PBS & NPR: The Closest Thing to a State Network

One of things that many liberals/progressives/leftys/socialists here in America is that they want us to have a government that mirrors most other nations. Goverments that are involved in everybody's life especially those enlightned European nations.

Progressive taxes, heavy regulation of businnes, mandatory vacations for the 'workers', wealth redistribution and last and not nesscary least, State Broadcasting Networks.

Yep the government must be involved in the operation of the television and radio networks or something along those lines.

Many famous public broadcasters include the British Broadcasting Corportation or BBC (allthough their subsidiary BBC Worldwide is ran as a for-profit), and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation or CBC (and the TV part runs a lot of commericals). In most countires if a household has a Color TV or any broadcast device depending on the local laws of the country, you are required to pay a tax (licensing fee) to fund your state broadcast network('s). Most of these networks offer a variety of programing ranging from news, documentary, and even their own brand of sitcoms and dramas.

Here in the United States much of that handled by the private market, and other guys are catching up with private networks. However someone saw a way to get the United States government into the broadcasting business thanks to the late LBJ. Under his presidency, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) was created and out of that birthed the Public Broadcasting Service or PBS for the TV side and few years later came along National Public Radio or NPR.

These broadcast networks or services get around 15% of their money from the taxpayers via the 'private' CPB, and everytime that public broadcasting is on the chopping block (or when someone is trying to mandate polticial balance) its supports cry bloody murder and say all things that public broadcasting will die, or the right wing wants to take over this service. All and all their supporters want to maintain the left leaning slant on public broadcasting.

In America, PBS and NPR (and then some) are the closest things that this country has to a 'state network.' At least for PBS they can hide behind their beloved the PBS Kids lineup as proven recently when the 'monkey suits' of characters on PBS Kids shows stood behind such Democratic poltical leaders like Hillary Rodham Clinton to defend their precious government funds. They always come through everytime. Meanwhile they can contuine to air programing that is slanted to the left and spit in the face of America at our expense.

The PBS Kids shows are popular enough to be self-supporting, and most do have corporate underwriters. Don't believe those who say they are endangered if they don't get goverment money.

John Stossel says it best when he calls public broadcasting welfare for those who are better off.
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/JohnStossel/js20050803.shtml

E-Mail: donmccullen@prodigy.net