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Protect My Public Media. Save PBS/NPR
Mar. 18th, 2017 09:16 pm123, ABC, for most of us, we learned this before we ever went to preschool or kindergarten. We learned it from Sesame Street, a program that brought us basic knowledge and understanding each day. Their sponsors weren't cars or candy or sugary cereal. Instead, Sesame Street would proudly proclaim that the day had been brought to us by the letter S or the number 4. Through this subtle method, Sesame Street reinforced these simple lessons with a catchy phrase. And while these were not really sponsors at all, when we think about the channel Sesame Street aired on, we realize that the biggest sponsor of them all was the American People, not a corporation or a business. It was through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting or the tax payer funds that provided the most money. Some of us have our earliest memories with Public Television in this way. We may not have known it or understood it, but we most certainly benefited from its existence and the simple but essential knowledge we learned each day.
But Public Television or PBS (Public Broadcasting System) is much much more than just Sesame Street. While most of us as kids would find their other non-children orientated programming boring or too hard to sit through, as we matured and perhaps took the time to watch a program here and there---like Nature for instance---we began to appreciate it much more. We could see that it was a thought provoking or groundbreaking medium. PBS would allow us to see portions of our world that we may never ever visit or know about otherwise---all without ever having to leave our homes. Perspectives we aren't even aware of prior are explored in depth in their shows. They talk about serious topics like history or religion or science or culture in a way that deepens our nation.
For many in the last decade, PBS has also come to mean shows like Downton Abbey or the more recent show Victoria. These shows are exquisitely done dramas that show us a past or a historical figure in a thought provoking portrayal, but in reality this is only the surface for PBS. It is when we watch the other shows advertised before and after these dramas that we begin to really appreciate the depth and reach Public Television truly provides.
Take for instance Rick Steves and his travel programs around Europe or the very complex look at the Holy Land. He not only shows us the examples we think about for each European country stop, he shows us the culture, the food, the off beaten path gems, and the complex histories of these places in clear, concise manners. He even went further to present that in his deep look at the Holy Land. We also are gifted through PBS with other cultural programs like Globe Trekker, a show that takes us indepth and deep into the history and culture of a particular locale. Or the recent show with Billy Connolly and his trek across America by train. Not only do we get to see other places in the world we may never venture to, we're gifted through PBS a deeper understanding of America, OUR country, through these cultural shows.
Or, take the look at our planet through the science shows like Nature and NOVA. These two programs make science accessible and relatable in ways perhaps we never found in school or in a book. Nature shows us upclose explorations of animals and how they live and how they relate to our inhabiting the planet. Their recent show, “Spy In the Wild” gave us some of our most clear and astonishing looks at how animals not only live but how intelligent they are, how they love, how they build communities, and how similar they really are to us in so many respects all the while being unique species. NOVA gives us greater understanding about various topics ranging from how certain everyday items came into being and how they function to the issues of climate change to cutting edge science changes. Take for example the look at how origami is shaping our future technology. The art of folding paper into cranes and other shapes from Japanese culture has transformed into other mediums such as metal and may one day help us to build a better more efficient rocket or space probe sent to monitor or explore another planet in our solar system. These looks at our world and universe can only be truly found for the American People as a whole on Public Television.
And then there's the most crucial element of PBS: the news. Today's world is rife with troubled news sources on the Internet and even within the standard big four network news affiliates. Too many, on both political sides, feel they can no longer trust the news they see on CBS, CNN, FOX, ABC, NBC, or in the biggest for profit newspapers. It matters not who they voted for in the previous election or what political affiliation they have. If there's one thing that most can agree upon, it is that there's something wrong with corporate media today. And so, this is where PBS steps in with crucial news programs like NewsHour or Frontline. These programs tackle news differently than the cable or network news sources. They don't rely upon simple soundbites to catch people's attention or to give only an impression of a world event. Instead, the news on PBS digs much deeper and gives each person the ability to think about the news being conveyed to decide for themselves. This is a fundamental of any story, any news we hear. To simply accept what is being told without contemplation or consideration is to lead us into danger.
And yet, PBS does not handle this aspect of Public Media alone. NPR (National Public Radio) http://www.npr.org/ tackles this on the radio and online as does other local public radio stations through out the nation. These are stations that give us our news in a fashion that allows us to think, to understand, and to decide what is right for ourselves. They give us the vital information we need to be informed not just on the world events around us---from celebrity deaths and natural disasters and violence in portions of the world---but to know and understand just what our government is doing or not doing. As American citizens, it is our fundamental right, captured exquisitely and emphatically in the First Amendment, to KNOW what our government is doing that will have impact on our daily lives and our nation as a whole. It is our fundamental right to hear the news without bias so we as citizens can decide what we think and what we want to do about it. NPR and affiliates around the country provide just that alongside PBS. It is our right. We must not let it be taken from us.
While Public Radio may give us our news, they also provide us with other stations that enrich our communities, too. Here in Minnesota, we have MPR (Minnesota Public Radio) http://www.mpr.org/ There are two separate channels outside of the news that do just that: Classical MPR http://www.classicalmpr.org/ and the Current http://www.thecurrent.org/. Classical MPR plays a 24 hours 7 days a week stream of classical music with insightful commentary from its DJs, gives us opportunity to hear live performances by the Minnesota Orchestra, and plays a weekly opera on Saturdays from the Met in New York. They give us cultural background and historical information on composers and musical pieces, bring a richness to our life, and a place with beauty to enjoy peacefully. The Current plays a mix of cutting edge current music and local artists giving them exposure that commercial radio may not provide. Their release of a CD each year with the latest Minnesotan artists is a big hit every year and sells many copies to promote the musical scene of the state, the very same state that gave us the likes of Bob Dylan and Prince. Essentially, these public services allow for us to expand our dial beyond the Top 40 and the latest genre fad or over exposure. They give us a richness that makes Minnesota better every single day.
PBS, NPR, MPR, and other Public Medias are vital to our cultural heritage, our national security, and our rights as citizens to know about our world and our government. If you are concerned about these institutions and the current threats to cut the budget to them at the federal level, contact your Senators and your Representative https://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm?OrderBy=state http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/ . Donate to your local PBS http://www.pbs.org/, to NPR http://www.npr.org/, to your local public radio station where it applies. Stand as an advocate for Public Media by signing on to Protect My Public Media http://protectmypublicmedia.org/. If you value the notion of a media source that is truly of the American People, by the American People, and FOR the American People, support Public Media in any way you can.
Public Media is ours. It has always been ours. It only costs $1.35 per citizen per year. We can all afford that. Let's protect Public Media for the present and the future. Thank you.
