Re: Apologize for Over-reacting

[Andy Carvin <acarvin@GSN.ORG>]

> I must admit I am feeling a little "red in the face."  I normally do
> not participate in anything that even resembles an "urban legend" but
> this seemed genuine.  I will be sure to investigate any others I
> receive.  I still think we can be concerned with anything that requires
> federal funds but it sounds like things are not quite as desperate as
> the petition note sounded??

Absolutely - I'd hope we'd still be concerned with the success of public
broadcasting. I personally would really appreciate it. :) But chain
letters and spams, even for a good cause, are still chain letters and
spam, and they cause a surprising number of problems online.

Essentially, the Republican congress of 1994-96 attempted to make the
elimination of CPB a priority - Newt Gingrich famously said he wanted to
"zero out" CPB. The general public, though, reacted strongly against the
measure. According to polls, people consider public broadcasting the
second best use of their tax dollars, with only defense spending coming
out ahead. Over time, Congress largely backed off. Public Broadcasting
agreed to trim its budgetary fat and explore new sources of revenue while
Congress agreed to keep funding us. (the future of the NEA and NEH,
though, is a constant debate, and a whole other story...)

Interestingly, CPB is always funded at least two years in advance of each
fiscal year - since tv programs often take years to put together, such an
early commitment is required. Because of this, we actually have less money
this year than last, even though the fight over cpb is largely over.
That's because this year's budget comes from decisions made in 1995 and
96, during the height of the debate over CPB. But after this year, monies
will begin to increase again.

So to make a long story short, yes, the scare is over. That's not to say
it won't happen again, but for now we've got a congress we can work with.

ac

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