid harping on one of many programs affected by this.)

Sorry, But I think it is about time.

Do you have any idea how much merchandising money Sesame Street alone generates?
They will be fine with less or none of "MY" money. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif

Looking at Sesame Street's 2004 annual report (see pages 55-59):

2004 Report (PDF)

It appears that PBS is just a free marketing arm for them since they charge so little for their programs:

Public Revenue (less investment returns):
17% Donations
6% Program Reimbursements (PBS + worldwide fees?)
9% Government & and other agencies (USA and worldwide?)
68% Net revenue from product licensing

Expenses:
73% Programs
13% Administration
9% Amortization
5% Fund-raising

All based on $96,800,000 revenue and $98,600,000 expenses and $325,000,000 in assets for 2004.

No BBC—but sounds like a pretty healthy non-profit corporation to me.

-Bill

I understand Sesame Street could probably hold it's own through this, but there are many programs that couldn't withstand the financial cuts including funding for documentaries and news programs. PBS is not all childrens programming.

Tree,
I don't think I should be forced to subsidize "pledge TV".

I understand your concern and you are free to send them what ever money of yours that you think is needed. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif

NPR and PBS should lose all taxpayer funding. Once upon a time, one could make a theoretical case for a state-sponsored network to supplement the (then) 3 national tv networks and handful of radio networks. Now that there are hundreds of cable and satellite channels, plus the internet and satellite radio, the justification is long gone.

PBS and NPR are leftist, anti-American propaganda machines which take money out of my pocket without my consent, then use it to bash everything from religious and social conservatives to the Boy Scouts to the liberation of 15 million Muslims in Afghanistan and Iraq. Big Bird, Nova, and Click and Clack are fine and dandy, but its time for them to survive out here in the free market without taxpayer support with the rest of us.

best regards

powernoodle... tell us how "I" really feel /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/happy14.gif

Let me just add that I don't think we will see any cuts. The Senate has about 55 liberals who are unlikely to end the taxpayer funding for PBS and NPR, so the House vote is about as far as it will get. Hope I'm wrong, tho.

best regards

You mean they'll get rid of Barney the Purple Toliet Dinosaur?
(Caution: This web page contains fantasy violence and mild language)

comertial free?
how many billions did they make on sesame street, toys books, games, plush toys, and dancing elmos?

have you seen the price of a barney toy? or seen a kid go into spazms if they couldnt own it /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
And that barney DVD must have some sort of Audio visual DRUG in it, as the kids can spend hours watching the same thing over and over and over. i think that is the only resons parents put DVDs in mini-vans, so they can give them a barney "FIX" /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

how many hours more than the tv preacher, do they spend begging for money?

and what ARE those 30 second speels for IBM, and other large corporate sponcors, if they arent commertials? lets see credits?
what were all the adds for Phamasudicals? public donation thanks?

once you SELL-OUT, then you can fend like the rest of us.

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/popcorn.gif

So let's cut funding. That way there will be less ads on public stations, and the products they sell in the stores will reduce in number and come way down in price. We all know that quality programming is cheap and easy to produce. Heck, who needs educational programming anyway. Let's change PBS into an all reality show channel or make it more like community cable access. That'll show em.

Judging by NPR's revenue, they can do just fine without federal funding. The same goes for the local NPR affiliate station. I don't know about PBS and public television in general - perhaps they're more dependent on federal grants.

powernoodle:
You just might get your wish about loss of funding, but it likely won't effect public broadcasting too badly. I think your rant about PBS being rabidly leftist is just the same old tired "liberal media" canard - public broadcasting is funded more by corporations than pledges and taxpayer-backed grants. If anything, PBS is more attached to their sponsors than commercial media since they're far fewer and losing one would be a big hit to revenue.

But I think we both know how to find the Underground if this conversation is going to continue.

I think governmental (public) support for the arts and media are as important for our society as tax support of infrastructure, education, and national security. All public funding inherantly furthers agendas. Highway funding is used to force speed limits and helmut laws, public education is the largest propaganda machine we have, and we use national security to justify spreading our belief system around the world. While I certainly don't agree with how all my tax dollars are spent, I at least have a say in the matter. Public support is driven by ideals and social morals with the "public good" as the goal, usually.

Private funding on the other hand is mostly driven by capitalism. The guiding force is the unseen hand that ultimately directs resources toward profit. These forces are amoral and lack even the pretense of "public good". If we eliminate public support for programs like NPR and PBS, I have no doubt that corporations will step in to "give us what we want". We will make our desires known with our dollar instead of our vote. My fear is that childrens programs will become more violent and sexually suggestive, and the evening news will be 30 minutes of high speed chases and reports of diaster and sensationalism. Why is there little "good" news? Because it doesn't sell. I think we should support public media so we can learn about the unpopular and unsensational aspects of life that most of us live every day rather than the fantasy hype that attracts our attention and dollars.

Thanks for the heads up Tree,

Greg

i think that is one cool thing about PBS, is that they point out the deficencies in the present goverment, even the "liberal" ones, if there are any of them still left /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

[ QUOTE ]
powernoodle said:
PBS and NPR are leftist, anti-American propaganda machines which take money out of my pocket without my consent, then use it to bash everything from religious and social conservatives to the Boy Scouts to the liberation of 15 million Muslims in Afghanistan and Iraq. Big Bird, Nova, and Click and Clack are fine and dandy, but its time for them to survive out here in the free market without taxpayer support with the rest of us.

best regards

[/ QUOTE ]


I mostly agree with that /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Both NPR and PBS dissiminate lies, engage in quite dubious social engineering, are unbalanced and not fair.

NPR and PBS both have a political agenda, therefore they do not deserve bi-partisan support (and don't deserve our tax dollars).

""Why is there little "good" news? Because it doesn't sell.""

but who is the spoon fed , trash news being sold to now? i aint watching it? like who needs to see another 2000+ person media coverage of michael jackson AGAIN?

[ QUOTE ]
Tree said:
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/popcorn.gif

So let's cut funding. That way there will be less ads on public stations, and the products they sell in the stores will reduce in number and come way down in price. We all know that quality programming is cheap and easy to produce. Heck, who needs educational programming anyway. Let's change PBS into an all reality show channel or make it more like community cable access. That'll show em.

[/ QUOTE ]

I said before that you and any others that enjoy PBS/NPR are free to fund it with your own money...not mine by force./ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ohgeez.gif


Moveon.org.......there is a perfect example of a mainstream, middle Amercia organization. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/duh2.gif

[ QUOTE ]
Tree said:
I understand Sesame Street could probably hold it's own through this, but there are many programs that couldn't withstand the financial cuts including funding for documentaries and news programs. PBS is not all childrens programming.

[/ QUOTE ]

Well, NewHour is:

Yahoo Biz Summary

[ QUOTE ]
MacNeil/Lehrer Productions Company Profile (Private)

Revenue (2005): 29.90 M
Employees (2005): 105

[/ QUOTE ]

It is interesting how this "poor" news program is going to compete without getting cash from me--but yet, as a private corporation, public information seems to be pretty slim for them to justify going to the public trough:

Liberty Media owns a major stake in MacNeil/Lehrer Productions.

[ QUOTE ]
The show continues to be produced by their joint production company, MacNeil/Lehrer Productions, and Sony Pictures Television (replacing MGM, which was bought by Sony around the beginning of PBS's 35th season).

[/ QUOTE ]

Liberty Media:

[ QUOTE ]
...Liberty has stakes in a wide variety of cable channels such as Discovery (50%), Court TV (50%), and 98% of home shopping network QVC. In addition, Liberty Media is one of the largest shareholders of News Corp. (17%). The company was a subsidiary of AT&T, which had acquired former parent Tele-Communications, Inc. (TCI) in 1999. In 2001 AT&T spun off Liberty Media... Liberty Media completed a spin off of its own in 2004 by separating its international assets into a new company. The firm is chaired by former TCI head John Malone.

Liberty Media Financials

2004 Sales (mil.) $7,682.0
1-Year Sales Growth 90.7%
2004 Net Income (mil.) $46.0
2004 Employees 17,160
1-Year Employee Growth (2.9%)

[/ QUOTE ]

It is interesting that a major media company, apparently, has no web site for itself—but chooses to "hid" behind PBS.
Typing in this link:
http://www.newshour.org/

Resolves to:
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/

Newshour.org is owned by:
<font class="small">Code:</font><hr /><pre>
Domain Name: NEWSHOUR.ORG
Created On: 12-Dec-1997 05: 00: 00 UTC
Last Updated On: 24-Oct-2004 20: 14: 18 UTC
Expiration Date: 11-Dec-2010 05: 00: 00 UTC
Sponsoring Registrar: Network Solutions LLC (R63-LROR)
Status: CLIENT TRANSFER PROHIBITED
Registrant ID: 17798462-NSI
Registrant Name: MacNeil Lehrer Productions
Registrant Organization: MacNeil Lehrer Productions
Registrant Street1: 2700 S. Quincy Street Suite 2
Registrant City: Arlington
Registrant State/Province: VA
</pre><hr />

Hmmm… Nope… Don't feel sorry for NewsHour either.

-Bill

[ QUOTE ]
Tree said:
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/popcorn.gif

Heck, who needs educational programming anyway. Let's change PBS into an all reality show channel or make it more like community cable access. That'll show em.

[/ QUOTE ]

oh no, please anything but that, (quickly writing check to send them).
the community access (sorta public) stations around here, have VOLENTEERS, no 1 million doller stars, or huge quantities of salaried employees. they are luckey to output video of the (never ending) goverment meetings. talk about educational reality shows /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I think government funding of the arts and media is a terrific ideal. It proves to us that as a society we are past subsistence living and have a little left over for art and science that aren't directly profitable.

That being said, the current crop of PBS and NPR programs have really let me down. I don't think we should drag this down into a political conversation, but I haven't changed my views and I used to love them, they have changed their views and they no longer have anything to offer me.

As far as PBS, as a parent with small children, the only programs on PBS that are worth watching are the ones that have been around almost since I was a kid. Name a new show on PBS that you like your kids to watch? I'd rather watch spongebob on cable than BooBah (if you haven't enjoyed an evening watching Boobah then I'll describe it for you as everything you loved about the teletubbies without all the challenging conversation and multi-faceted plot lines)

I subscribed to the local NPR and PBS station for 10 years in a row. then stopped a few years ago and have no intention of giving them any more money until there is something there I want to listen to.

Bob and Ray though, I do listen to them /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif But I can support them on the internet and not always through NPR.