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Congress slashed and hacked the budgets of PBS, and Public Radio years ago, tore them to shreds, reduced them both to beggars just barely hanging on, and they became loaded down with programming designed to appeal to right-wing tastes. Bush's appointments of officials at PBS was discussed over and over here. A reminder of what most of us know, an article from over 3 years ago: Published on Sunday, July 3, 2005 by the Chicago Sun Times
Bush Melds Radical Change, Long-Term Power Grab
by William O'Rourke
~snip~
Agency after agency, though, is being affected, and the alterations are the sort that will live on long after any changes of personnel take place. Judgeships stand out because they are lifetime appointments, but once tampered with, smaller agencies and institutions seldom get back what has been lost. One example is the National Endowment for the Arts, under attack during Bush I. It survived, but was changed irrevocably. The NEA now largely is the producer of approved public art: Shakespeare is safe. Only writers still receive the much-maligned individual fellowships, and that is because the writing of literature plays such a small role in the culture today. A larger role is played by television and radio, and that is why Bush II is now going after the Public Broadcasting Service and National Public Radio.
The attack on PBS and NPR is only a shadow of the attacks on the NEA back in the 1980s, because there is so little public demand for it. No ''Piss Christ'' or chocolate-covered Karen Finley or homoerotic photos by Robert Mapplethorpe these days -- just the ghost of Bill Moyers, who quit hosting the PBS program "Now with Bill Moyers" six months ago. However, the Bush administration doesn't want the abolition of PBS and NPR -- which is unlikely in any case -- even though the House is attempting to cut the funding of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. What the White House wants is permanent change and control.
Kenneth Tomlinson, chairman of the corporation, is the John Bolton of public broadcasting, insofar as Tomlinson is its chief critic. He sees ''political bias'' everywhere in PBS and NPR. It has been widely reported that Tomlinson hired a variety of Republican operatives, surreptitiously in one case -- including the guy who wrote the this-is-a-great-political-issue-for-us!-Terri-Schiavo memo -- to draw up blacklists and to document bias in a number of PBS and NPR programs, despite polls showing that the public didn't think either was a hotbed of liberal fomenters. All of this has caused a dustup in some media quarters, but Tomlinson continues to get his way. He appointed Patricia Harrison, a past co-chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, president and chief executive of the corporation.
Tomlinson, in order to correct ''liberal bias'' and restore ''balance,'' championed a show for PBS that consists of the editorial board of the Wall Street Journal, not a TV-friendly group, who often look sour having to watch what they say, given that their discussions are being taped. And no doubt NASCAR races will replace the boring ''NewsHour with Jim Lehrer'' down the road.
With this and other government agencies and institutions, as in Iraq, Bush is following the new Powell doctrine: Once you break it, you own it. At PBS and NPR these days, those who are listening can hear a lot of things shattering. http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0703-28.htmThanks for your excellent link. The first paragraph covers a lot of ground, surely: November 25, 2008
The Petroleum Broadcasting System
PBS Reports for Big Oil on Venezuela
By PATRICK IRELAN
On Tuesday evening, the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) will carry a 90-minute review of the presidency of Venezuela’s Hugo Chávez. As the show progresses, it quickly becomes apparent to the viewer why critics often refer to PBS as the “Petroleum Broadcasting System.” Venezuela has huge oil reserves. Big Oil provides much of the funding for PBS programs. And it would not be wise to offend this source of cash, regardless of how greedy and despicable the oil barons might be.
~snip~
With these recent events in mind, viewers will be prepared for Tuesday night’s broadcast of Frontline on PBS. This episode is called “The Hugo Chávez Show.” It was written, directed, and produced by Ofra Bikel, the winner of uncountable awards for documentaries.
In an interview that complements the show, Bikel drops hints about her opinion of Chávez and his political style. Chávez, she says, is “so outrageously rude and says insane things about President Bush, calling him ‘donkey,’ ‘Mr. Danger,’ ‘the devil.’”
I would agree with Ms. Bikel that these statements are rude, but they’re far from insane. I like “Mr. Danger” best of all, but others might prefer “the devil.” It’s all a matter of taste.
Bikel is upset that she couldn’t interview President Chávez. “… you can manage to do a lot of things as far as filming is concerned,” she says, “because the situation is so chaotic, and no one pays attention to the rules—until it has to do with Chávez. Not only is he incredibly well-protected, but you can't film anything that has to do with him unless it's a march or rally.”
This is an overstatement. It also reveals that Bikel is unaware that because of repeated threats against his life, Chávez now takes special precautions. Prior to the 2002 coup attempt, he moved about freely and announced his itinerary in advance. Now he still goes out every day, but the schedule is no longer released ahead of time.
Bikel believes she was denied access to the president because she was viewed as “anti-Chávez.” How terribly the Venezuelan authorities have treated her. And she has all those awards. What were they thinking?
So much for the interview. You can read the rest for yourself at the PBS website. Let me give you a few samples from the documentary, which consists almost entirely of interviews with objective journalists, biased journalists, the president’s enemies, and various other observers. It also includes many excerpts from Chávez’s Sunday TV broadcasts, Aló Presidente.
It was a true pleasure reading this. Thank you, again. |
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