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NPR And PBS: Taxpayer Dollars Down The Drain
Toogood Reports ^ | May 17, 2002 | Chad Stafko

Posted on 05/17/2002 9:03:03 AM PDT by Stand Watch Listen

The Media Research Center and recently-born, "The Radio Factor with Bill O'Reilly" made mention of a story by Lisa Myers of NBC News complaining that talk radio was dominated by conservatives. Both the Media Research Center and The Factor noted that Ms. Myers failed to mention National Public Radio in her analysis of talk radio. As anyone from either side of the political fence knows, NPR is by no means a bastion of conservative thought. Rather, NPR and its television cousin, PBS, nearly always present a liberal tone in any program dealing with politics or the issues of the day.

With this in mind, does it not trouble anyone else that it is our tax dollars that help fund both National Public Radio and the Public Broadcasting System? The annual report of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which is the umbrella organization of both NPR and PBS, noted that it received federal appropriations of $300 million in 2000. Is this a necessary expense of government?

Some may argue that NPR and PBS provide benefits and programs that would not normally be produced by commercial radio or television networks. This argument has little merit, as television networks such as C-SPAN, CNBC, Disney, Nickelodeon, A&E, Discovery and National Geographic produce largely the same types of programs as PBS and without funding from the government.

Sesame Street, by far the best children's program on PBS and possibly among all others, could easily be produced profitably. Cookie Monster could even drink Nestle chocolate milk instead of chocolate milk with a plain carton, utilizing the trend among many programs of grabbing advertising dollars by using name-brand products on air.

The same holds true in regards to NPR. NPR programming consists nearly entirely of news, talk radio, classical music and some jazz music. Each of these programming types has managed to thrive without the help of government funding. NPR stations should have to compete against other local stations without the benefit of government subsidies. Simply put, there is nothing that NPR or PBS produces that cannot be produced profitably by for-profit radio and television stations.

Even for those individuals who live in rural areas of the U.S. and do not have cable or satellite television services, it is still quite easy to obtain weather and emergency information. An internet connection affords these individuals with virtual real-time access to this information. For those who do not have internet access, signals from radio stations can be picked up from hundreds of miles away and can provide these types of information.

The most disturbing aspect of public funding for NPR and PBS is that American taxpayers, regardless of their political persuasion, are forced to subsidize a radio and television network that, to put it mildly, slants to the left politically. Imagine if legislation was enacted that allocated $300 million of federal money to Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity or other programs with well-known conservative hosts. The Left would be outraged and they would have every right to be upset.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting needs to become a for-profit company that does not receive any significant federal funding. It can and should compete in the capitalistic marketplace of ideas among other communication companies. In NPR and PBS, essentially we have government controlled radio and television networks. Of course, this is not unique as countries such as Cuba and Iraq find government-owned networks to be quite convenient in passing along their messages. Let us urge our lawmakers to end federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and let the fate of its more than 1,000 radio and television stations be determined by their local markets.



TOPICS: Business/Economy; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Editorial; Foreign Affairs; Government; News/Current Events
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1 posted on 05/17/2002 9:03:03 AM PDT by Stand Watch Listen
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To: Stand Watch Listen
Public Broadcasting recieved $350 Million this year. Over 100 Republicans voted to fund it. To see how YOUR congress critter voted, check out my page by clicking on my name...
2 posted on 05/17/2002 9:13:14 AM PDT by Drango
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To: Stand Watch Listen
"...American taxpayers, regardless of their political persuasion, are forced to subsidize a radio and television network that, to put it mildly, slants to the left politically.<\i>

To put it mildly indeed.

3 posted on 05/17/2002 9:13:37 AM PDT by Bounceback
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To: Stand Watch Listen
Some may argue that NPR and PBS provide benefits and programs that would not normally be produced by commercial radio or television networks.

I have created a 3 hour radio show, where I respond to callers using only arm-pit farts and burping. So far this has not drawn much interest from our local commerical radio stations. Do I have a future on NPR?

4 posted on 05/17/2002 9:15:07 AM PDT by Random Access
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To: Random Access
Yes, if you can lean to the left while you do it.
5 posted on 05/17/2002 9:34:06 AM PDT by talleyman
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To: talleyman
Would that be an Algore interview ?
6 posted on 05/17/2002 10:36:39 AM PDT by Eric in the Ozarks
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To: Stand Watch Listen
Frankly, the Sesame Workshop (formerly the Children's Television Workshop) could fund the whole shebang itself if it wanted to. I quote "By the 1980s, many of the funds for CTW were generated from Sesame Street product sales, the Sesame Place amusement Park, and from Sesame Street Live, a touring company. CTW became an unhappy participant in the struggles over PBS funding in the mid-1990s when the financial success of Sesame Street was used as an example of why public funding was not needed to support educational children's programming."

Source: MBCNET Article

A friend of mine's son who is in the business reports that two of the three most expensive, modern, high-tech radio stations on the East coast belong to NPR, one in New York City and the other in Washington, D.C. Liberal propaganda on the public teat - that's what the Long March Through The Institutions was all about.

7 posted on 05/17/2002 10:58:22 AM PDT by Billthedrill
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To: Stand Watch Listen
But don't you know that making a profit is evil?????
8 posted on 05/17/2002 11:04:16 AM PDT by GSWarrior
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To: Drango
Thanks for the info. Surprised to see JC Watts on the list.
9 posted on 05/17/2002 11:27:53 AM PDT by LisaFab
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To: Billthedrill
A friend of mine's son who is in the business reports that two of the three most expensive, modern, high-tech radio stations on the East coast belong to NPR, one in New York City and the other in Washington, D.C.

As I understand it, KQED here in the Bay Area has better, more expensive equipment than NBC,CBS,ABC combined.

I'm able to recieve two Public Broadcast TV signals and 4 (or is it 5) radio signals. Your tax dollars at work!

10 posted on 05/17/2002 12:26:38 PM PDT by Drango
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To: Stand Watch Listen; Billthedrill; Drango
I do occasionally listen to NPR just to check out what the enemy is up to.
I'd like to think that I am hip enough to their message to prevent it from boring its socialistic contents into my head.

I have a little game play every time that Education Correspondent Claudio Sanchez comes on.
Almost without fail, he slips the word "Latino" into whatever his report is on.
The funny part is that, despite his impeccable English, his accent always shifts gears when he says "Latino".

Cheap thrills, I know. But I get a laugh out of it.

11 posted on 05/17/2002 1:50:34 PM PDT by Constitution Day
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To: Stand Watch Listen
... its television cousin, PBS, nearly always present a liberal tone in any program dealing with politics or the issues of the day.

Although I have seen some left leaning programs on PBS, I have also seen some excellent unbiased shows. The recent 'The Commanding Heights' is just one example.

12 posted on 05/17/2002 4:41:17 PM PDT by opinionator
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To: Stand Watch Listen
Let's give PBS a little credit for cleaning up their act. I can remember when they were glorifying the environmental terrorism of Greenpeace and running down the US military constantly. They've gotten much more moderate around here(Iowa broadcast site)
13 posted on 05/17/2002 4:54:21 PM PDT by CrazyIvan
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To: Stand Watch Listen
I would put it in this way. NPR produces pure socialist propaganda, no less. It is horrid that we are paying for this extreme propaganda with our taxpayers money. Did we not learn anything from the Soviet Union (Pravda) and all the other evil nations of the world which subscribe to various flavours of socialism? Borders,Language,Culture
14 posted on 05/17/2002 5:12:25 PM PDT by Jamten
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To: Constitution Day
I accidentally bumped my radio dial the other day and was shocked to hear a sweet-sounding women protesting the Bush administration's cutting off funding for the terrorist fundraising group the Holyland Foundation. This women, a foundation spokesperson, claimed that they were simply helping the starving Palestinians and that they reorganized and now called themselves "Kindness USA". "This is NPR radio..."
15 posted on 05/17/2002 5:17:41 PM PDT by Ragtime Cowgirl
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To: Constitution Day
Here in the bay area the words "gay latino" always slips into the sentences when I pass by 88.5 MHz on the dial. It is amazing how a radio station can spend so much time talking about "gay latinos". Why do we have to listen to this garbage? I should also mention that I have nothing against gays in general or lantinos in general (as long as they speak English) but I am indeed against NPR/KQED which constantly promote their ways of living.
16 posted on 05/17/2002 5:18:32 PM PDT by Jamten
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To: Jamten
but I am indeed against NPR/KQED which constantly promote their ways of living.

Yeah KQED TV has a gay pride month during which they highlight an endless parade of films on either how tough/or how great it is to be gay. Little more than tax funded aggrandizement...

17 posted on 05/17/2002 5:31:53 PM PDT by Drango
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To: Billthedrill
"Frankly, the Sesame Workshop (formerly the Children's Television Workshop) could fund the whole shebang itself if it wanted to."

PBS axed Bob Villa for his endorsement of Sears and Craftman Tools. While at the same time airing these thirty minute commercials for Sesame Street merchandise. Don't even get me started on ADM. What a bunch of clymers.

18 posted on 05/18/2002 9:01:15 AM PDT by SKI NOW
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To: Stand Watch Listen
Where to begin...I do listen and occasionally watch both and I am amazed at the audacity and blatantly biased journalistic practices exhibited by both. Totally corrupted by the left and absolutely outrageous! Whether it's the socialist Daniel Schorr pontificating on W's lack of political skills or the bravery and "independence" shown by Fidel Castro or the Leftist Nina Tottenberg's "analysis" of Supreme court decisions (she always attacks the conservative right)- it is ceaseless and unrelenting left wing propaganda with not even the decency to present the other side. Never once have they presented the Prolife positions for example.

CUT THE FUNDING NOW!

PBS and NPR = Mockery of what the free press and journalism should be!

19 posted on 05/18/2002 9:32:11 AM PDT by eleni121
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To: Stand Watch Listen
And didja know that the United Way provides legal defense for the indigent al quieda (sp.?) prisoners in Cuba and for illegal immigrants. I have stopped my payroll deduction to U.W.
20 posted on 05/18/2002 9:46:15 AM PDT by sandydipper
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