Dear MoveOn member,
George W. Bush is trying—yet again—to slash funding for NPR and PBS. This week, Bush proposed a new budget with devastating cuts to public broadcasting.1 "Sesame Street" and other ad-free kids' shows are under the knife. So is the independent journalism our country needs.
Enough is enough. We've fought this fight before and won—but we can't afford the risk anymore. With the new Congress, we can make sure this never happens again. We need Congress to insulate NPR and PBS from the political winds.
We can make it happen if enough of us sign this petition: "Congress must save NPR and PBS once and for all. Congress should guarantee permanent funding and independence from partisan meddling." Clicking here will add your name to the petition:
http://civ.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/o...zHY0D6Q&t=2
After you sign, please forward this email to your friends, family, and co-workers to keep this campaign going. We'll deliver the petition to members of Congress as they consider Bush's budget—offering a public counterpoint to this dangerous attack.
Congress can protect NPR and PBS from future cuts. The long-term solution to save public radio and TV is to:
fully restore this year's funding
guarantee a permanent funding stream free from political pressure
reform how the money is spent and keep partisan appointees from pushing a political bias
Bush's budget would cut federal funds for public broadcasting by nearly 25%.1 According to PBS, the cuts "could mean the end of our ability to support some of the most treasured educational children's series" like "Sesame Street," "Reading Rainbow," and "Arthur."2
As telecommunications chair Rep. Ed Markey said, "In a 24-7 television world with content often inappropriate for young children, the public broadcasting system represents an oasis of quality, child-oriented educational programming. We owe America's children and their parents this free, over-the-air resource."1
The cuts could also decimate one of the last remaining sources of watchdog reporting on TV—continuing the partisan war on journalism led by the ex-chair of public broadcasting, Ken Tomlinson.3 More people trust public broadcasting than any corporate news media.4 President Bush would rather undermine our free press than face reporters who are asking tough questions.
Let's put an end to the constant threats to NPR and PBS. Let's ask Congress to guarantee funding and stop partisan meddling. Clicking here will add your name to the petition:
http://civ.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/o...zHY0D6Q&t=3
Thank you for all you do.
–Noah, Marika, Eli, Adam G. and the MoveOn.org Civic Action Team
Thursday, February 8th, 2007
P.S. Our friends at Free Press have more on how to save NPR and PBS once and for all:
http://www.freepress.net/publicbroadcasting/=policy
Sources:
1. "Bush Proposes Steep Cut to PBS Funding," TV Week, February 5, 2007
http://www.tvweek.com/news.cms?newsId=11508
2. PBS' Ready to Learn program (funds "Sesame Street" and other children's shows)
http://www.pbs.org/readytolearn/
3. "Tomlinson Slinks Away," MediaCitizen, November 3, 2005
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=2347&id=9851...zHY0D6Q&t=4
4. "2005 'Open to the Public' Objectivity and Balance Report," Corporation for Public Broadcasting, January 31, 2006
Full Version: NPR & PBS to be cut yet again
http://www.tvweek.com/news.cms?newsId=11508
QUOTE
February 5, 2007
Bush Proposes Steep Cut to PBS Funding
By Ira Teinowitz
President Bush is reopening the fight over government support of public television, unveiling a 2007 government fiscal year budget that would cut federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting by nearly 25 percent.
Story continues below...
There was some confusion on how to tally the exact cut, but public TV and congressional sources said at least $114 million of the $460 million CPB budget for the fiscal year that starts in October would be cut. The Association of Public Television Stations said the total impact could be $145 million when cuts in related programs are added, including a program to upgrade radio station satellite facilities.
"It's more of the same," said John Lawson, president and CEO of the Association of Public Television Stations, noting previous requests to cut funding for public TV, most of which were overturned by Congress.
U.S. Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee's telecom panel, ripped the cuts.
"In a 24-7 television world with content often inappropriate for young children, the public broadcasting system represents an oasis of quality, child-oriented educational programming," he said. "We owe America's children and their parents this free, over-the-air resource."
A CPB analysis of the budget said the cuts include the $50 million already appropriated by Congress for next year, elimination of additional funding for digital conversion of public TV stations and a slight decrease in the Ready to Learn program. In addition to the cuts, the traditional advance funding for future years' programs would disappear, potentially making it harder for public stations to commit to future TV programming.
A spokeswoman for PBS said that the cuts would be "disastrous" for public TV stations.
"For PBS, it could mean the end of our ability to support some of the most treasured educational children's series and primetime icons to which CPB funding contributes," said Lea Sloan, VP-communications.
She said the lack of advanced funding would "cripple PBS' ability to support programs that take years to develop."
"We are hopeful that Congress will recognize the unique value public stations offer to their communities in everything from advancing literacy, math and science skills among children to providing rich, diverse cultural arts as well as news and public affairs programming to people of all ages," she said.
(Editor: Liff)
Bush Proposes Steep Cut to PBS Funding
By Ira Teinowitz
President Bush is reopening the fight over government support of public television, unveiling a 2007 government fiscal year budget that would cut federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting by nearly 25 percent.
Story continues below...
There was some confusion on how to tally the exact cut, but public TV and congressional sources said at least $114 million of the $460 million CPB budget for the fiscal year that starts in October would be cut. The Association of Public Television Stations said the total impact could be $145 million when cuts in related programs are added, including a program to upgrade radio station satellite facilities.
"It's more of the same," said John Lawson, president and CEO of the Association of Public Television Stations, noting previous requests to cut funding for public TV, most of which were overturned by Congress.
U.S. Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee's telecom panel, ripped the cuts.
"In a 24-7 television world with content often inappropriate for young children, the public broadcasting system represents an oasis of quality, child-oriented educational programming," he said. "We owe America's children and their parents this free, over-the-air resource."
A CPB analysis of the budget said the cuts include the $50 million already appropriated by Congress for next year, elimination of additional funding for digital conversion of public TV stations and a slight decrease in the Ready to Learn program. In addition to the cuts, the traditional advance funding for future years' programs would disappear, potentially making it harder for public stations to commit to future TV programming.
A spokeswoman for PBS said that the cuts would be "disastrous" for public TV stations.
"For PBS, it could mean the end of our ability to support some of the most treasured educational children's series and primetime icons to which CPB funding contributes," said Lea Sloan, VP-communications.
She said the lack of advanced funding would "cripple PBS' ability to support programs that take years to develop."
"We are hopeful that Congress will recognize the unique value public stations offer to their communities in everything from advancing literacy, math and science skills among children to providing rich, diverse cultural arts as well as news and public affairs programming to people of all ages," she said.
(Editor: Liff)
Another good reason to support NPR and PBS: this evening the cable news shows are covering the death of Anna Nicole Smith rather than political or even 'pretend' hard news at least at this hour. Unreal. 
Thank goodness PBS is now running the BBC World News here.
Thank goodness PBS is now running the BBC World News here.
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