Cross-posted from michiganliberal.com
Every now and then someone sends me an email petition. It usually starts like this:
"On NPR's Morning Edition, Nina Tottenberg announced that if the Supreme
Court supports Congress, it will, in effect, be the end of the National
Public Radio (NPR), National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) & the Public
Broadcasting System (PBS)..."
This is probably the most prolific e-mail on the net today. In fact, a slightly-revised version continues to circulate -
despite the fact that it's now a decade old.
I worked in public radio for about seven years, so I always used to consider it my duty to reply to the well-meaning person who sent the message and politely inform them that the danger had passed.
Everything comes full circle
Even while the 1995 email continues to bounce around the Internet,
a brand new crisis is facing public radio and television (
NPR &
PBS) stations. And, thanks to George Bush and his minions in Congress and the Michigan Legislature, the situation is
considerably worse than it was 10 years ago.
It isn't enough for the neocons that a handful of corporations now dominate broadcast and print media. It isn't enough that
5 corporations from outside of Michigan own 59 of the state's 140 non-religious, commercial radio stations (including nearly all of the largest and most powerful stations). It isn't enough that many major radio stations now air only programming that screams conservative Republican views. And it isn't enough to have a cable channel that spews a foul-smelling geyser of right wing hate, while masquerading as a "news channel." No, that's not enough for these zealots.
The First Prong - Eliminate Federal Funding Within 2 Years
The "malicious wounding, if not the
outright attempted murder of public broadcasting in America." That is how the Association of Public Television describes cuts to public broadcasting that were
approved by the U.S. House Appropriations Committee on Thursday. It's a pretty good description.
Funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting usually makes up anywhere from 15-20% of budgets for individual public radio and TV stations. It also comprises 24% of the budget for the PBS network. (NPR only gets a small percentage of funding directly from the feds) For example, WKAR - East Lansing, my local public broadcaster and former employer,
receives 21% of its funding from the CPB. It's different at other stations. Some rely more or less on federal funding. The point is that this is a huge hit - especially so in our dismal economic condition, when it's growing ever more difficult to convince people to phone in at pledge time. And especially so for public TV stations, who will probably have to pay higher dues to PBS.
The Second Prong - Censorship
Republican and former Readers Digest editor
Kenneth Y. Tomlinson was appointed to the CPB Board by President Bill Clinton in 2000 (the CPB Act requires that a certain number of CPB board members have to be of a different party than the president). In spite of being nominated by a Democratic president, Tomlinson is a Republican through and through. Now he's the chairman of CPB, and he's on a mission. Tomlinson is convinced that if a media outlet doesn't parrot White House press releases or feature a bunch of angry white guys yelling at people, that media outlet is BIASED! (Remember Bush: "you're either with us or against us) Here are some of Tomlinson's more notable "achievements":
To say Tomlinson is a fox in the henhouse does not begin to describe the threat posed by this man. You can read more about him at the
"Hands off Public Radio" website.
The 3rd prong - Cut Funding to Supporting Colleges and Universities
I'm not paranoid enough to believe that Republicans in the Michigan House ever considered public broadcasting when they came up with their higher education budget proposal. However, the truth is that their budgets, if approved will
have a real effect on Michigan public broadcasters, most of whom are licensed by colleges and universities. That's especially the case at Northern Michigan University, where
WNMU-Marquette radio and TV have been teetering on the brink of destruction for a couple of years now. Under the Republicans' plan, NMU will see a 10% cut in state funding.
Does this mean the death of NPR and Big Bird?
In the Upper Peninsula and northern lower Michigan, that is a strong possibility. But for the most part, the Republican vendetta would more likely mean local stations (and their viewers & listeners) will have to make some significant sacrifices. I'll speculate here on what we might see - or not see (or hear):
- Barring some new funding source, "Ready-to-Learn" programs that encourage literacy and early childhood education will be discontinued.
- The weekly Lansing political roundtable "Off the Record" and Michigan Public Radio coverage of the state Capitol could face the ax.
- Local radio music hosts could soon find themselves replaced by satellite programming.
- Local government coverage would probably be whacked. Local news operations may be pared down or eliminated altogether - replaced by satellite programming from another station, PBS or NPR.
It's the honesty and thoughtfulness of PBS and NPR that the Republicans don't like. Yet, in the greatest of ironies, their cuts will likely mean that NPR and PBS programming will be on the air more often - not less - as a replacement for all of the local programming that had to be destroyed. On the other hand, if Tomlinson's crusade for "monitoring" and "ombudsmen" is successful, NPR and PBS may begin to look more and more like the state-run propaganda tool that the neocons would like it to be.
U.S. Reps.
Joe Knollenberg (R-Bloomfield Township) and
Carolyn C. Kilpatrick (D-Detroit) are the only members of the Michigan delegation to sit on the House Appropriations Committee. Search as I might, I can't find any record of how either of them voted. However, I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that Knollenberg voted yes on the cuts and Kilpatrick voted no.
The full House could vote next week. Don't send a chain e-mail that lasts ten years. Instead, call your local Rep and ask him or her how they intend to vote on the "Labor, Health, and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies" appropriations bill. Report their reaction here.
