Film, Radio and TV - 27 |
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PublicBroadcasting
This is somewhat of a myth.
Public Broadcasting is seen as
Each year the National Television Academy presents Emmy awards to networks to honor the best in news and documentary work. Note from the table on the right that recently PBS won more Emmy awards than any other network.
*HOH, Head of Household | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Although time is spent on fundraising and mini-commercials, they generally do not interrupt program content, and these breaks are nothing like the 33% chunk of time (hourly average) we normally sit through with commercial broadcasting. We know that education, intelligence, and socioeconomic status are demographic characteristics related to the ability to understand abstract ideas. This is why the classics in music, art, and literature not widely appreciated and they have never been able to succeed on network television. . At the same time, as network TV appears to be
Not included in the latter group is the large percentage of children 2-5 years of age that watch the many popular children's shows on PBS. Not only have programs such as "Sesame Street" won many awards, but for several decades, they have had a positive impact on the reading and math abilities of young children.
The documentary, based on a two-year investigation, revealed that the Rev. Moon has spent more than a billion dollars in the United States, largely to influence U.S. public opinion and decision-making. (Interestingly, considerable effort was brought to bear to keep the documentary from airing.)
To cite one more example, a PBS Frontline documentary on the U.S. invasion of Granada reveals a strikingly different story than the one promulgated by the U.S. government and subsequently by the mainstream press. (Most PBS programming is available on cassette for use in the classroom.)
Political Attempts at Influencing theProgramming of Public Broadcasting There is a clause in the 1967 public broadcasting law that expressly forbids government "direction, supervision, or control" of public broadcasting. But probably the main and largely unstated objections and political attacks on Public Broadcasting have resulted from the documentaries, including the two previously cited, that embarrassed some administrations by exposing disturbing facts. This has resulted in various types of pressure, including the reduction of funding, and even the delay of Public Broadcasting funds for a period of time. As a result, Public Broadcasting has had to start relying much more heavily on corporate funding. Consequently, Public Broadcasting is now more nervous about programming that goes against the interests of large corporations. Only on Public Broadcasting can the blind can "watch" TV. Through a service called DVS (Descriptive Video Service) a second audio channel is used to provide a description of the action taking place on the screen.
Foundations of Public Broadcasting Subsequently, the U.S. Congress
established and funded Public Broadcasting to "...encourage the growth and development of public broadcasting, including the use of radio and television for instructional, educational, and cultural purposes...." One of the mandates was also to be active in technological innovations. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting The CPB receives funding from the federal government and then disperses it to noncommercial stations for the production of radio and television programming. It also distributes direct grants to individual stations. In addition to federal money, the CPB receives numerous grants from foundations. The Ford Foundation, which was responsible for originally funding many noncommercial TV stations, and the Walter H. Annenberg foundation are just two examples. In order to be a Public Broadcasting affiliate, a noncommercial radio or TV station must meet certain operational standards. For this and other reasons, there are many noncommercial stations in the United States that are not affiliates.
Of the PBS stations in the U.S., 51% represent community organizations, 32% colleges/universities,12% state authorities, and 5% local educational or municipal authorities. The wide range of weekly programming available on PBS can be seen by
Public Radio After this, many other stations followed and noncommercial radio enjoyed a brief burst of growth. But then growth was stifled -- both by the economic chaos of the Depression and competition from commercial radio stations. Things picked up when congress passed the Public Broadcasting Act, which authorizing the creation of CPB. The act specifically called for the CPB to encourage "the growth and development of noncommercial radio" and to develop "programming that will be responsive to the interests of the people."; Public radio, like public television, has responded to this mandate by filling a gap left by commercial radio stations. This even extends to small communities. For example, in many remote Alaskan villages with limited mail and telephone service public radio stations are the primary means of communication and frequently the only source of daily news. In some communities with large non-English-speaking populations, public radio provides a friendly place on the dial where people can hear programs in their native languages.
NPR has led important technological advances in radio, including establishing the first nationwide, satellite-delivered, U.S. radio distribution network in 1979. The Critics of Public Broadcasting Some feel that whereas Public Broadcasting used to
represent a bold, independent voice, political and corporate pressures developed
a stranglehold on their financing, and have made them fearful of offending the
"hand that feeds them."
People at Public Broadcasting deny this, and they can legitimately point to series such as the award-winning "Frontline," that frequently tackle controversial topics. We'll have more information on this issue in the modules on TV news. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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