[NV Greens] Fwd: This time, it's for real: Save NPR and PBS

[Paul Etxeberri]

>
>
>A House panel has voted to eliminate all public funding for NPR and 
>PBS, starting with "Sesame Street." This would be the most severe 
>cut in the history of public broadcasting. NPR and PBS are under 
>attack, but Americans trust them over the commercial networks. Sign 
>the petition to save NPR, PBS and our local public stations from 
>losing their funding.
>
><http://www.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/?id=5663-1199302-ZotgYCDZHmcKqvKnISfYtw&t=1>
>Dear MoveOn member,
>
>You know that email petition that keeps circulating about how 
>Congress is slashing funding for NPR and PBS? Well, now it's 
>actually true. (Really. Check the footnotes if you don't believe us.)
>
>A House panel has voted to eliminate all public funding for NPR and 
>PBS, starting with "Sesame Street," "Reading Rainbow," and other 
>commercial-free children's shows. If approved, this would be the 
>most severe cut in the history of public broadcasting, threatening 
>to pull the plug on Big Bird, Cookie Monster and Oscar the Grouch.
>
>Sign the petition telling Congress to save NPR and PBS:
>
><http://www.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/?id=5663-1199302-ZotgYCDZHmcKqvKnISfYtw&t=3>http://www.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/?id=5663-1199302-ZotgYCDZHmcKqvKnISfYtw&t=3
>
>If we can reach 250,000 signatures by the end of the week, we'll put 
>Congress on notice. After you sign the petition, please pass this 
>message along to any friends, neighbors or co-workers who count on 
>NPR and PBS.
>
>The cuts would slash 25% of the federal funding this year-$100 
>million-and end funding altogether within two years.1 In particular, 
>the loss could kill beloved children's shows like "Sesame Street," 
>"Clifford the Big Red Dog," "Arthur" and "Postcards from Buster." 
>Rural stations and those serving low-income communities might not 
>survive. Other stations would have to increase corporate 
>sponsorships.
>
>This shameful vote is only the latest partisan assault on public TV 
>and radio. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which exists to 
>shield public TV and radio from political pressure, is now chaired 
>by Kenneth Tomlinson, a staunch Republican close to the White House. 
>Tomlinson has already forced one-sided conservative programs on the 
>air, even though Tomlinson's own surveys show that most people 
>consider NPR "fair and balanced" and they actually trust public 
>broadcasting more than commercial network news.2
>
>Tomlinson also spent taxpayer dollars on a witch hunt to root out 
>"liberal bias," including a secret investigation of Bill Moyers and 
>PBS' popular investigative show, "NOW." Even though the public paid 
>for the investigation, Tomlinson has refused to release the 
>findings.3
>
>The lawmakers who proposed the cuts aren't just trying to save money 
>in the budget-they're trying to decimate any news outlets who 
>question those in power. This is an ideological attack on our free 
>press.
>
>Talk about bad timing. Every day brings another story about media 
>consolidation. Radio, TV stations and newspapers are increasingly 
>controlled by a few massive corporate conglomerates trying to 
>maximize profits at the expense of quality journalism. Now more than 
>ever, we need publicly funded media who will ask hard questions and 
>focus on stories that affect real people, instead of Michael Jackson 
>and the runaway bride.
>
>As the House and Senate consider this frightening effort to kill 
>public broadcasting, they need to hear from its owners-you.
>
><http://www.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/?id=5663-1199302-ZotgYCDZHmcKqvKnISfYtw&t=4>http://www.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/?id=5663-1199302-ZotgYCDZHmcKqvKnISfYtw&t=4
>
>Thank you for all you do,
>
>-Noah, Wes, Jennifer, Eli and the MoveOn.org Team
>   Tuesday, June 14th, 2005
>
>P.S. You can learn more about the threat to public broadcasting from 
>our friends at Free Press at:
>
><http://www.moveon.org/r?r=748>http://www.moveon.org/r?r=748
>
>Sources:
>
>1. "Public Broadcasting Targeted By House," Washington Post, June 10, 2005
><http://www.moveon.org/r?r=745>http://www.moveon.org/r?r=745
>
>2. "CPB's 'Secrets and Lies': Why the CPB Board Hid its Polls 
>Revealing Broad Public Support for PBS and NPR," Center for Digital 
>Democracy, April 27, 2005
><http://www.moveon.org/r?r=746>http://www.moveon.org/r?r=746
>
>3. "Republican Chairman Exerts Pressure on PBS, Alleging Biases," 
>New York Times, May 2, 2005
><http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/0502-01.htm>http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/0502-01.htm
>
>


-- 
Paul Etxeberri

"Forests precede civilizations and deserts follow"   ---Chateaubriand
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