I Want My PBS

I just got news that the House of Representatives have been ACTIVELY moving to cut funding to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). The CPB is the fund raising arm of Public Broadcasting and acts as a buffer between Public Television/Radio and the politics on Capitol Hill.

According to the Association of Public Television Stations, "Grants for local station operations and national programming through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting were cut by one-quarter, and advance funding for CPB – which has been the practice for thirty years to protect public broadcasting from political abuse – also was eliminated."

I know the we've all seen the rumors running around about this kind of thing, but it really does look like reality now.

Those who have watched kids television on PBS have heard of the Ready to Learn Grant. This grant is one of the first casualties of this action. Shows such as Arthur, Clifford, Between the Lions, Reading Rainbow, Caillou and even Sesame Street will be affected.

John Lawson, president and CEO of the Association of Public Television Stations (APTS), announced that the House Subcommittee "effectively threatened public broadcasting’s editorial freedom by proposing to rescind $100 million from the advance appropriation the Corporation for Public Broadcasting received in 2004.”

We need to stop this NOW.

MoveON has a petition you can sign >>
Read the APTS release >>