Mitt: I'll Kill Big Bird

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

Your lasso is on a bit too tight there cowboy. I never mentioned a figure of 10 percent of the Federal Budget going to public broadcasting...you did.

Let me quote from your previous post:

And please don't cry me a river by saying that only a dime out of every tax dollar goes to public broadcasting.

Now your defense will likely be: I was quoting supporters of PBS who said it was 10%.

I guess I could loosen up the lasso a bit if you can show me quotes of supporters who claim PBS is getting and is entitled to get 10% of the total Federal Budget.

 

[The Voice of Reason]

Your lasso is on a bit too tight there cowboy. I never mentioned a figure of 10 percent of the Federal Budget going to public broadcasting...you did.

Let me quote from your previous post:

And please don't cry me a river by saying that only a dime out of every tax dollar goes to public broadcasting.

Now your defense will likely be: I was quoting supporters of PBS who said it was 10%.

I guess I could loosen up the lasso a bit if you can show me quotes of supporters who claim PBS is getting and is entitled to get 10% of the total Federal Budget.

The next time your local PBS/NPR affiliate is featuring one of their numerous campaigns to raise money listen very carefully and I will bet you that someone will come with the statement that I've made. I've heard it ! Along with....."for just pennies a day your donations help fund our station"......."one out of ten households listening / watching bother to donate".....and the phrases goes on.

Look I have nothing against Mr. Rogers, Sesame Street , and programs featured on PBS. I went out and purchased the Ken Burns series on Baseball and the Civil War because I think they are far superior programs than what is being offered by commercial networks these days. But see that's the different here. I used my own money at my own discretion to help pay for what I want instead of the federal government taking my money out in taxes and then distributing it to PBS.

PBS will not go away if federal funding disappears. The Great Society is dead my friend. The well has run dry. In other words the government has to stop spending money on "pet projects". We are leaving our kids and grandchildren in serious financial debt.

 

[recto101]

Well I looked at other Non-profit broadcasting groups like LinkTV, Free Speech TV, and Pacifica Radio as far as I know they do not get any funding from the Federal Government. They rely on "Private Donors" for it funding in investigative journalism and Documentary movies.

Well I bought DVD's for Nova Episodes before and my niece bought Sesame Street specials before back when there were video stores. But I don't know how much exactly goes to the local PBS and NPR affiliates when I got that video. I know the production companies that's contracted to air the show on PBS gets the money.

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

PBS will not go away if federal funding disappears. The Great Society is dead my friend. The well has run dry. In other words the government has to stop spending money on "pet projects". We are leaving our kids and grandchildren in serious financial debt.

I agree with you... PBS would not go away if the Federal funds were cut out.

But I have two issues with how the current political power struggle will likely deal with the "cutting out".

As long as at least a tiny, tiny bit of Federal money goes into the PBS/NPR hopper, management at those organizations has some leverage to push back against those who would change the very core of public broadcasting. When a big corporate "sponsor" pressures Public Broadcasting to adopt a philosophy, a political stance that favors corporate America, management simply replies: "That would violate Federal rules and policy."

I will gladly accept the loss of public money to Public Broadcasting when other outrageous raids on the US Treasury are also plugged. Let me tell you one that I see regularly because of the nature of the community where I live. I live 10 miles from town. We now have a supermarket within four miles of my house. As I pulled into the parking lot the other day, this very attractive lady was pushing a shopping cart down the lane so I watched as she walked up to her Cadillac Escalade pick-up truck and put the grocers in the truck. I live in an area where being a building contractor is one of the more observable professions. You cannot believe how many women with perfect hair and designer jeans and extremely well manicured nails drive luxurious mutations of the automobile genre known as "truck". Why? Because the tax law says that if you are in business that needs trucks, we want to encourage business by letting you deduct the cost of that neessary truck (up to a $ limit?) from your taxable income... all in one year!!! No three or five year deprecition. Just buy a company truck and take it as a full tax deduction.

A trip to the shopping center around here is an entertaining event. It's a car show, a beauty parade and a style show all wrapped up in one.

In slow economic years like we have been through the last 4 to 6 years, part of Romney's 47% who pay no taxes include well to do small business people who reduce themselves to not paying taxes by putting their business partner... their spouse... into a gaudy "truck" because of the current tax code.

When the Republican Party gets serious about cleaning up this kind of "pig trough", there are tons of us who will get serious about supporting getting tough on Public Broadcasting and Big Bird.

But as long as we have a government that is supporting the "truck-driving manicured fingernail queen".... I'm fighting for Big Bird.

 

[mnradiofan]

In a world where Honey Boo Boo airs on a commercial network that used to stand for "The Learning Channel", we need public broadcasting now more than ever before.

Private broadcasting is all well and good, but they don't serve the public interest, they serve the ADVERTISER interest. So, you have childrens programming existing for the only purpose of selling products to children.

And in a world where news is becoming more partisan than ever, PBS and NPR exist as two of the LEAST bias channels out there. Yes, there is still a bias, but much more time is spent to simply educating people and letting them make their own decisions.

 

[ixnay]

Goat Rodeo Cowboy, did that Esclade have any company markings on it? I'm sure it wasn't at the supermarket on company business, right?

And as to the topic, continuing (or discontinuing) funding for PBS (or NPR) won't be the end of the world. 8) Although how will fans of BBC comedies and dramas that air on Maryland Public Television (like my mother) cope? ;D

ixnay

 

[Nate Wesley]

In a world where Honey Boo Boo airs on a commercial network that used to stand for "The Learning Channel", we need public broadcasting now more than ever before.

Private broadcasting is all well and good, but they don't serve the public interest, they serve the ADVERTISER interest. So, you have childrens programming existing for the only purpose of selling products to children.

And in a world where news is becoming more partisan than ever, PBS and NPR exist as two of the LEAST bias channels out there. Yes, there is still a bias, but much more time is spent to simply educating people and letting them make their own decisions.

This.

One can point and yell at PBS and NPR's corporate support until they're blue in the face, one definitive difference remains: Neither is markedly influenced by how much soap each can sell.

 

[1069_KIFR]

I'm waiting for someone to photoshop Sarah Palin hunting from a helicopter, having Big Bird in her sights! ( I use Sarah Palin as she would represent the Republicans)

 

[Bob1370]

"I'm waiting for someone to photoshop Sarah Palin hunting from a helicopter, having Big Bird in her sights! ( I use Sarah Palin as she would represent the Republicans)"

Too late. It's been done. Conan O'Brien produced a video of a manic Mitt Romney flying a biplane and gunning down Big Bird. It's already gone viral after premiering on his night show on TBS. It's already stalling Mitt's rise in the polls, and it may turn out that attacking the pittance PBS and NPR get (which is a fraction of what Mitt will spend on his own campaign this year) may be the most costly mistake he made.

Remember 1996? Several members of Congress, most prominently ex-Senator Larry Pressler, went doen to defeat for attacking public broadcasting, and Bill Clinton started climbing in the polls and clobbered Bob Dole in the final vote despite the Lewinsky mess, which had already broken. Public radio and TV are the most popular things Uncle Sam funds, next to Social Security. Bad idea to attack it...

 

[TheBigA]

The reason we have public broadcasting is because the commercial companies are more focused on profit and satisfying their shareholders than serving the public. That's why Congress created public broadcasting in 1967, and things haven't gotten any better in the 45 years since. In fact, it's gotten worse. This is a radio discussion group. All who feel radio has gotten better in the last 15 years, say yes. Go ahead. Tell me how the pursuit of profit has done a better job of serving the public. Then let's talk about job creators. How has the pursuit of profit helped job creation in commercial broadcasting? Tell me how many jobs the Bain-funded Clear Channel created during the Bush administration. I'd like to know. Someone has to work for the public interest instead of personal profit. The reason we have public broadcasting is to remove profit and ratings from the media. Maybe you all think the commercial companies do a great job at public service.

 

[Carmine5]

Oh, give me a break. Since it's inception Sesame Street has made billions in merchandising. They don't need any help from the government. Time to kick Big Bird out of the nest and let him fly on his own. And who would doubt that "Downton Abbey" can't make it without government funding? It's one of the biggest series on television, commercial or non-com.

As for the rest of PBS programming, I frankly have serious doubts that re-runs of mediocre British sit-coms, Peter, Paul and Mary concerts and Lawrence Welk is a good use of my or anyone's tax dollars. For once, let's get our priorities straight. First pay down the 16 trillion dollar debt and then let's re-visit funding the CPB.

 

[TheBigA]

Oh, give me a break. Since it's inception Sesame Street has made billions in merchandising. They don't need any help from the government.

Who says Sesame Street gets any money from the government? Since 1978, Childrens Television Workshop, producer of Sesame Street, has received NO federal funds.

The issue is federal funding for PBS.

 

[Carmine5]

Oh, give me a break. Since it's inception Sesame Street has made billions in merchandising. They don't need any help from the government.

Who says Sesame Street gets any money from the government? Since 1978, Childrens Television Workshop, producer of Sesame Street, has received NO federal funds.

The issue is federal funding for PBS.

According to their own website: Sesame Workshop "receives 35% from corporate, foundation and government support." Look it up.

Of course, we're talking about PBS or more generally CPB receiving federal funding. But don't forget, it was Obama who decided to dumb down the issue by getting cute with some lame quip about Romney trying to kill Big Bird.

 

[landtuna]

But it was Obama who decided to dumb down the issue by getting cute with some quip about Romney trying to kill Big Bird.

It was Romney who raised the "Big Bird" issue in the first place.

 

[Carmine5]

But it was Obama who decided to dumb down the issue by getting cute with some quip about Romney trying to kill Big Bird.

It was Romney who raised the "Big Bird" issue in the first place.

That's right. He said he "loved Big Bird." He just didn't want to borrow money from China to pay for it. Sounds reasonable to me.

 

[landtuna]

That's right. He said he "loved Big Bird." He just didn't want to borrow money from China to pay for it. Sounds reasonable to me.

And he also said he was going to "kill Big Bird".

If he is so concerned about borrowing money from China he needs to look at 100 other programs and two wars where the big bucks are being wasted. PBS is perhaps the only thing the gubmint has done right.

 

[Carmine5]

That's right. He said he "loved Big Bird." He just didn't want to borrow money from China to pay for it. Sounds reasonable to me.

And he also said he was going to "kill Big Bird".

If he is so concerned about borrowing money from China he needs to look at 100 other programs and two wars where the big bucks are being wasted. PBS is perhaps the only thing the gubmint has done right.

Of course. All programs need to be looked at and cuts made where appropriate--and that includes the half billion dollars given to CPB. If PBS and NPR are that good, and I believe for the most part they are, then they can exist without a taxpayer handout.

 

[dhett]

And he also said he was going to "kill Big Bird".

When? Citation, please.

 

[DToTheJ]

Notice the media isn't making a big deal about Romney not wanting to do away with Jim Lehrer as much as he does Big Bird...

 

[FreddyE1977]

Oh, give me a break. Since it's inception Sesame Street has made billions in merchandising. They don't need any help from the government.

Who says Sesame Street gets any money from the government? Since 1978, Childrens Television Workshop, producer of Sesame Street, has received NO federal funds.

The issue is federal funding for PBS.

And from the beginning PBS has eschewed any revenue arising from the sale of Sesame Street merchandise (or any
other program I reckon) for the purpose of remaining "noncommercial".

Given today's relaxed underwriting standards, truly an anachronism.