Ask Me Help Desk - Bush Tries to End PBS, The House says NO!

Bush Tries to End PBS, The House says NO!

House protects public broadcasting - CNN.com

Quote:

The House on Wednesday evening overwhelmingly rejected President Bush's plan to eliminate the $420 million federal subsidy for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The 357-72 vote demonstrated the enduring political strength of public broadcasting. The outcome was never in doubt, unlike a fight two years ago when Republicans tried but failed to slash public broadcasting subsidies.

Iin a time when our nations writing and reading scores are at all time lows, Bush wants to eliminate a broadcasting company that teaches kids just how to do that.

I think there are more important things for the President to worry about than Sesame Street. I guess people forget the days before 1000 cable channels were available. I don't see the harm. I just tune them out if they have a show I don't care for. PBS should stay.:)

Bobby

My question is when they reintroduce the fairness doctrine will PBS be subject to it's terms ? Let's say for every Bill Moyer's bias report we have a Sean Hannity counterpoint.

NK, is there some innate need to at least fudge the truth when it comes to Bush? He didn't try to "end PBS", he wants to "end the federal subsidy" for CPB, which accounts for about 15 percent of its budget. I'm all for it if PBS is not going to carry out its mission, which CNN acknowledges was "created the corporation in 1967 to shield public broadcasting from political influence." That it's failing in that mission is about as questionable as whether Donald Trump has bad hair.

Quote:

the Corporation for Public Broadcasting has had a legal mandate to ensure "strict adherence to objectivity and balance in all programs or series of programs of a controversial nature."

The opening lines of Bill Moyers' Essay; Beg Your Pardon, which aired on June 15, 2007:

Quote:

Welcome to the Journal. Iraq is a bloody mess and getting bloodier every day. So what's been all the buzz this week among the people who took us to war from the safety of their beltway bunkers - I mean Washington's ruling clique of neoconservative elites? Their passion of the week is to keep Scooter Libby from going to jail. I'm not making this up.

Please be my guest and highlight the "strict adherence to objectivity and balance" in those lines. After his 'welcome', he paints a bleak and bloody picture of Iraq, followed by criticism and ridicule, used a favorite liberal pejorative and ended with condescion - all directed toward conservatives/Republicans. I resent the fact that part of my tax money is funding bias and insult toward me, especially when there's more than enough of that already from the mainstream media.

If you have a problem with the content of one program then send it to the ombudsman, that's what he's there for:
PBS | Ombudsman

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedKarma

If you have a problem with the content of one program then send it to the ombudsman, that's what he's there for:
PBS | Ombudsman

And you don't think people have complained of Moyers' bias before? Has it changed anything? Nevertheless, I think I'll do just that and see where it gets me.

I don't think that PBS should be eliminated. I just think that they should have to make their money the old fashioned way... through advertising, rather than though government grants.

If Sesame Street is such a terrific show, and I believe that it is, then it should be able to support itself without my tax dollars. The Sesame Street character licensing agreements are big money for them. They don't need tax dollars to support it, and they don't need an entire tax-supported network just for that one show. Other PBS shows have made the change ove to commercial TV, like Ghostwriter and The Magical Schoolbus. To say that popular PBS kids shows "wouldn't be able to survive without government funding" is pure BS.

And the idea that Sesame Street is the reason that we need an entire PBS chanel is ludicrous. Are you aware, Karma, that the average age of a PBS watcher is 38 years old? If he's still watching PBS just for Sesame Street or to learn how to read, there's a problem that is muh larger than any that PBS can solve.

Furthermore, the entire justification for the existence of PBS was that PBS was the place to air the shows that nobody else would air. That was true back in the days before cable TV became popular. But now there's

The History Channel for historical programs,
Discovery Channel for educational TV,
A&E for artsy films,
CNN for news,
BBC America for British TV programs,
Disney Channel and Discovery Kids for childrens' educational programming,
ION television and ABC Family for family programming,
Lifetime, Oxygen and WE for womens' programming,
BET for African American programming,
Telemundo for Hispanic programming,
Here and Logo for gay and lesbian programming,
Animal Planet for animal/biology/ecology programming,
Turner Classic Movies for classics,
The Food Network for cooking shows,
etc.

And each one of these channels does the job of PBS. We don't need PBS as our sole outlet for these tpes of programs, because there are now other outlets for them.

In short, there is no justification for PBS to be funded by our tax dollars. None of the justifications for the existence of a government-assisted PBS still exist.

Elliot

Quote:

Originally Posted by speechlesstx

And you don't think people have complained of Moyers' bias before? Has it changed anything? Nevertheless, I think I'll do just that and see where it gets me.

Here is what it got me so far:

Quote:

Thank you for your thoughts. Michael Getler values viewers' submissions, and he and his assistant try to read all letters. The ombudsman's column will address significant issues related to how PBS upholds its own standards of editorial integrity.

It won't even get you a guarantee that they'll even look at a complaint.

Quote:

PBS upholds its own standards of editorial integrity.

That about says it all

Quote:

Originally Posted by ETWolverine

And each one of these channels does the job of PBS. We don't need PBS as our sole outlet for these tpes of programs, because there are now other outlets for them.

Part of that etc.:

In addition to Telemundo, you also have Univision and TeleFutura for Hispanics, the English language Latino themed Sí TV, the English language network of China CCTV-9, Starz inBlack, and Colours TV - "The Muliticultural Network."

Then we have:

HGTV and DIY for home, garden and do-it-yourselfers
Healthy Living Channel for people that have no life
C-Span if you need a nap
Fine Living for the rich and snobby
RFD-TV for the average Joe Bob
Fox Reality for people without a brain
Angel for Christians
BYUTV for Mormons

And last and perhaps least, Free Speech TV for moonbats. :D

By bush taking out the funding for PBS he is basically turning it into everyother newstation... man we americans need it! Our media is an embarassement... its all privately owned. We're not going to get rid of our publicly funded one right... dont twist this and think because bush just wants us to have PBS become a business too that it doesn't mean he doesn't want to get rid of it. He wants to get rid of its content! This will affect its content. Is there anyone who agrees??

Quote:

Originally Posted by ETWolverine

I don't think that PBS should be eliminated. I just think that they should have to make their money the old fashioned way... through advertising, rather than though government grants.

And let advertisers dictate the content? That's precisely what they are trying to avoid. Do you have any idea of the amount of PBS materials that educators use?

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedKarma

And let advertisers dictate the content? That's precisely what they are trying to avoid. Do you have any idea of the amount of PBS materials that educators use?

So you've found the answer to our failing public schools?

Your public schools are failing?

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedKarma

House protects public broadcasting - CNN.com

Iin a time when our nations writing and reading scores are at all time lows, Bush wants to eliminate a broadcasting company that teaches kids just how to do that.

Just as soon as someone wants to cut the budget, in come the opposition- how dare they- who wants to allow the opposing party any credit for cutting the budget.

So now Bush is against education... what flawless logic

Yeah bush is pretty bad

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mario3

By bush taking out the funding for PBS he is basically turning it into everyother newstation...man we americans need it! our media is an embarassement... its all privately owned. we're not gonna get rid of our publically funded one right...dont twist this and think because bush just wants us to have PBS become a business too that it doesnt mean he doesnt want to get rid of it. he wants to get rid of its content! this will affect its content. is there anyone who agrees???????????

You mean like that 97:1 ratio male dominated "everyother newstation"? I must have missed the part where Bush wanted "to have PBS become a business", since private dollars account for 85 percent of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting's funding - like corporate sponsors Intel, Ford, Siemens and Starbucks.

Wow Crow, you sound bitter. I think more people would like to see the war budget pared down instead, I believe that was the point.

No we are talking the change to come - u need to follow

Hahah the war and religion budget. Almost 1/3rd of the KAtrina dollars from the BUSH ADMINISGTRATION went to religious institutions... lets break a lot of things down to see what is going on

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedKarma

Your public schools are failing?

You said it, not me:

Quote:

Iin a time when our nations writing and reading scores are at all time lows, Bush wants to eliminate a broadcasting company that teaches kids just how to do that.

You don't see the irony in complaining of "our nations...all time low scores" then bragging on how much of PBS' material that educators use?

Yes, I see that now. Perhaps PBS should be abolished. That should help the cause.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mario3

hahah the war and religion budget. almost 1/3rd of the KAtrina dollars from the BUSH ADMINISGTRATION went to religious institutions... lets break a lot of things down to see what is going on

Mario3, there you go again throwing out statistics intended to spawn outrage without a shred of supporting evidence, so break things down for us. "hahah"

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedKarma

Yes, I see that now. Perhaps PBS should be abolished. That should help the cause.

I don't believe any of us - including the president - have ever said that. All I said was it offends me that my tax money is funding liberal bias. If they want to broadcast their liberal bias then they can do it on your dollar, not mine.

You are offended by a little TV show on PBS. You can imagine the outrage of most of the tax payers at the way their tax dollars are currently being spent.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedKarma

And let advertisers dictate the content? That's precisely what they are trying to avoid.

And how are they doing that if they are taking grant money from corporations like Exxon-Mobil, Walmart and others.

Quote:

Do you have any idea of the amount of PBS materials that educators use?

Yes, I do. So what? I'm not saying that these programs shouldn't air. I'm saying that it doesn't have to be paid for by my tax dollars. If these shows are so important, then they should be able to stand on their own and pay their own way via advertising and licensing agreements. If they aren't important enough, then let's make better ones that are important enough to be able to stand on their own.

BTW, more materials used by teachers are from the Discovery Channel, the History Channel, various National Geographic programs, etc. PBS is no longer necessary to air educational programming, because there are other networks that do the same thing and do it better.

Elliot

Quote:

Originally Posted by ETWolverine

And how are they doing that if they are taking grant money from corporations like Exxon-Mobil, Walmart and others.

They cannot dictate content, it's grant money, not advertising.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mario3

By bush taking out the funding for PBS he is basically turning it into everyother newstation...man we americans need it! our media is an embarassement... its all privately owned. we're not gonna get rid of our publically funded one right...dont twist this and think because bush just wants us to have PBS become a business too that it doesnt mean he doesnt want to get rid of it. he wants to get rid of its content! this will affect its content. is there anyone who agrees???????????

OOOOHHHH, private ownership, bad. Government ownership, good.

Tell that to the Soviets.

Oh, yeah, you can't... because they no longer exist.

Their system failed because everything was owned by the government and all it produced was crap.

The reason that our economy is the strongest in the world is because private people own stuff, have an opportunity to make a profit to acquire more stuff, and so they work hard to do it. The reason the Soviet system failed is because nobody owned anything, there was no incentive to work hard, so they didn't bother.

So of course, you push for government control... because that has such a great history of working well for the people.

Elliot

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedKarma

You are offended by a little tv show on PBS. You can imagine the outrage of most of the tax payers at the way their tax dollars are currently being spent.

Yeah, like congress giving themselves a raise so they can engage in "300 investigations...and over 600 oversight hearings in just about 100 days," according to White House Spokesman Scott Stanzel, and spend the rest of that time engaged in undermining our security and the troops they claim to support.

No, I mean the trillions of dollars spent on the war. You been hiding under a rock?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mario3

hahah the war and religion budget. almost 1/3rd of the KAtrina dollars from the BUSH ADMINISGTRATION went to religious institutions... lets break a lot of things down to see what is going on

What is your source, please. Or are you just talking out of your rear end again?

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedKarma

Wow Crow, you sound bitter. I think more people would like to see the war budget pared down instead, I believe that was the point.

Why would anyone even think of cutting down our national security budget after 9/11? Who would be stupid enough to recommend it? Aren't the liberals the ones who were claiming that we were sending our troops to fight without the proper equipment because the budget didn't cover armor for hummers and such? It wasn't true, of course, but why would anyone suggest that we should decrease the budget and create that sort of poblem?

Elliot

Create what problem? The one you made up to support your argument (strawman)?

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedKarma

You are offended by a little tv show on PBS. You can imagine the outrage of most of the tax payers at the way their tax dollars are currently being spent.

No question. We definitely need to cut welfare and social program spending.

And we should cut education spending by allowing school vouchers and charter schools.

And stop the useless global warming studies that haven't proven a darn thing. If people want to study global waming, let them use private grants to fund it.

And we should also decrease useless regulation of corpoations that don't make products better, just more expensive and waste taxpayer money to accomplish nothing.

And farm subsidies should probably be cut as well... paying people NOT to work their farms is just stupid.

There are lots of good places to start cutting the budget. National security isn't the place to start.

Elliot

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedKarma

Wow Crow, you sound bitter. I think more people would like to see the war budget pared down instead, I believe that was the point.

Invariably when ‘most people’ believe something the odds are they are wrong, that is one reason for America being a republic.

Bitter, yes- bitter that America is bankrupt in essence, and debt leads to enslavement. Yes, I am bitter that both of the two parties that have reigned are both responsible.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dark_crow

Invariably when ‘most people’ believe something the odds are they are wrong, that is one reason for America being a republic.

Bitter, yes- bitter that America is bankrupt in essence, and debt leads to enslavement. Yes, I am bitter that both of the two parties that have reigned are both responsible.

Is there a good candidate out there?

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedKarma

Is there a good candidate out there?

One problem is that who the candidate’s are is not relevant to the sweeping changes that need to be made. Congress is a problem in that it reigns with-out limit; that is, look at the length of time so many of the various ‘Chairs’ have been in office.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedKarma

No, I mean the trillions of dollars spent on the war. You been hiding under a rock?

Starting to get a little testy? Technically, I live in a rock house so I guess you might I've been under a rock for years.

I look at the reality of things, and the reality is we have an enemy that's determined to either kill us or bring us to submission, an enemy intent on establishing a worldwide religious government more oppressive than anything you can imagine from Bush and the "right-wing evangelicals", an enemy that kills for sport and lives to die and proves that every day. If it take trillions of dollars to defeat that enemy I think even you might finally realize it was money well spent. All those education, healthcare and PBS dollars won't matter if you're dead.

Quote:

Originally Posted by speechlesstx

Starting to get a little testy? Technically, I live in a rock house so I guess you might I've been under a rock for years.

I look at the reality of things, and the reality is we have an enemy that's determined to either kill us or bring us to submission, an enemy intent on establishing a worldwide religious government more oppressive than anything you can imagine from Bush and the "right-wing evangelicals", an enemy that kills for sport and lives to die and proves that every day. If it take trillions of dollars to defeat that enemy I think even you might finally realize it was money well spent. All those education, healthcare and PBS dollars won't matter if you're dead.

I don’t think there are many people, when they talk about cutting funds realize that ‘security’ is the fundamental basis for government; that is, it must be the very last item on the budget for it is the very last line of defense that protects our Constitutional Rights. So it is that all government spending is subject to be rescinded before a war budget.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeedKarma

They cannot dictate content, it's grant money, not advertising.

Huh?

That makes no sense.

An advertiser can say "If you don't air what I want, I'll stop buying advertising on your show." A corporation that gives grants can say "If you don't air what I want, I'll stop giving you grant money." How do they differ? If you think that corporations and their trusts that give grants to PBS don't control content, you are being extremely naïve.

Elliot