[Senate Hearing 108-955]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 108-955
REAUTHORIZATION OF THE CORPORATION
FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING
=======================================================================
HEARING
before the
COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE,
SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
__________
JULY 13, 2004
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation
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SENATE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
JOHN McCAIN, Arizona, Chairman
TED STEVENS, Alaska ERNEST F. HOLLINGS, South
CONRAD BURNS, Montana Carolina, Ranking
TRENT LOTT, Mississippi DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii
KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON, Texas JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER IV, West
OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, Maine Virginia
SAM BROWNBACK, Kansas JOHN F. KERRY, Massachusetts
GORDON H. SMITH, Oregon JOHN B. BREAUX, Louisiana
PETER G. FITZGERALD, Illinois BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota
JOHN ENSIGN, Nevada RON WYDEN, Oregon
GEORGE ALLEN, Virginia BARBARA BOXER, California
JOHN E. SUNUNU, New Hampshire BILL NELSON, Florida
MARIA CANTWELL, Washington
FRANK R. LAUTENBERG, New Jersey
Jeanne Bumpus, Republican Staff Director and General Counsel
Robert W. Chamberlin, Republican Chief Counsel
Kevin D. Kayes, Democratic Staff Director and Chief Counsel
Gregg Elias, Democratic General Counsel
C O N T E N T S
----------
Page
Hearing held on July 13, 2004.................................... 1
Statement of Senator Lautenberg.................................. 46
Prepared statement........................................... 47
Statement of Senator Lott........................................ 2
Prepared statement........................................... 3
Statement of Senator McCain...................................... 1
Statement of Senator Nelson...................................... 43
Prepared statement........................................... 44
Statement of Senator Rockefeller................................. 2
Statement of Senator Sununu...................................... 4
Witnesses
Burns, Ken, Filmaker, Florentine Films, on Behalf of PBS......... 23
Prepared statement........................................... 26
Cox, Kathleen, President and CEO, Corporation for Public
Broadcasting................................................... 4
Prepared statement........................................... 6
Frid, Peter A., CEO and General Manager, New Hampshire Public
Television on Behalf of the Association of Public Television
Stations....................................................... 35
Prepared statement........................................... 37
Matthusen, Carl, General Manager, KJZZ-FM, KBAQ-FM and Sun Sounds
Radio Reading Services......................................... 14
Prepared statement........................................... 16
Taylor, Loris Ann, General Manager, KUYI Hopi Radio.............. 29
Prepared statement........................................... 31
Appendix
Response to written question submitted by Hon. Byron L. Dorgan to
PBS............................................................ 55
Statement of the National Minority Public Broadcasting Consortia:
National Asian America Telecommunications Association, National
Black Programming Consortium, Latino Public Broadcasting,
Native American Public Telecommunications, Pacific Islanders in
Communications................................................. 53
REAUTHORIZATION OF THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING
----------
TUESDAY, JULY 13, 2004
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation,
Washington, DC.
The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:35 a.m. in room
SR-253, Russell Senate Office Building, Hon. John McCain,
Chairman of the Committee, presiding.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN McCAIN,
U.S. SENATOR FROM ARIZONA
The Chairman. Good morning. Today, the Committee meets to
hear testimony about the reauthorization of the Corporation for
Public Broadcasting. The CPB has not been authorized since
1996. We'd like to address this situation by introducing a bill
today to reauthorize the CPB for 7 years.
In 1967, the Congress created the CPB, declaring, quote,
``It's in the public interest to encourage the growth and
development of public radio and television broadcasting,
including the use of such media for instructional, educational
and cultural purposes.'' Today the CPB continues to provide
financial and organizational support to the Nation's 356 public
television stations and almost 800 public radio stations.
A recent General Accounting Office report noted that 79
percent of the public television licensees surveyed found that
the amount of local programming they currently produce is not
sufficient to meet local community needs; 85 percent of the
stations surveyed stated they do not have adequate funds for
local programming, or that they would produce more local
programming if they could obtain additional sources of funding.
The bill that I and others will introduce would provide the
Corporation the explicit authority to award grants for the
production and acquisition of local programming, including
local digital programming. It's my hope that the local stations
will use these available funds to produce more local
programming to fill the void some commercial broadcasters have
left in local communities.
I welcome the witnesses and thank them for appearing today
to discuss the reauthorization of CPB and public broadcasting.
Senator Rockefeller?
STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER IV,
U.S. SENATOR FROM WEST VIRGINIA
Senator Rockefeller. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And I also
welcome the witnesses.
I am required by ethical laws in the Senate to report that
my wife Sharon is in the audience, and she's the CEO and
President of WETA in Washington.
The Chairman. And the brains of the family.
[Laughter.]
Senator Lott. We can all agree on that.
[Laughter.]
Senator Rockefeller. I would hope very much that--as we
proceed on this, that will be very sensitive to the fact that--
this whole question of the trust fund and all the rest of it--
in rural areas, the requirement to switch to digital pretty
much knocks a lot of stations out of business if they actually
go ahead and do it, and that we would be very careful, as we
proceed, to protect the financial integrity, and, hence, the
program integrity, and, hence, the integrity generally, and
survivability, of rural public broadcasting stations.
I thank the Chairman.
The Chairman. Senator Lott.
STATEMENT OF HON. TRENT LOTT,
U.S. SENATOR FROM MISSISSIPPI
Senator Lott. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you for having
this hearing today on the reauthorization of the Corporation
for Public Broadcasting.
Far too many times in the past, we never got around to
doing the reauthorization legislation on a variety of issues,
and it wound up being done late, or not at all, or in the
appropriations bill. The best way to avoid that is to have the
hearings and mark up a reauthorization bill, address some of
the questions that may be out there, and then move the
legislation forward. I think it's important we be involved in
the detailed process of reauthorization, and I thank the
Chairman for directing the Committee's focus to the Corporation
for Public Broadcasting.
I want to thank the witnesses for being here. I do have a
commitment later to be on the floor for some remarks, but I'm
going to stay as long as I can, because I look forward to
hearing what the witnesses have to say.
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is assigned the
important task of overseeing the distribution of Federal funds
to public broadcasting stations in this country, ensuring that
Federal funds are utilized for national programming, and
maintaining universal access to educational programs and
services that are offered through public broadcasting.
Public broadcasting does fill a vital niche that people
benefit from and enjoy, and I think it's important that we make
sure that that niche is filled and that we don't leave all of
our access just to commercial broadcasters.
I do think it's extremely important that we meet the
statutory requirement for ``objectivity and balance,'' quote/
unquote, in programming by the Corporation for Public
Broadcasting in order to ensure a fair and impartial approach
is taken. I have long been concerned that the funding
appropriated by Congress to be administered by the CPB has been
used to advocate, on occasion, biased and partisan agendas, at
times. I think a real effort has been made to work through
that. I think progress has been made. And I congratulate the
board for the work that's been done there. It has been done
carefully and meticulously and without a sledgehammer, and I
think you're to be commended for that.
I also want to take a moment just to express my
appreciation for the achievements of the Mississippi Public
Broadcasting. My home state's Public Broadcasting Network does
an excellent job in serving the people of Mississippi. I
appreciate what they do. And, on occasion, they have refused to
carry certain programming; on other occasions, they've done
really innovative programming. If every state's organization
works like ours does to inform the people and contribute to
their enjoyment going to the rural areas, then it's certainly
working quite well.
And I thank you for being here this morning and for having
the hearing.
[The prepared statement of Senator Lott follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Trent Lott, U.S. Senator from Mississippi
Mr. Chairman, thank you for holding this hearing today to consider
the reauthorization of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. I am
pleased that this Committee has been more proactive in considering the
reauthorization of the agencies and other entities which are within the
Committee's jurisdiction. It is important that we engage in the
detailed work of the reauthorization process, and I thank the Chairman
for directing the Committee's focus to the Corporation for Public
Broadcasting.
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is assigned the important
task of overseeing the distribution of Federal funds to the public
broadcasting stations in this country, insuring that Federal funds are
utilized for national programming, and maintaining universal access to
the educational programs and services that are offered through public
broadcasting. Public broadcasting can and does fill a vital niche that
would not otherwise be filled by commercial broadcasters. However, it
is important that the statutory requirement for ``objectivity and
balance'' in programming be followed by the Corporation for Public
Broadcasting in order to insure that a fair and impartial approach is
always taken. I have long been concerned that the funding appropriated
by Congress to be administered by the Corporation for Public
Broadcasting--money that belongs to the people--has been used to
advocated biased and partisan agendas at times.
There has been improvement in recent years as the Corporation for
Public Broadcasting has refocused on meeting its statutory obligation
to achieve ``objectivity and balance'' and stepped up its efforts in
this area. I want to take this opportunity today to encourage the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting's Board and staff to continue to
make progress in facilitating the development of programming which is
objective and balanced, and I would remind the witnesses today of this
statutory requirement. When Americans tune into their local public
television or radio station, they should receive news, entertainment,
and educational programming that informs, enlightens, and teaches them
and provides the tools they need to make independent judgments. We must
continue to strive towards meeting this goal.
I do not want to miss an opportunity to recognize the achievements
of Mississippi Public Broadcasting. My home state's public broadcasting
network does an excellent job of serving the people of Mississippi, and
I appreciate the good job that they do. I know several of the witnesses
here today know personally of the challenges that must be met in
running quality public radio and television stations. The
reauthorization of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is a key way
in which we can continue to help our state and local public
broadcasting systems, and I look forward to the testimony today for the
guidance it will provide in this process.
The Chairman. Thank you.
Senator Sununu?
STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN E. SUNUNU,
U.S. SENATOR FROM NEW HAMPSHIRE
Senator Sununu. Mr. Chairman, I want to thank you for
stacking the panel with representatives from New Hampshire----
[Laughter.]
Senator Sununu.--and welcome my friends, Peter Frid and Ken
Burns. They've done great things to strengthen public
broadcasting and the quality of the content in broadcasting,
not only in New Hampshire, but across the country, and I thank
them for their contribution and for their testimony today, as I
do all the panelists.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
The Chairman. Thank you.
Our panel today is Ms. Kathleen Cox, who is the President
and Chief Executive Officer, Corporation for Public
Broadcasting; Mr. Carl Matthusen, who is the General Manager of
KJZZ, in Tempe, Arizona; Mr. Ken Burns, a distinguished
filmmaker, of Florentine Films, of Walpole, New Hampshire; Ms.
Loris Ann Vicente-Taylor, General Manager, KUYI, the Hopi
Foundation, Keams Canyon, Arizona; and Mr. Peter Frid, the
Chief Executive Officer and General Manager, New Hampshire
Public Television, at the University of New Hampshire.
Welcome. We'll begin with Ms. Cox. Welcome.
STATEMENT OF KATHLEEN COX, PRESIDENT AND CEO, CORPORATION FOR
PUBLIC BROADCASTING
Ms. Cox. Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, thank
you for inviting me to testify before you today on the
reauthorization of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. My
thanks, as well, to the Committee staff on both sides of the
aisle for the thoughtful and constructive approach they have
taken to amending the Public Broadcasting Act, and particularly
for the courteous and attentive hearing they have given to our
comments.
Before turning to the legislation, I'd like to take a
moment to introduce myself to the Committee and to say a few
words about how I see CPB's role and where I think our most
important tasks lie.
First of all, on day 12 of my tenure as President of CPB, I
must say that I am, indeed, honored to be at this hearing. As
the former General Counsel of CPB, I worked with the Public
Broadcasting Act on nearly a daily basis, and I welcome the
opportunity to work toward its reauthorization.
Nearly 40 years ago, recognizing the potential power of
broadcast technology to serve the public interest, the
predecessor to this Committee was instrumental in creating the
public broadcasting system. The result is an extraordinary,
distinctive, community-based partnership embracing public
broadcasting, the American people, and their elected
representatives. This partnership has yielded compelling public
service programming and services without parallel in the media
history of this country.
We are now at a moment that calls for similar foresight,
reflection, and judgment. Broadcasting is undergoing its
biggest period of change since the arrival of television and
radio broadcast. As recently as the early 1990s, television
broadcasting was available on only a handful of channels,
satellite radio was just developing, and no one, beyond a few
research workers, had even heard of the Internet, let alone
thought that it had anything to do with television and radio.
Today, digital cable and satellite radio are here to stay. The
Internet has changed the very fabric of our lives, transforming
society.
Along with these dazzling breakthroughs in communication
and information technology come some critical policy issues.
How do we make sure that all Americans have access to these new
and increasingly essential technologies? How can we ensure that
the public interest is served in this information age?
Public broadcasting is a structure in which a series of
competing, sometimes almost contradictory, goals are balanced.
It is a system that receives federally appropriated dollars,
yet remains free of government control of its content. Equally
important, it is a system composed of local broadcasters who
schedule their programs, raise their own funds, and decide how
best to serve their audiences, yet one that must be
collectively strong enough to meet the needs of a national
audience. CPB plays a significant role in that structure.
CPB is a private, nonprofit corporation outside the
government enclave. It is prohibited from producing or
distributing programming, but responsible for facilitating
high-quality content for the system of stations and the
American public. CPB may not, itself, broadcast or own or
control stations. Instead, it acts an honest broker,
administering and distributing the appropriations to stations
and producers, and providing the guidance and insight that
comes with a systemwide view. It is also a heat shield,
insulating public broadcasters from government efforts to
exercise undue influence on editorial freedom.
CPB does not make programs or broadcast them, and we don't
do outreach or raise funds, but we can help create the
conditions in which these things, and so many more, can happen.
Without the pressure of day-to-day decisions about what
programs to air, CPB can take the long view. We can look at the
system as a whole, not station by station, spotting problems
and identifying possible solutions. And when there are unmet
needs for a certain kind of programming or research or
training, we can step in to provide it.
CPB is guided by the principle of localism, that local
stations make the best decisions about public broadcasting in
their own communities, but localism does not mean, and cannot
mean, local-only. CPB's ability to direct resources to
systemwide needs ultimately offers more benefits to individual
stations than they would otherwise receive. To paraphrase
Abraham Lincoln, CPB does for the community of stations what
they cannot do at all in their separate and individual
capacities.
National programming, for example, is not something set
apart from the work of stations, but a resource that draws
listeners and viewers, and ultimately members, and that
educates, informs, enlightens, and enables them to participate
more fully in the lives of their community. Although CPB does
not, itself, produce programming, it does fund and commission
programming based on assessment of the system needs.
To this end, CPB is conducting the largest audience
research project ever in public broadcasting history. The
results will help producers and programmers ground decision-
making about prime-time public television and knowledge about
audiences and members, effectively bringing audiences into the
room when decisions are being made.
To bring new voices and viewpoints into the important
national conversation about America after September 11, CPB is
funding a new initiative, America at a Crossroads. We've
received more than 425 proposals, the most in our history; and
361 one of them were from first-time applicants.
This fall, the CPB-funded ``Maya and Miguel'' will debut on
PBS. This is a program for kids old enough to have graduated
from Sesame Street, and one that speaks, sometimes literally,
to Latinos, America's fastest-growing minority. We are
providing major funding for Public Radio Exchange, a system
that makes independently produced content easily available to
station programmers. And we are helping Alaska's stations meet
their special programming needs by funding installation of a
broadband data network that will allow stations to share
content with each other on a 24/7 basis.
CPB's view across the whole system informs more than
programming. CPB funded a study of public television finances
that identified major gifts as an untapped revenue source for
stations. Working with the station community, we developed a
curriculum that every station can use to create its own major
giving plan. The response has been overwhelming. We expect that
about 120 licensees, almost two-thirds of the total, will
participate in this initiative. With strong support from
Congress, we have been able to assist public radio and
television stations to make the transition to digital
broadcasting, and we are providing grants to small radio
stations to develop their online services.
The Public Broadcasting Act has proven itself resilient in
the face of change, and its goals are perhaps more relevant
than ever in these days of media concentration and frenetic
commercialism. We appreciate this Committee's work toward the
reauthorization of CPB. I would be remiss, however, if I failed
to mention the continuing importance of adequate Federal
funding to public broadcasting, which begins with the
authorization levels provided by this Committee. We look
forward to continuing the dialogue with the Committee, and with
the goal of making public broadcasting available and accessible
to all Americans.
Again, I thank this Committee for its major role in the
creation and nurturing of public broadcasting, and I look
forward to continuing to work with you. And I'll be happy, of
course, to take any questions.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Cox follows:]
Prepared Statement of Kathleen Cox, President and CEO,
Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Thank you, Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee, for inviting
me to testify before you today on the reauthorization of the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting. My thanks as well to the Committee
staff on both sides of the aisle for the thoughtful and constructive
approach they have taken to amending the Public Broadcasting Act, and
particularly for the courteous and attentive hearing they have given to
our comments.
Before turning to the legislation, I'd like to take a moment to
introduce myself to the Committee, and to say a few words about how I
see CPB's role and where I think our most important tasks lie.
First of all, on day twelve of my tenure as President of CPB, I
must say that I am indeed honored to be at this hearing. As the former
General Counsel of CPB, I worked with the Public Broadcasting Act on a
nearly daily basis, and I welcome the opportunity to work toward its
reauthorization.
Nearly 40 years ago, recognizing the potential power of broadcast
technology to serve the public interest, the predecessor to this
committee was instrumental in creating the public broadcasting system.
The result is an extraordinary, distinctive, community-based
partnership embracing public broadcasting, the American people, and
their elected representatives. This partnership has yielded compelling
public service programming and services without parallel in the media
history of this country.
We are now at a moment that calls for similar foresight, reflection
and judgment. Broadcasting is undergoing its biggest period of change
since the arrival of the television. As recently as the early 1990s,
broadcasting was available on only a handful of channels, satellite
broadcasting hardly existed, and no one beyond a few research workers
had even heard of the Internet, let alone thought that it had anything
to do with television. Today digital cable and satellite channels are
booming. The Internet has changed the very fabric of our lives and is
transforming society.
Along with these dazzling breakthroughs in communication and
information technologies come some critical policy issues: How do we
make sure that all Americans have access to these new and increasingly
essential technologies? How can we ensure that the public interest is
served in the Information Age?
Public broadcasting is a structure in which a series of competing,
sometimes almost contradictory goals are balanced. It is a system that
receives federally appropriated dollars, yet remains free of government
control of its content. Equally important, for our purposes today, it
is a system composed of local broadcasters who have nearly total
autonomy over their programming, services and finances, yet one that
must be collectively strong enough to the meet the needs of a national
audience.
At the center of that structure is CPB. CPB is a private, non-
profit corporation, outside the government enclave. It is prohibited
from producing or distributing programming, but responsible for
facilitating high quality content for the system of stations and the
American public. CPB may not itself broadcast or own or control
stations. Instead it acts as an honest broker, administering and
distributing the appropriations to stations and producers and providing
the guidance and insight that comes with a system-wide view. It is also
a heat shield, insulating public broadcasters from government efforts
to exercise undue influence on editorial freedom. We don't make the
programs, or broadcast them; we don't do outreach or raise funds. But
we can help create the conditions in which these things--and so many
more--can happen.
Freed from the day-to-day decisions about what program to air, CPB
can take the long view. We can look at the system as a whole, not
station by station, spotting problems and identifying possible
solutions. And when there are unmet needs--for a certain kind of
programming, or research, or training--we can step in to provide it.
CPB is guided by the principle of localism--that local stations
make the best decisions about public broadcasting in their own
communities. But localism does not mean--and cannot mean--local only.
CPB's ability to direct resources to system-wide needs ultimately
offers more benefits to individual stations than they would otherwise
receive. To paraphrase Abraham Lincoln, CPB does for the community of
stations what they ``cannot do at all in their separate and individual
capacities.''
National programming, for example, is not something set apart from
the work of stations, but a resource that draws viewers (and ultimately
members), and that educates, informs, enlightens, and enables them to
participate more fully in the lives of their communities.
So CPB is conducting the biggest audience research project in
public broadcasting history. The results will help producers and
programmers ground decision-making about primetime public television in
knowledge about audiences and members--effectively bringing audiences
into the room when decisions are being made.
We've also launched America at a Crossroads, an ambitious effort to
bring new voices and viewpoints into the important national
conversation about America after September 11. We've received more than
425 proposals--the most in our history--and 361 of them were from
first-time applicants.
This fall, we will launch Maya and Miguel, a program for kids old
enough to have graduated from Sesame Street, and one that speaks
(sometimes literally) to Latinos, America's fastest growing minority.
CPB's view across the whole system informs more than programming.
Just one example: CPB funded a study of public television finances that
identified major gifts as an untapped revenue source for stations.
Again working with the station community, we developed a curriculum
that every station can use to develop and implement a major giving
plan. The response has been overwhelming--we expect that more than 120
licensees will participate in the initiative. With strong support from
Congress, we have also been able to assist public television stations
to meet the deadline for digital broadcast, and we are working
collaboratively on ways to use new technology to enhance station and
system efficiency.
The Public Broadcasting Act has proven itself resilient in the face
of change, and its goals are perhaps more relevant than ever in these
days of media consolidation and frenetic commercialism. While we agree
with the motivations behind the suggested changes to the Act, CPB
believes that most of these goals can be accomplished within the
current framework of the statute as it exists today. We look forward to
continuing the dialogue with the Committee, with the goal of making
public broadcasting available and accessible to all Americans.
Again, I thank this committee for its major role in the creation
and nurturing of public broadcasting, and look forward to continuing to
work with you. I will be happy to take your questions.
Appendix
In my first appearance before the Committee, and the first time in
several years that the Committee has considered a reauthorization of
CPB, I wanted to provide a primer on how CPB fulfills the charter
contained in the Public Broadcasting Act and carries out its
responsibilities by encouraging high-quality programming, making grants
to local public radio and television stations, and working to
strengthen the public telecommunications system.
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting
In 1967, Congress created the Corporation for Public Broadcasting,
declaring, ``It is in the public interest to encourage the growth and
development of public radio and television broadcasting, including the
use of such media for instructional, educational and cultural
purposes.'' For more than 30 years, the Federal investment in public
broadcasting has offered all Americans access to the highest-quality,
non-commercial, educational and cultural programming delivered to their
homes, schools and workplaces by means of the most current technology.
With more than 1,000 locally controlled public radio and television
stations, public broadcasting forms the largest community-based
educational and civic institution in the Nation.
CPB is the steward of the Federal investment in public
broadcasting. It administers several grant programs, through which most
of the federally allocated funds are sent directly to individual public
radio and television stations. But in addition to aiding individual
stations, CPB also is responsible for ensuring the strength of the
overall system--for example, by funding an interconnection system that
allows programming to be distributed and by paying some system-wide
costs, like music royalties. Beyond that, CPB is uniquely positioned to
assess the health and needs of the system as a whole, and to direct
funds to the areas of greatest need.
In 2002, concerned about the financial status of the public
television station, CPB retained McKinsey and Company to conduct a
system-wide review. The findings were disturbing. Every source of
funding for public television--individual donations, gifts from
foundations, corporate support, and federal, state and local government
appropriations--were static or declining. McKinsey also identified key
areas that presented opportunities for either increasing station
revenues or decreasing costs. In response, CPB launched projects on
major giving, operational improvements, and programming strategy--and
then, in response to requests from the stations themselves--added local
services to the list. All of these projects are well underway, and we
anticipate a similar examination of public radio issues in the near
future.
This kind of system-wide approach offers benefits to local
broadcasters that go beyond efficiencies of scale. It frees them to
focus on the pressing needs of their own stations, while drawing on the
research and opportunities provided by CPB. CPB provides a vital
service by offering fact-based research on a range of issues, from
finances to programming, and by funding initiatives that individual
stations cannot.
How the Public Broadcasting System Operates
In contrast to commercial broadcasting, which is increasingly
centralized, the public broadcasting system is very decentralized.
Every public broadcasting outlet is under local control or ownership;
increasingly, they are the only locally owned and operated media
outlets in their communities. With local governing boards, community
advisors, volunteers, and partnerships with local organizations,
stations work to provide programs and services responsive to the needs
of their communities. Each local station maintains sole authority and
responsibility for selecting, presenting or producing the programs that
it airs. Congress placed control of programming with local stations
rather than CPB. It ensured this autonomy by prohibiting CPB from
owning or operating any television or radio station, system or network,
and barring it from producing, scheduling or disseminating programs to
the public.
Instead, CPB operates within congressionally prescribed guidelines
to provide financial support and services to 560 licensees operating
more than 1,000 television and radio stations that deliver educational
services and programming to virtually every household in the country.
Congress has mandated that a majority of CPB's appropriation be
allocated for direct station support. Our obligation to Congress and
the American people is to ensure that this money is being spent wisely
and efficiently. Our obligation to stations is to insulate them from
the political process, and to ensure that their receipt of Federal
support in no way interferes with their ability to operate as free and
independent broadcasters, as prescribed by law.
In addition to our financial support of stations, CPB complies with
the statutory requirement of providing funds to producing entities and
independent producers to help them develop a wide range of programming
that is then made available to local stations. As encouraged by
Congress, CPB provides direct program support to PBS through
contractual negotiations for a high-profile national program service,
which includes series such as Nova, American Experience, Sesame Street
and NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. CPB does not provide direct program
support to NPR, which competes with other producers for CPB radio
program funds on a program-by-program basis. CPB also provides
programming dollars to entities such as the Independent Television
Service (ITVS), five separate entities collectively known as the
National Minority Consortia, and many independent producers and
producing organizations, all of which are entirely independent of CPB.
This enables stations to acquire programming independently from a wide
variety of sources.
Public television stations choose their programs from the following
sources, among others:
PBS, which provides more than 1200 hours a year of
children's, prime time, and other educational programming from
which its member stations can choose.
APT, which acquires programs that may be purchased by
stations on a title-by-title basis. These include series and
specials such as Nightly Business Report and Julia & Jacques:
Cooking at Home. APT also maintains the largest source of free
programming available to U.S. public television stations.
ITVS, which funds, distributes and promotes independently
produced television programs. ITVS films have been nominated
for Academy Awards for the last three years in a row, and for
four primetime Emmys this year alone.
The National Educational Telecommunications Association
(NETA), which annually distributes about 2,000 hours of
programming--produced by public television stations, other
entities and independent producers--via satellite to stations
nationwide.
Public radio stations also get their programming from a wide
variety of sources:
Local productions typically account for about half of
programming. In the Washington, D.C. area, for example, WAMU's
The Diane Rehm Show and Stained Glass Bluegrass, to name just
two programs, are locally produced, as is much of WETA's
classical music programming.
36 percent is from NPR, including news and information
programs like Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and The
Tavis Smiley Show, cultural programming like Jazz from Lincoln
Center and The Thistle and the Shamrock, and entertainment
programming like Car Talk and Wait, Wait. . .Don't Tell Me!
10 percent is obtained from PRI, which distributes programs
like Marketplace and and operates a Capitol Hill news bureau
that offers a local eye on national events.
5 percent is from other producers, including other public
radio stations. For example, The Diane Rehm Show, produced at
WAMU, is heard on stations around the country.
How CPB Distributes its Appropriation
CPB distributes its funds based on a formula set forth in the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended (47 U.S.C. 396(k)(3)):
At least 6 percent of its appropriation for certain
statutorily enumerated expenses for the system of stations
(i.e., music royalties, interconnection expenses, ITVS and
minority consortia operational expenses, etc.)
Not more than 5 percent for administrative expenses
The remaining 89 percent is allocated to stations as follows:
75 percent for public television
75 percent of which is for grants to television
stations
25 percent of which is for television programming
25 percent for public radio
70 percent of which is for radio station grants
23 percent of which is for radio program acquisition
grants
7 percent of which is for radio programming
A schematic diagram of the flow of the funds is as follows:
Grants To Stations
The statute directs CPB to provide a grant to each station in
accordance with eligibility criteria and on the basis of a formula
designed to (1) provide for the financial needs and requirements of
stations in relation to the communities and audiences such stations
undertake to serve; (2) maintain existing, and stimulate new, sources
of non-federal financial support for stations by providing incentives
for increases in such support; and (3) assure that each eligible
licensee and permittee of a public station receives a basic grant (47
U.S.C.A. 396(k)(6)(B)).
Local television and radio stations are the bedrock of the public
broadcasting system. They are community institutions working in
partnership with schools, libraries, and other community organizations
to provide news and information, children's, local public affairs, and
cultural programming for their viewers and listeners. There are many
types of stations--state networks that provide service across an entire
state and receive significant support from their state government; tiny
rural stations that offer the only local news in a town or a region;
major city stations that produce national programs; joint licensees
that operate both public television and radio stations; and stations
owned by universities or school systems. Each of these stations is
governed by its own board of directors, provides its own brand of
program options, and faces its own challenges in meeting its financial
obligations. CPB's grant structure, while complex, represents our best
efforts to respond to the multiplicity of needs facing public
broadcasters.
Public Television Stations
Television Community Service Grants
Almost 50 percent of the money CPB receives is set aside for direct
grants to public television stations, known as television community
service grants or CSGs. A full-power station operating under a
noncommercial, educational Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
license qualifies for a CSG if it meets minimum requirements including
a minimum level of non-federal financial support, a minimum broadcast
schedule, and bookkeeping and programming standards.
The CSG is divided into two parts. The first part is the base
grant, a percentage of the Federal appropriation. In FY 2004, the base
grant is $418,000. Designated overlap stations (that is, stations that
share a market) share a single base grant for that market. The second
part is an incentive grant designed to reward a station according to
the amount of non-federal financial support it raises. Every CSG
qualifying station receives the incentive part of the grant, which
encourages the development of non-federal revenue, as prescribed by the
statute.
As required by statute, stations use CSGs for purposes ``primarily
related to the production or acquisition of programming.'' Grant
amounts vary widely from station to station, based on the amount of
non-federal support that each station raises. CPB monitors grant
spending through a combination of routine reporting requirements and
direct audits conducted by CPB's Office of the Inspector General.
In addition to the CSGs, CPB now provides two other types of grants
to television stations--the local service grant and the distant service
grant. These grants are based on formulas arrived at after extensive
consultation throughout the system--with representatives of APTS and
PBS, but primarily with station general managers who appreciate the
sharply different needs of stations throughout the system. The formulas
that they developed are complex, but strike an extraordinary balance
between providing support to all and offering special help to those who
need it. In this, they reflect the statute's policy goals by working to
maintain universal service. This translates into making extra help
available to stations providing services to small and rural
communities; encouraging support from local private and public sources;
and encouraging efficiency.
Local Service Grants. CPB recognizes the special needs and
challenges of small stations and the important role they play in
providing universal access to free, over-the-air local public
television. For that reason, CPB provides additional incentives to
stations with less than $2 million in non-federal financial support.
The grants are intended to strengthen local services such as outreach
initiatives, educational projects and services, operational
efficiencies, implementation of best practices, financial planning, and
professional development.
Distant Service Grants. To recognize the additional costs of
serving multiple communities and the efficiency of multiple transmitter
operations, and to further the goal of universal service, CPB provides
larger grants to single grantees who operate three or more transmitters
(stations). The grants are used to strengthen services, including
outreach, educational workshops and training, and local content, in
these communities
Public Radio Stations
Radio Community Service Grants (CSGs)
Under the statute, CPB provides 15.6 percent of its total
appropriation to 384 grantees who operate approximately 700 public
radio stations that qualify for radio CSG funding. The grants are
designed to address the disparate needs of urban and rural stations.
These stations provide outstanding, award-winning news and information,
arts and entertainment programming, as well as valuable community
services. Sometimes they represent the only local broadcast signal--
commercial or noncommercial--that a rural community receives. CPB also
offers special funding incentives for nearly 60 minority grantees and
more than 100 grantees operating in rural environments.
A licensee or permittee of a radio station operating under a
noncommercial, educational FCC license is eligible to receive a CSG if
it satisfies certain minimal requirements relating to power, staff
size, on-air time, financial viability, access to non-Federal financial
support, record keeping, and programming. Higher grant amounts are
available to public radio stations meeting a minimum standard of public
service as measured either by the average quarter-hour listening
audience, or by the level of local fund-raising support.
Grants for Programming
CPB is prohibited by law from producing or distributing
programming. However, CPB actively encourages promising TV and radio
projects, supports independent producers, and helps fund productions by
and about minorities. CPB provides funding to the Public Broadcasting
System (PBS) to support the National Program Service, and CPB's Radio
Competitive Funds are the major source of funding for new national
radio programs.
Television Programming
CPB provides an annual grant to support the National Program
Service (NPS), the package of television programming that is fed by
satellite to PBS member stations in return for their dues payments.
This includes signature series like NewsHour with Jim Lehrer and PBS
Kids children's programming, as well as the Sunday-through-Friday prime
time schedule. In FY 2004, CPB is providing $22.5 million for the NPS.
These funds, which CPB does not administer, support scores of
individual programs and provide continuing support for some of public
television's signature series.
In addition, CPB matches the stations' contribution to the PBS/CPB
Program Challenge Fund, which is intended to stimulate the development
of high-impact, innovative television series such as Colonial House,
The Blues series and Ken Burns' American Stories..
CPB also administers a General Program Fund, used to fund
educational projects and television programming. It supports a number
of proposals on selected topics of national interest that meet the
highest standards of excellence. Past projects include Masterpiece
Theater's American Collection, ``Accordion Dreams,'' and the Memorial
Day and July 4th Concerts. High priority is given to programming that
illustrates America's rich cultural heritage and ethnic diversity.
CPB also provides administrative and programming funds to five
multicultural groups known collectively as the National Minority
Programming Consortia (National Asian American Telecommunications
Association; Native American Public Telecommunications, Inc.; National
Black Programming Consortium; Pacific Islanders in Communications; and
Latino Public Broadcasting). These groups distribute funds to producers
for the development of programs of diverse content.
In FY 2001, CPB established the Diversity Fund to encourage public
television projects that help people think about the complexity and
beauty of America's contemporary multi-cultural society. Two projects
supported by the Diversity Fund will air on PBS this fall. During
Hispanic Heritage Month, PBS will air Visiones, a series by acclaimed
director Hector Galan that will look at the history of Latino Arts and
Culture in America. Later this year, PBS will air The Appalachians, a
multi-part series looking at the history and legacy of the Appalachian
people, and including an interview with Senator Robert Byrd. A
companion book and CD will be hosted by Naomi Judd.
As directed by Congress, CPB also provides annual programming
support to ITVS, which in turn, provides production grants to
independent producers developing projects intended for public
broadcasting. This support helps CPB meet its statutory requirement
that it provide ``adequate funds for an independent production
service.'' ITVS's work is of high quality--one program, ``Flag Wars,''
won a Peabody Award this year, and ``Be Good, Smile Pretty'' has been
nominated for a national Emmy award--and ensures that public television
benefits from the strong voices of independent producers whose stories
resonate particularly with underrepresented and underserved audiences.
Radio Programming
Since 1987, CPB has directly supported the production of radio
programs intended for national audiences. Throughout its history, CPB
has awarded about three of every four radio programming grants to
national projects by or about ethnic groups and to projects by
independent producers. All CPB-funded radio programs are made available
nationally to all public radio stations. CPB continues to give highest
consideration to excellent, balanced, and innovative programming from
diverse sources.
In addition, all Community Service Grant recipients are required to
use approximately 30 percent of this grant for the purpose of
purchasing or producing programming of national interest. These grants
ensure the availability of some of the best programming public radio
has to offer by targeting use of the funds to the purchase or
production of national programming.
System Support Funds
By law, CPB spends at least 6 percent of the funds it receives to
support the public broadcasting system, as opposed to individual
stations or producers. CPB often supplements this amount with funds
from its administrative allocation.
System support expenditures include:
Interconnection grants. These are provided to public
television stations specifically to purchase or maintain
equipment allowing each local station to receive or deliver
signals via satellite. By law, half of the interconnection
costs for television are funded with system support funds
through these grants.
Music royalty fees for broadcast and Internet use for all
CPB-funded public television and radio stations, as well as for
NPR and PBS.
Operational costs for ITVS and Minority Consortia.
Promoting workforce diversity and career development for
minority producers.
Financing public broadcasting award programs, strategic
planning, and research into new technologies.
CPB Administrative Operations
In 1988, Congress set CPB's administrative budget at a fixed level
with annual increases to be based on the Consumer Price Index or 4
percent--whichever is higher. In no instance may the administrative
costs exceed 5 percent of the total appropriation.
CPB's Oversight Obligation
Compliance with Funding Requirements
The Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, as amended, and Federal
appropriations place responsibilities on CPB for the distribution, use
and reporting of appropriated funds. This responsibility extends to
entities receiving CPB funds. External oversight to monitor their
compliance with CPB funding criteria is a primary responsibility of the
Corporation. In addition to its own grant administration policies, CPB
is aided in this regard by its Board of Directors and its Office of
Inspector General.
CPB Board of Directors
The CPB Board of Directors is comprised of nine members, appointed
by the President and confirmed by the Senate. While the entire Board is
charged with oversight, the CPB Audit Committee is the initial vehicle
that the Board of Directors uses to discharge its oversight
responsibilities under the laws and regulations governing the
Corporation. Principal among these is compliance with the Public
Broadcasting Act of 1967, as amended, and oversight of funds
appropriated annually to public broadcasting. These responsibilities
extend to oversight of corporate programs, functions and activities
established to manage and control the Corporation's utilization of
funds.
Office of Inspector General
In 1989, the CPB's independent Office of Inspector General was
created for the purpose of improving efficiency, economy and
effectiveness of CPB operations and programs, and preventing and
detecting possible waste, fraud and abuse. The CPB Board Audit
Committee and CPB Management work with the OIG to establish a programs
for review of the adequacy of systems of financial management and
internal controls to ensure accurate and complete reporting, compliance
with applicable rules and regulations, and safeguards over CPB
resources. This includes requiring stations to submit to audits and
keep their books in compliance with CPB policies (47 U.S.C.
Sec. 396(l)(3)).
Compliance with Content Oversight Obligations
Sections 396(g)(1)(a) and 396(g)(1)(d) of the Act state, ``(1) In
order to achieve the objectives and to carry out the purposes of this
subpart, as set out in subsection (a) of this section, the Corporation
is authorized to:
(a) facilitate the full development of public
telecommunications in which programs of high quality,
diversity, creativity, excellence, and innovation, which are
obtained from diverse sources, will be made available to public
telecommunications entities, with strict adherence to
objectivity and balance in all programs or series of programs
of a controversial nature . . . [and]
(d) carry out its purposes and functions and engage in its
activities in ways that will most effectively assure the
maximum freedom of the public telecommunications entities and
systems from interference with, or control of, program content
or other activities.''
Our current activities designed to meet these statutory
requirements fall into four general categories:
Soliciting Public Comment. In 1993, the CPB Board and management
established the Open to the Public initiative in order to encourage
viewers and listeners to voice their opinions through:
A toll-free, 24-hour telephone line (1-800-272-2190)
A U.S. post office box (P.O. Box 50880, Washington D.C.
20091)
A dedicated e-mail address ([email protected])
Virtually all public radio and television stations maintain similar
audience response services, as do the national organizations, such as
PBS, NPR, and PRI, as well as many other program producers and
providers. CPB provides links to these organizations through its
website. Earlier in this testimony, I discussed our plans to strengthen
our Open to the Public initiative.
Monitoring Public Perceptions. In addition to public comment, CPB
considers other impartial indicators, including journalism awards,
independent polling data and press reports, to help gauge perceptions
of quality, as well as objectivity and balance. PBS and NPR also
conduct regular independent surveys and focus group opinion studies,
which we review and sometimes participate in.
Addressing Concerns. CPB staff meet frequently with producers and
station representatives to learn more about projects in development,
plans for community dialogue, and special outreach efforts to ensure a
variety of perspectives. When controversial programming generates
public interest, CPB routinely communicates such comments to the
appropriate producer or programmer and seeks further information or
clarification.
CPB Program Funding. It has been CPB's long-standing policy to
support a wide variety of programming sources and distribution
channels, so that local programmers--and viewers and listeners--have a
wide number of program choices. Programming content for stations,
therefore, comes from PBS, NPR, PRI, APT, many independent sources, and
from local sources, including the station. Each local station
ultimately decides which programs to carry and when to carry them, and
decisions about controversial programs are vested, by law, in
individual stations.
Program proposals are evaluated on the basis of comparative merit
by CPB staff and panels of outside experts, representing diverse
interests and perspectives. Balance and objectivity are important
criteria for program proposals concerning topics of a controversial
nature. Any resulting CPB program contract requires that a recipient's
production meet all applicable standards of journalistic ethics,
including issues related to fairness.
Since its creation by Congress in 1967, CPB has worked diligently
to fulfill its mission of promoting a dynamic, independent and trusted
public broadcasting system. I believe that CPB has and continues to
meet its obligation to help provide the American public with a range
and quality of programming and services unrivaled by any other
broadcast service.
I hope that this information is of use to the Committee. Please let
me know if there is other information that I can provide to assist the
Committee as it works towards a reauthorization of CPB.
The Chairman. Thank you.
Mr. Matthusen, welcome.
STATEMENT OF CARL MATTHUSEN, GENERAL MANAGER, KJZZ-FM, KBAQ-FM,
AND SUN SOUNDS RADIO READING SERVICES
Mr. Matthusen. Thank you.
Chairman McCain, Members of the Committee, I'm the General
Manager of three public radio operations in Arizona. They
include KJZZ-FM, ``K-Jazz,'' KBAQ-FM, ``K-Bock,'' and Sun
Sounds Radio Reading Service. My background also includes 6
years spent on the board of directors of National Public Radio,
starting in 1990, with four of those years spent as chairman of
the board. Thank you for this opportunity to provide a station
point of view on behalf of NPR and its member stations as you
contemplate legislation to reauthorize CPB.
My stations represent much of the diversity that exists in
public radio. KJZZ features news, information, entertainment,
and acoustic jazz. It's one of the older and larger station in
the system. KJZZ's sister station, KBAQ, provides Central
Arizona's only classical music programming. It is one of the
newer and smaller stations in the system. Sun Sounds is a radio
reading service. It and the other reading services around the
country seek to provide time-critical information, primarily
newspapers and magazines, to an audience of blind or otherwise
print-disabled listeners.
KJZZ and KBAQ are members of National Public Radio, as are
some 770 other stations across the country. Combined, my
stations reach about 400,000 listeners a week. The nation
audience for public radio now numbers some 30 million Americans
weekly.
While there are a number of challenges confronting public
radio today, I'd like to draw your attention to one in
particular; that would be the analog-to-digital transition. To
date, more than 150 stations have applied for and received
transition funds through the first two rounds of CPB grant
assistance. A third round of funding assistance has just been
released by CPB. By the end of calendar year 2004, we
anticipate that 200 to 250 radio stations will be well down the
road of this important technology transition.
In October 2002, the Federal Communications Commission
endorsed a technology for radio stations that began the
conversion from analog to digital. The Commission's landmark
decision has opened a transition path that public radio
stations must follow. This technology opens the door to new
expanded service for public radio that is revolutionary in both
improving sound quality and in creating a means of affordable
programming expansion.
Just weeks after the FCC's 2002 decision, NPR announced the
Tomorrow Radio Project, with partners in the private sector
known for their expertise in transmission and radio receiver
knowhow. The principal goal of NPR's Tomorrow Radio effort was
to test multichannel or multicasting technology that could
allow public radio stations to broadcast more programming and
more content, but using existing spectrum. Quite simply, this
means that we can utilize the properties of digital broadcast
technology to carry two or more streams of programming on the
same channel or frequency. The Tomorrow Radio format, which may
be approved this year by the FCC, will permit program expansion
for a fraction of the cost of acquiring frequencies through
traditional methods.
Mr. Chairman, in reauthorizing CPB, I urge you to include
language that continues funding for public radio's digital
transition, as well as for the operational funds so badly
needed for the public telecommunications facilities program and
for support of the satellite interconnection system by which
our programming is distributed.
Chairman McCain and Members of the Committee, I recognize
the fiscal challenges that confronts Congress in making funding
decisions each Fiscal Year. I would suggest that the
partnership existing between Congress, CPB, and the public
radio and television stations is extraordinarily effective. For
every dollar provided to public radio stations through CPB
grants, the stations raise an additional eight dollars.
Everything we do is nurtured, directly or indirectly, by the
funding that you have provided.
NPR and its member stations operate today not only because
of Federal support, but also because we have worked to secure
the loyalty, trust, and support of listeners, local businesses,
and foundations. We actually believe it is our responsibility
and mission to act in the public interest, convenience, and
necessity.
I have additional written comments, and request permission
to submit them as part of the record of this proceeding.
Mr. Chairman, Members of the Committee, thank you for the
opportunity to be part of your session today.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Matthusen follows:]
Prepared Statement of Carl Matthusen, General Manager, KJZZ-FM, KBAQ-FM
and Sun Sounds Radio Reading Services
Introduction and Summary
Chairman McCain, Senator Hollings and Members of the Committee, I
am Carl Matthusen, General Manager of KJZZ-FM, KBAQ-FM and Sun Sounds
Radio Reading Service, all serving the citizens of Arizona. I'm
grateful for this opportunity to support the reauthorization of the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Taking this action is a very
significant and important step in securing a stable foundation for
America's public broadcasting institutions. I speak for all in public
radio in expressing our appreciation for the leadership you've provided
to public radio and television and to institutions like CPB. This
leadership and support have been critical in continuing the successful,
four decades-old partnership between the Congress and public
broadcasting institutions that serve every state and congressional
district in America.
My stations are representative of the diversity and distinctive
nature that defines public radio today. KJZZ features news,
information, entertainment, and acoustic jazz. It went on the air in
1951, and is licensed to the Maricopa County Community College
District. Arbitron numbers say KJZZ reaches nearly 250,000 listeners
weekly. The annual budget is $3.1 million. 10 percent of that comes
from the Community Service Grant program of the Corporation for Public
Broadcasting.
KJZZ's sister station, KBAQ, provides central Arizona's only
classical music programming. The Maricopa Community Colleges and
Arizona State University jointly own KBAQ, which is 11 years old and
has a current annual budget of $1.4 million. 17.8 percent of the KBAQ
budget comes through CPB. The KBAQ audience is about 150,000 listeners
weekly.
Sun Sounds is a radio reading service for the blind and print
disabled. It is 25 years old this year. It, and the other readings
services around the country, seeks to provide time-critical
information, primarily newspapers and magazines, to a disabled
audience. We estimate this audience numbers about 32,000 in Arizona.
Sun Sounds does not receive any support from CPB, although CPB does
support the distribution of some programming nationally.
KJZZ, KBAQ, and Sun Sounds, like all the other public radio
stations in America, are locally owned, locally licensed, locally
staffed and locally programmed. KJZZ and KBAQ are members of National
Public Radio, as are some 770 other stations all across America. Today,
NPR programming heard on these stations reaches a weekly audience of
some 22 million Americans. Public radio stations are located in every
one of America's fifty states, as well as the District of Columbia,
Puerto Rico, Guam and the Marianas Pacific, to bring programming that
meets the highest standards of public service in journalism and
cultural expression.
While NPR is not the only producer and/or distributor of public
radio programming, it is preeminent among all others. Because of this,
my remarks speak to both NPR and public radio stations. As you know,
NPR is a nonprofit membership corporation that produces and distributes
noncommercial educational programming, including All Things
Considered, Morning Edition, Talk of the Nation, and Performance
Today, for broadcast by more than 770 public radio stations
nationwide. NPR's members, comprising a variety of community licensees,
school boards and other local institutions, Native American tribes, and
private and public colleges and universities, are themselves
significant producers of news, informational and cultural programming.
NPR also operates the Public Radio Satellite Interconnection System and
provides representation and other services to its Member stations.
NPR doesn't own or operate radio stations. Public radio stations
are locally licensed, locally governed, locally programmed, and locally
staffed. Institutionally and practically, these very direct and
significant local affiliations have accomplished their intended
purpose: public radio stations are responsive and responsible to the
communities and listeners they serve. Whether a public radio station's
broadcast license is held by a community college, like KJZZ's, or by
state authorities, such as either the Mississippi Public Radio Network
or the South Carolina Educational Radio Network, or by a community
entity such as Nevada Public Radio, public radio stations provide
localized services that meet local and regional needs.
I'd like to suggest four basic notions for inclusion in legislation
to reauthorize CPB, all of which will strengthen the distinctive
partnership between the Congress and public broadcasting institutions
that has been the hallmark of our history:
1. Funding authorization levels for CPB need to reflect the growth
in audience, the distinctive service and importance of public
broadcasting entities in America's communities, and the
challenges faced by local stations in responding to reductions
in state and local financing sources.
2. The transition to digital broadcasting technology, both in radio
and television, is critical to the future success of public
broadcasting. Legislation reauthorizing CPB needs to reflect
this by containing specific funding authority and funding
levels to help complete the transition.
3. Renewal of funding authority for the Public Telecommunications
Facilities Program (PTFP) within the U.S. Department of
Commerce is of great import to the future of public
broadcasting entities. PTFP is an integral part of the
construction of facilities to bring educational and cultural
programming to the American public.
4. Public radio and public television stations rely heavily on
satellite interconnection systems, which are indispensable to
our current and future abilities to serve the American public.
CPB's reauthorization must contain funding levels sufficient to
provide these vital services.
Public Radio Programming
Programming heard on America's public radio stations meets the
highest standards of public service in journalism and cultural
expression. Each station designs it own format by combining local
programming with offerings from NPR, Public Radio International, and
other sources to best serve its particular audience.
Travel across America and you'll hear public radio's unique blend
of programming that combines daily coverage of events with in-depth
excursions into local, national and international stories.
In addition, public radio reaches an international audience through
NPR Worldwide, which brings all of our most popular shows to American
military forces via the American Forces Network in the Middle East,
Europe, Japan and Korea. This is an important audience for public radio
and it's an audience we value. Numerous letters from American soldiers
posted overseas expressing sentiments like this have been received:
``Hello NPR . . . an Army Reservist recalled to active duty and
sent to Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan this past May. I just
wanted to drop a line to let you know I listen to NPR Worldwide
on 105.7 FM.
I found the station while channel surfing on a car radio the
other day, and upon hearing Click and Clack's familiar voices
became quite pleased that NPR reaches this far from my home in
Virginia. . . . I shared my find with a fellow officer and NPR
listener, and we are now both confident that listening to NPR
will make our stay in Bagram a bit more bearable. Thank you for
making this service available so far away from home.''
And this from a Chaplain:
``I served as Chaplain to an engineer Battalion until December
of last year. In February, the unit was deployed and is now in
Iraq. Today I received an e-mail from the commander. .
..sharing some of the life and times in that country. He noted
in particular that the English TV is very limited, so he
listens to NPR. It was a comfort to me to know that our troops
have contact to the world via NPR. There are some 450 soldiers
with him, most from Arkansas. A member of A company was killed
recently and the pain of his loss still lingers. If nothing
else, I just want to say thank you for reaching around the
world, with the world, so that our soldiers have a taste of
home while in the desert''.
Mr. Chairman, distribution of NPR Worldwide programming is
supported financially by NPR as part of its annual operating budget.
Its current relationship with the American Forces Radio and Television
Network began more than 2 decades ago and continues today as an
important component of its day-to-day mission.
News and Information
The foundation of public radio is service to America's communities.
That commitment to service is best illustrated by the extensive news
and information reporting that is found daily on public radio stations.
While other media entities have downsized newsgathering and reporting
over the past several years, many in the public radio community have
added reporters, correspondents and offices worldwide. For example, in
June, 2004 NPR announced a major expansion of its news operation with
plans to invest $15 million over the next three years to add reporters,
editors, producers and managers, and to add new foreign and national
bureaus. This unprecedented investment and expansion is demonstrative
of public radio's commitment to bring in-depth and top-quality
reporting and programming to our growing audience. Public radio
audiences hear the results and benefit from this dynamic expansion when
correspondents stationed across the Nation and throughout the globe are
able to bring them growing numbers of voices and perspectives.
Internationally, NPR supports 4 NPR News bureaus and 10 offices. Today,
international news comprises more than one-third of NPR News. The
conflict in Iraq, for example, has kept a dozen NPR reporters and
producers rotating through Baghdad.
Public radio station reporters are frequent and regular
contributors to NPR programming. Mark Moran, of my own station, KJZZ,
reports routinely on events impacting Arizona and America's southwest.
Eric Niiler, of KPBS in San Diego, was imbedded with U.S. troops in
Iraq and filed very important stories found nowhere else on the radio
dial. Literally dozens of stories each month, carried nationally,
originate from local reporters who are on staff at public radio
stations.
Inseparable from public radio's commitment of service to America's
communities is our commitment to the presentation of fair, accurate and
comprehensive information. As a former Board Chair for NPR, I know that
it is pledged to abide scrupulously by the highest journalistic,
editorial and artistic standards and practices of broadcast
programming. It is committed to providing diverse and balanced
viewpoints through the entirety of its programming. As a news
organization, NPR recognizes its coverage must withstand the same
rigorous probing, testing and questioning it applies to the events it
covers. While the following are unique to NPR, several of its policy
initiatives are worth mentioning and are illustrative of practices
employed throughout public radio.
First, NPR is the only broadcast organization in the United States
that has an ombudsman. Established in February 2000, the role of the
NPR Ombudsman is to serve as an advocate for NPR listeners; to ensure
that the highest standards of journalism are constantly maintained at
NPR; to receive, investigate and respond to queries regarding editorial
standards in programming; and, to serve as an independent source of
information, explanation, amplification and analysis for the public
regarding NPR's programming and NPR's adherence to its programming
standards and practices. The ombudsman is completely independent of NPR
staff and management, reports directly to the President and, through
the President, to NPR's Board of Directors.
Secondly, NPR News is guided by a Code of Ethics and Practices as a
way of protecting the credibility of its programming by ensuring the
highest standards of honesty, integrity, impartiality and conduct of
staff. This code, recently updated by NPR's Vice President of News,
covers all NPR journalists, defined as employees who report (including
hosts and newscasters), edit or produce news programming. It also
covers all senior News managers and applies to all platforms for NPR
News content, including NPR Online.
The code articulates the ethical standards NPR observes in the
pursuit and presentation of stories; it sets rules and policies to
prevent conflicts of interest; it establishes guidelines for outside
work and activities that may reflect on NPR; and it establishes
policies and procedures to ensure that the activities of NPR that fall
outside journalism--corporate underwriting, foundation funding,
marketing and promotional activities--do not jeopardize NPR's
journalistic independence or involve NPR reporters, editors, hosts or
producers in activities inappropriate to their role as journalists.
Thirdly, NPR News adheres to guidelines on commentary that are part
of NPR's weekday air. All commentaries airing on NPR must meet certain
standards, including:
Rigorous fact-checking to ensure accuracy. If a commentary
is aired with errors of fact, an on-air correction will occur.
Pairing commentaries aired on controversial subjects with
other points of view on that subject in a timely way. NPR lets
the listener know this will happen and takes steps to ensure
that it does.
Underscore for listeners why commentators are appropriate to
the subjects they discuss.
Assuring that all in the News management staff, including
the Vice President for News and Information, share
responsibility for commentary content.
Mr. Chairman, NPR and public radio have long been leaders in
establishing standards for confronting the ethical issues of the daily
practice of journalism. Just recently, Al Stavitsky, Associate Dean of
Journalism at the University of Oregon, and Jeffrey Dvorkin, Ombudsman
for National Public Radio, have completed an ethics guide. With
financial help from CPB, Messrs. Stavitsky's and Dvorkin's work,
Independence and Integrity II: An Updated Ethics Guide for Public Radio
Journalism, has been published. As Mr. Dvorkin describes it, the guide
``. . . deals with some of the most important ethical issues that
confront public radio journalism on a daily basis--questions about how
to deal with and evaluate sources, correcting errors, reporting vs.
punditry, relations with public radio underwriters and funders. . . .''
The publication of this document allows and encourages those of us
at the station level to further refine the efforts of our local news
departments. It reaches us at an opportune and important time for
public radio and for journalism generally. Scandals and embarrassments
at some of America's well-regarded news outlets have prompted a new
wave of skepticism from the public. While public radio has not been
part of these episodes, the Updated Ethics Guide is an important tool
for all in public radio.
Public Radio's Audience
The audience listening to public radio station programming reflects
the distinctive, catalytic partnership that exists between local public
radio stations serving local audiences across the country and national
programming entities like NPR, Public Radio International, and other
producers of public radio programming. Roughly one in ten Americans
tunes to an NPR station in a given week and more than one in every four
college-educated adults listens to NPR stations. This is an audience
reach that exceeds the combined readership of the Nation's top 46
newspapers and the respective weekly readership of Newsweek magazine
and Time magazine.
While retaining its deep local roots and focus on balanced,
objective and in-depth programming, public radio has evolved
dramatically in recent years. For example, in the past four years,
NPR's audience has grown by more than sixty percent while in the last
decade its audience has doubled. This growth has occurred in public
radio while audiences tuning into commercial stations have declined
over the same period. Public radio stations attract and retain
listeners because our programming engages them in their daily routines,
offers insight and perspective on the events that shape communities,
states, our Nation and the world.
Our listeners are politically active and involved in their
communities. Almost one-third of listeners classify themselves as very
or somewhat conservative; 30 percent feel that they are in the middle
of the political spectrum; and 29 percent describe themselves as very
or somewhat liberal. Fully 62 percent of NPR listeners voted in local,
state and Federal elections, while approximately 94 percent stated that
they participated in community or political activities in the past
year.
Financial Profile
The funding profile of public radio stations has changed
dramatically in recent years. In 2001, local community support grew to
53 percent of a station's total revenue, up from 38 percent in 1992.
Federal financial support, while a vital component of local station
operations, stands at only 14 percent of total revenue for an average
station. This is down from 22 percent in 1992. Over the same time
frame, total station revenue grew from roughly $310 million in 1992 to
approximately $725 million in 2003. Public radio stations operate today
because of the Federal financial support your subcommittee and the
Congress provide, but also because they have won the loyalty, trust and
support of listeners, local businesses and foundations through
programming that is compelling and worthy.
The challenges confronting public radio today--the necessity of
converting an aging analog broadcasting infrastructure to a digital
system; technical and cost constraints that limit expansion of public
radio signals to unserved and underserved areas; improving programming
service to existing listeners and reaching new audiences; and,
decreasing financial support from state and local governments--all
place significant financial stress on the system. Reaching underserved
areas and audiences while improving existing services is now more
important than ever, as current events demand an informed and engaged
public. In this era of commercial media consolidation, public radio is
unmatched in its ability to deliver in-depth, balanced, objective
coverage of our cities, country and the world.
Federal financial support has not kept pace with the growth in
listeners, a situation that only adds to local station problems. This
imbalance translates into staff reductions and reduced hours of local
programming. Capital improvements are postponed, news staff growth is
delayed and the expansion of initiatives to better serve communities
simply doesn't occur. To accomplish their public service mission and to
improve the quality and expand the quantity of daily programming,
America's public radio stations need the continued financial support
the Congress provides. As you consider reauthorization of CPB, it may
be time to bring funding levels in line with the growth in audience.
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, I recognize the fiscal
challenges Congress confronts in making funding decisions each fiscal
year. I would suggest that the partnership existing between Congress,
CPB, and public radio and television stations is extraordinarily
effective. For every dollar provided to public radio stations through
CPB grants, the stations raise an additional eight dollars. Everything
we do is nurtured, directly or indirectly, by the funding you have
provided. Viewed another way, Federal support for public radio stations
amounts to only 30 cents per American.
Public Radio's Digital Transition
One of the most important, immediate and far-reaching challenges of
public radio stations is found in the technology used to reach
listeners. Radio, the most ubiquitous, most accessed content delivery
medium in the United States remains dependent on an aging analog
transmission system.
But change is on the way. In October 2002, the Federal
Communications Commission endorsed a technology for radio stations to
use to begin the conversion from analog to digital broadcasting. The
Commission's landmark decision has opened a transition path that public
radio stations must follow. This new technology opens the door to
expanded service for public radio in a way that is revolutionary in
enhancing service to listeners, in improving sound quality, and in
creating a means of affordable programming expansion.
In the United States, public radio, through NPR and its member
stations, has been at the forefront of digital radio development since
its inception. WGUC Cincinnati experimented with digital stereo
transmissions in 1985. WGBH Boston conducted similar experimental
broadcasts in the evening hours in the late 1980s. By 1987, NPR became
the first broadcaster to suggest to the Federal Communications
Commission the need for system development and future frequency
allocations for digital radio applications in the United States.
NPR and public radio stations have become recognized leaders in
this important technology transformation. Just weeks after the FCC's
2002 decision, NPR announced the Tomorrow Radio project, with partners
in the private sector renowned for their expertise in transmission and
radio receiver know-how. The principal goal of NPR's Tomorrow Radio
effort was to test multichannel or supplemental audio technology that
could allow public radio stations to broadcast more programming and
content using their existing spectrum. Quite simply, this means that
public radio stations can utilize digital broadcast technology to carry
two or more streams of programming on the same channel, or frequency.
For public radio stations nationwide, this revolutionary technology
will permit the broadcast of multiple audio programs for the modest
price of a new digital broadcast system. Prior to Tomorrow Radio,
public radio's only alternative for program expansion was the
acquisition of an entirely new radio frequency, often technically and
financially not achievable. With budgets already tight, very few public
radio stations could afford to increase their programming services
through new signal acquisitions.
However, the Tomorrow Radio format will permit a program expansion
for just a fraction of the cost. It is estimated that the total cost of
converting public radio's 800 full power stations and 800 translator
and repeater stations is $171.7 million, with the average station
transition cost estimated to be $130,000. In previous testimony before
other congressional committees, CPB has communicated that the
anticipated Federal share of this transition cost is estimated to be
$77.3 million.
The driving force behind public radio's digital transition is not
just the improved audio quality and reduced interference, but the
expanded public service and programming opportunities. In addition to
supplemental audio channel capability, digital broadcasting will
provide on-demand delivery of programming; features that allow
listeners to interact with stations and to tailor services to their own
unique needs and interests; expanded weather alerts, continuous traffic
reports, emergency and Amber alerts; non-English broadcasts; and
expanded assisted-living services such as reading services for the
visually impaired and even digitally captioned broadcasts for the
hearing impaired.
The FCC has been very encouraging in exploring the use of expanded
services inherent in digital radio. The four public radio stations that
formed the test markets for NPR's Tomorrow Radio project were given
experimental operating licenses by the FCC. Also, Commissioners
Abernathy, Martin and Copps each spoke of the benefits consumers will
realize from digital radio, including the development of innovative
offerings such as multiple audio streams. Digital radio enthusiasts in
the public radio community have embraced the expectations of
Commissioners Abernathy, Martin and Copps to fully explore the
expansion of service provided by this new technology.
To date, 151 public radio stations have been offered transition
assistance from CPB and approximately 20 are on the air, including WAMU
and WETA in the Washington area. CPB has committed some $23.5m to
support public radio's digital transition and it recently announced
transition grant guidelines for III of the conversion, which is open to
all CPB-qualified public radio stations. If station response to this
grant opportunity is on par with the previous two, I believe more than
250 public radio stations will be well down the road to digital
broadcasting by the end of calendar year 2004.
The FCC released a Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on April
15, with comments due June 15 and reply comments July 15. There was
overwhelming support by public (and commercial radio stations too) for
multicasting specifically, and for digital radio generally. We remain
hopeful that sometime in the fourth quarter of this year, the
Commission will issue an additional report and order that permits
multicasting.
Public Radio's Satellite System
In addition to its role as a content provider, NPR manages and sets
policy for the public radio satellite system, which encourages and
facilitates the exchange of programs from all over the world. The
system is open to all public telecommunications users, including NPR's
member stations, freelancers, reporters, producers, and program
syndicators. Each year, thousands of hours of news, music, and
specialized audience programming are distributed to public radio
stations throughout the United States via the Public Radio Satellite
System (PRSS). The PRSS is operated and managed by the Distribution
Division of National Public Radio, Inc. (NPR).
Originally built in 1979 with funds provided by Congress through
CPB, the PRSS currently is undergoing its most significant upgrade
since its initial construction. This upgrade will take advantage of
technological innovations to streamline how public radio stations and
producers select, send, acquire, and automate programming.
Structure: The PRSS is a distinctive, cooperative enterprise.
Interconnected stations own their own downlink and uplink equipment.
The Public Radio Satellite Interconnection System Charitable Trust owns
the satellite transponder capacity, as well as the national operating
system equipment located in Washington, D.C. Today, the PRSS includes
more than 400 downlinks. Many additional stations also receive
programming sent over the satellite through local connections with
downlink stations. The System Technical Center (STC) is located at NPR
headquarters in Washington, DC.
Finances: The PRSS is entirely self-sufficient in covering its
annual operating costs. The interconnected public radio stations and
program providers support the satellite system through the payment of
fees that reflect their share of the annual costs of operating and
managing the PRSS. In addition, excess transponder capacity is sold to
non-public radio users to help offset the costs of operating the
system. Major infrastructure costs for the PRSS are met by periodic
Federal appropriations, administered through the Corporation for Public
Broadcasting.
Access: The PRSS is open to all public telecommunications entities,
including independent producers; program syndicators and distributors;
national, state, and local organizations; and public radio stations.
Stations who receive programming distributed by the PRSS range from
those located in remote villages in northern Alaska and on Indian
reservations in the Southwest, to major market stations such as WNYC in
New York and KUSC in Los Angeles. Programs distributed over the Public
Radio Satellite System come from NPR, Public Radio International (PRI),
Minnesota Public Radio and more than 200 other radio producers and
organizations. Formats include news, public affairs, drama,
documentaries, classical music, jazz, and many others.
In-Kind Services: An important mission of the PRSS is to facilitate
the cost-effective and efficient distribution of high-quality,
educational programming to this country's increasingly diverse
population. As part of that mission, the PRSS provides satellite
transmission services to distribute programming that targets unserved
or underserved audiences, from sources who meet certain criteria
established by the NPR Board, including demonstrated financial need. At
the present time, the PRSS extends in-kind support to American Indian
Radio on Satellite (AlROS), a program service based in Lincoln,
Nebraska, that targets Native American listeners, and to Satellite
Radio Bilingue, a Spanish language program service managed by Radio
Bilingue in Fresno, California.
Training & Outreach: The Distribution/Interconnection Technology
Training Initiative was created in 2001 to address the growing need for
more awareness and knowledge in the public radio community about new
technologies-particularly technologies related to program and content
distribution. In addition to providing training, the Initiative is
working to expand the diversity of talent in public radio by promoting
technical careers in the industry to young people, minorities, and
others through outreach and education efforts.
Governance: The NPR Board of Directors governs the PRSS. The
Distribution/Interconnection Committee (D/I Committee) of the NPR Board
is charged with proposing rates and policy to the Board and overseeing
the operation and management of the Public Radio Satellite System. The
composition of the D/I Committee is unique, consisting of both Board
and non-Board members. The non-Board members represent the interests of
non-NPR users of the distribution system, including independent
producers, other program distributors, non-member stations, and other
organizations and entities in public radio. The presence of non-Board
members on the Committee reflects NPR's role as manager of an
interconnection system that serves all public telecommunications
entities needing distribution services. The non-Board members of the D/
I Committee are elected by the NPR Board and confirmed by the
interconnected stations.
ContentDepot: Public radio's new program distribution system, the
``ContentDepot,'' will continue to incorporate satellite distribution,
as this technology continues to provide the most cost-effective and
reliable means of delivering high quality audio programming to a
diverse national network of radio stations. But the new system will
also introduce use of the Internet, web-based interfaces, and enhanced
station automation control to increase flexibility in the ways stations
receive and store programs and other information from the PRSS.
NPR Distribution began laying the foundation for the ContentDepot
in 2001 by managing a major overhaul of station downlink equipment.
This project outfitted interconnected stations across the U.S. with
equipment that enables them to better access satellite backup capacity
in the event public radio's satellite capacity fails, is attacked, or
otherwise becomes unavailable. Because of its broad scope, the
realization of the full ContentDepot vision will take several years and
ultimately will have a significant impact on radio station operations
and program distribution practices.
Conclusion
Public radio's long-standing commitment to serving America's
communities with deep, engaged, long-form radio journalism sets it
apart from all other broadcasters. Listeners have come to rely on
public radio during the most intense news periods in our Nation's
history. We have set the bar of public expectations exceedingly high
because we're capable of providing service that isn't found anywhere
else. We respect the public in ways that have been long forgotten in
American broadcasting. Our relationship with listeners is not
transactional. It is a relationship of values.
Mr. Chairman, and Members of the Committee, thanks for this
opportunity to support the reauthorization of CPB and to provide a
summary of public radio in America today.
The Chairman. Thank you.
Welcome, Mr. Burns.
STATEMENT OF KEN BURNS, FILMAKER, FLORENTINE FILMS, ON BEHALF
OF PBS
Mr. Burns. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Members of the
Committee.
It is an honor for me to appear before you today on behalf
of CPB and PBS, and I'm grateful that you have given me this
opportunity to express my thoughts.
Let me say, from the outset, as a film producer and as a
father of two almost-grown daughters increasingly concerned
about the sometimes dangerous landscape of our television
environment, that I am a passionate lifelong supporter of
public television and its unique role in helping to stitch our
exquisite, diverse, and often fragile culture together. Few
institutions provide such a direct, grassroots way for our
citizens to participate in the shared glories of their common
past, in the power of the priceless ideals that have animated
our remarkable republic and our national life for more than 200
years, and in the inspirational life of the mind and the heart
that an engagement with the arts and the humanities always
provides. It is my wholehearted belief that anything that
threatens this institution weakens our country. It's as simple
as that.
For more than 25 years, I have been producing historical
documentary films celebrating the special messages American
history continually directs our way. The subjects of these
films range from the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge and
the Statue of Liberty to the life of the turbulent demagogue,
Huey Long, from the graceful architecture of the Shakers to the
early founders of radio, from the sublime pleasures and
unexpected lessons of our national pastime in jazz to the
searing transcended experience of our Civil War, from Thomas
Jefferson and Lewis and Clark to Frank Lloyd Wright, Elizabeth
Cady Stanton, and Mark Twain. I even made a film on the history
of this magnificent Capitol building and the much-maligned
institution that is charged with conducting the people's
business.
In every instance, I consciously produce these films for
national public television broadcast, not the commercial
networks or cable. As an educational filmmaker, I am grateful
to play even a small part in an underfunded broadcasting entity
with one foot tenuously in the marketplace and the other
decidedly and proudly out, which, among dozens of fabulously
wealthy networks, just happens to produce, on shoestring
budgets, the best news and public- affairs programming on
television, the best science and nature programming, the best
arts, the best children's shows, and, some say, the best
history.
Some critics say that PBS is no longer needed in this
multichannel universe, that our government has no business in
television or the arts and humanities, that we must let the
marketplace alone determine everything in our cultural life,
that a few controversial programs prove the political bias of
the public television community. I feel strongly that I must
address those assertions.
First, let me share with you a few facts that might
surprise you. As a result of media consolidation, public
stations are frequently the last and only locally owned media
operations in their markets. Despite the exponential growth of
television options, 84 million people a week watch PBS, more
than any cable outlet. It is the number one choice of video
curriculum in the classroom, and its nonviolent, non-commercial
children's programs are the number-one choice of parents.
Indeed, as commercial television continues in its race to the
bottom for ratings, PBS has earned the Nation's trust to
deliver programs that both entertain and educate, and that do
so in a manner that the public consistently rates as balanced
and objective.
But, above and beyond these facts, there is a larger
argument to be made, one that is rooted in our Nation's
history. Since the beginning of this country, our government
has been involved in supporting the arts and the diffusion of
knowledge, which was deemed as critical to our future as roads
and dams and bridges. Early on, Thomas Jefferson and the other
Founding Fathers knew that the pursuit of happiness did not
mean a hedonistic pursuit of pleasure in the marketplace of
things, but an active involvement of the mind in the higher
aspects of human endeavor, a marketplace of ideas.
Congress supported the journey of Lewis and Clark as much
to explore the natural, biological, ethnographic, and cultural
landscape of our expanding nation as to open up a new trading
route to the Pacific. Congress supported numerous geographical,
artistic, photographic, and biological expeditions to nearly
every corner of the developing West. Congress funded, through
the Farm Securities Administration, the work of Walker Evans
and Dorothea Lange, and other great photographers, who captured
for posterity the terrible human cost of the Great Depression.
At the same time, Congress funded some of the most enduring
writing ever produced about this country's people, its
monuments, buildings, and back roads in the still much-used and
admired WPA guides. Some of our greatest symphonic work, our
most treasured dramatic plays, and early documentary film
classics came from an earlier Congress's support. With
Congress's great insight, PBS was born and grew to its
startlingly effective maturity, echoing the same time-honored
sense that our government has an interest in helping to sponsor
communications, art, and education, just as it sponsors
commerce.
We are not talking about a 100 percent sponsorship, a free
ride, but a priming of the pump, a way to get the juices
flowing in the spirit of President Reagan's notion of a
partnership between government and the private sector. The
Corporation for Public Broadcasting Grant I got for the Civil
War series attracted even more funds from General Motors and
several private foundations, money that would not have been
there had not CPB blessed this project with their rigorously
earned imprimatur.
However, some continue to believe that public television is
a hotbed of thinking outside the mainstream. I wonder, though,
have they ever been to a PBS station? I doubt it. PBS is the
largest media enterprise in the world, reaching into the most
remote corners of every state in the union, and enriching the
lives of people of all backgrounds. It is also the largest
educational institution in the country because of national and
local services that help build school readiness, provide
distance learning, GED prep, and essential workplace skills.
Local public television stations are essentially conservative
institutions filled with people who share the concerns of most
Americans and who reflect the values of their own communities.
Mr. Chairman, I know many people who criticize us as being
too conservative, too middle-of-the-road, too safe. And in a
free society, the rare examples of controversy that may run
counter to our accepted canon, or one group's accepted canon,
ought to be seen as a healthy sign that we are a nation
tolerant of ideas, confident, as the recent tide of
geopolitical history has shown, that the best ideas will always
prevail. Unfortunately, too often today we have become so
dialectically preoccupied, stressing our differences--black/
white, left/right, young/old, in/out, good/bad--that we have
forgotten to select for the mitigating wisdom that reconciles
these disparities into honest difference and collegiality, into
a sense of belonging. And we long--indeed, ache--for
institutions that suggest how we might all be bound back to the
whole. PBS is one such institution.
But there are still those who are sure that, without public
television, the so-called marketplace would take care of
everything, that what won't survive in the marketplace doesn't
deserve to survive. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Now, some forms of our creativity thrive in the
marketplace, and that is a wonderful thing, reflected in our
Hollywood movies and in our universally popular music. But let
me say that the marketplace could not have made--and, to this
day, could not make--my Civil War series; indeed, any of the
films I have worked on. That series was shown on public
television outside the marketplace, without commercial
interruption, by far the single most important factor for our
ensuring PBS continuing existence and for understanding the
Civil War series' overwhelming success.
All real meaning in our world accrues in duration. That is
to say, that which we value most--our families, our work, the
things we build, our art--has the stamp of our focused
attention. Without that attention, we do not learn, we do not
remember, we do not care, we are not responsible citizens.
Most of the rest of the television environment has ignored
this critical truth. For several generations how, TV has
disrupted our attention every 8 minutes or less to sell us five
or six or more different things, then sent us back, our ability
to digest all the impressions compromised in the extreme.
The programming on PBS, in all its splendid variety, offers
the rarest treat amidst the outrageous cacophony our of our
television marketplace. It gives us back our attention and our
memory; and, by so doing, paradoxically ensures that we have a
future.
The marketplace will not--indeed, cannot--produce the good
works of PBS, just as the marketplace does not come to your
house at 3 a.m. when it is on fire, or patrols the dangerous
ground in Afghanistan and Iraq. No, the marketplace does not
and will not pay for our fire departments or, more important,
our Defense Department, things essential to the safety,
defense, and well-being of our country. It takes government
involvement, eleemosynary institutions, individual altruism,
extra-marketplace effort to get these things made and done.
I also know, Mr. Chairman, that PBS has nothing to do with
the actual defense of our country. I know that. PBS, I believe
with every fiber of my being, just helps make our country worth
defending.
Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Burns follows:]
Prepared Statement of Ken Burns, Filmaker, Florentine Films,
on Behalf of PBS
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: It is an honor for me to
appear before you today on behalf of PBS. I am grateful that you have
given me this opportunity to express my thoughts. Let me say from the
outset--as a film producer and as a father of two daughters
increasingly concerned about the sometimes dangerous landscape of our
television environment--that I am a passionate life-long supporter of
public television and its unique role in helping to stitch our
exquisite, diverse, and often fragile culture together.
Few institutions provide such a direct, grassroots way for our
citizens to participate in the shared glories of their common past, in
the power of the priceless ideals that have animated our remarkable
republic and our national life for more than two hundred years, and in
the inspirational life of the mind and the heart that an engagement
with the arts always provides. It is my wholehearted belief that
anything that threatens this institution weakens our country. It is as
simple as that.
For more than 25 years I have been producing historical documentary
films, celebrating the special messages American history continually
directs our way. The subjects of these films range from the
construction of the Brooklyn Bridge and the Statue of Liberty to the
life of the turbulent demagogue Huey Long; from the graceful
architecture of the Shakers to the early founders of radio; from the
sublime pleasures and unexpected lessons of our national pastime and
Jazz to the searing transcendent experience of our Civil War; from
Thomas Jefferson and Lewis and Clark to Frank Lloyd Wright, Elizabeth
Cady Stanton and Mark Twain. I even made a film on the history of this
magnificent Capitol building and the much maligned institution that is
charged with conducting the people's business.
In every instance, I consciously produced these films for national
public television broadcast, not the commercial networks or cable.
As an educational filmmaker, I am grateful to play even a small
part in an underfunded broadcasting entity with one foot tenuously in
the marketplace and the other decidedly and proudly out, which, among
dozens of fabulously wealthy networks, just happens to produce--on
shoestring budgets--the best news and public affairs programming on
television, the best science and nature programming on television, the
best arts on television, the best children's shows on television, and,
some say, the best history on television.
When I was working more than 15 years ago on my film about the
Statue of Liberty, its history and powerful symbolism, I had the great
good fortune to meet and interview Vartan Gregorian, who was then the
president of the New York Public Library. After an extremely
interesting and passionate interview on the meaning behind the statue
for an immigrant like him--from Tabriz, Iran--Vartan took me on a long
and fascinating tour of the miles of stacks of the Library. Finally,
after galloping down one claustrophobic corridor after another, he
stopped and gestured expansively. ``This,'' he said, surveying his
library from its guts, ``this is the DNA of our civilization.''
I think he was saying that that library, indeed, all libraries,
archives, and historical societies are the DNA of our society, leaving
an imprint of excellence and intention for generations to come. It
occurs to me this morning, as we consider the rich history of service
and education of PBS, that we must certainly include this great
institution in that list of the DNA of our civilization. That public
television is part of the great genetic legacy of our Nation. And that
cannot, should not, be denied us or our posterity.
PBS has consistently provided, with its modest resources, and over
more than three tumultuous decades, quite simply an antidote to the
vast wasteland of television programming Newton Minnow so accurately
described. We do things differently. We are hardly a ``disappearing
niche,'' as some suggest, but a vibrant, galvanic force capable of
sustaining this experiment well into our uncertain future.
Some critics say that PBS is no longer needed in this multi-channel
universe, that our government has no business in television or the arts
and humanities, that we must let the marketplace alone determine
everything in our cultural life, that a few controversial programs
prove the political bias of the public television community. I feel
strongly that I must address those assertions.
First let me share a few facts that might surprise you: As a result
of media consolidation, public stations are frequently the last and
only locally owned media operations in their markets. Despite the
exponential growth of television options, 84 million people a week
watch PBS -more than any cable outlet. It is the number one choice of
video curriculum in the classroom and its non-violent, non-commercial
children's programs are the number one choice of parents. Indeed, as
commercial television continues in its race to the bottom for ratings,
PBS has earned the Nation's trust to deliver programs that both
entertain and educate and that do so in a manner that the public
consistently rates as balanced and objective.
But above and beyond these facts that demonstrate the ways in which
PBS is more important than ever in helping to address the public's
needs today, there is a larger argument to be made--one that is rooted
in our Nation's history. Since the beginning of this country, our
government has been involved in supporting the arts and the diffusion
of knowledge, which was deemed as critical to our future as roads and
dams and bridges. Early on, Thomas Jefferson and the other founding
fathers knew that the pursuit of happiness did not mean a hedonistic
search for pleasure in the marketplace of things, but an active
involvement of the mind in the higher aspects of human endeavor--namely
education, music, the arts, and history--a marketplace of ideas.
Congress supported the journey of Lewis and Clark as much to explore
the natural, biological, ethnographic, and cultural landscape of our
expanding nation as to open up a new trading route to the Pacific.
Congress supported numerous geographical, artistic, photographic, and
biological expeditions to nearly every corner of the developing West.
Congress funded, through the Farm Securities Administration, the work
of Walker Evans and Dorothea Lange and other great photographers who
captured for posterity the terrible human cost of the Depression. At
the same time, Congress funded some of the most enduring writing ever
produced about this country's people, its monuments, buildings, and
back roads in the still much used and admired WPA guides. Some of our
greatest symphonic work, our most treasured dramatic plays, and early
documentary film classics came from an earlier Congress' support.
With Congress' great insight PBS was born and grew to its
startlingly effective maturity echoing the same time-honored sense that
our Government has an interest in helping to sponsor Communication, Art
and Education just as it sponsors Commerce. We are not talking about a
100 percent sponsorship, a free ride, but a priming of the pump, a way
to get the juices flowing, in the spirit of President Reagan's notion
of a partnership between the government and the private sector. The
Corporation for Public Broadcasting grant I got for the Civil War
series attracted even more funds from General Motors and several
private foundations; money that would not have been there had not the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting blessed this project with their
rigorously earned imprimatur.
But there are those who are sure that without public television,
the so-called ``marketplace'' would take care of everything; that what
won't survive in the marketplace, doesn't deserve to survive. Nothing
could be further from the truth. Because we are not just talking about
the commerce of a nation. We are not just economic beings, but
spiritual and intellectual beings as well, and so we are talking about
the creativity of a nation. Now, some forms of creativity thrive in the
marketplace and that is a wonderful thing, reflected in our Hollywood
movies and our universally popular music. But let me say that the
marketplace could not have made and to this day could not make my Civil
War series, indeed any of the films I have worked on.
That series was shown on public television, outside the
marketplace, without commercial interruption, by far the single most
important factor for our insuring PBS's continuing existence and for
understanding the Civil War series' overwhelming success. All real
meaning in our world accrues in duration; that is to say, that which we
value the most--our families, our work, the things we build, our art--
has the stamp of our focused attention. Without that attention, we do
not learn, we do not remember, we do not care. We are not responsible
citizens. Most of the rest of the television environment has ignored
this critical truth. For several generations now, TV has disrupted our
attention every eight minutes (or less) to sell us five or six
different things, then sent us back, our ability to digest all the
impressions compromised in the extreme. The programming on PBS in all
its splendid variety, offers the rarest treat amidst the outrageous
cacophony of our television marketplace--it gives us back our attention
and our memory. And by so doing, insures that we have a future.
The marketplace will not, indeed cannot, produce the good works of
PBS. Just as the marketplace does not come to your house at 3:00am when
it is on fire or patrols the dangerous ground in Afghanistan and Iraq.
No, the marketplace does not and will not pay for our fire departments
or more important our Defense Department, things essential to the
safety, defense and well-being of our country. It takes government
involvement, eleemosynary institutions, individual altruism, extra-
marketplace effort to get these things made and done. I also know, Mr.
Chairman, that PBS has nothing to do with the actual defense of our
country, I know that--PBS, I believe with every fiber of my being, just
helps make our country worth defending.
The meat and potatoes of public television reaches out to every
corner of the country and touches people in positive ways the Federal
Government rarely does. Recent research suggests that PBS is the most
trusted national institution in the United States. Indeed, it would be
elitist itself to abolish public television, to trust to the
marketplace and the ``natural aristocracy'' that many have promised
over the last two hundred years would rise up to protect us all--and
hasn't. Those who labor in public television are not unlike those in
public service who sacrifice job security, commensurate pay, and who
are often misunderstood by a media culture infatuated by their
seemingly more glamorous colleagues.
With regard to my own films, I have been quite lucky. The Civil War
series was public television's highest rated program and has been
described as one of the best programs in the history of the medium. But
that show, indeed all of my films produced over the last quarter of a
century, are only a small part, a tiny fraction, of the legacy of PBS.
If public television's mission is severely hampered or curtailed, I
suppose I will find work, but not the kind that ensures good television
or speaks to the overarching theme of all my films--that which we
Americans all hold in common. But more to the point, where will the
next generation of filmmakers be trained? By the difficult rigorous
proposal process of CPB and PBS or by the ``gotcha,'' hit and run
standards of our commercial brethren? I hope it will be the former.
The former Speaker of the House of Representatives Newt Gingrich
spoke eloquently and often of an American people poised for the twenty-
first century, endowed with a shared heritage of sacrifice and honor
and the highest ideals mankind has yet advanced, but also armed with
new technologies that would enable us to go forward as one people. I
say to all who would listen that we have in public television exactly
what he envisions.
Unfortunately, some continue to believe that public television is a
hotbed of thinking outside the mainstream. I wonder, though, have they
ever been to a PBS station? I doubt it. PBS is the largest media
enterprise in the world, reaching into the most remote corners of every
state in the Union and enriching the lives of people of all
backgrounds. It is also the largest educational institution in the
country--because of national and local services that help build school
readiness, support schools, provide distance learning, GED prep and
essential workplace skills. Local public television stations are
essentially conservative institutions, filled with people who share the
concerns of most Americans and who reflect the values of their own
communities. And Mr. Chairman, I know many people who criticize us as
too conservative, too middle of the road, too safe.
And in a free society, the rare examples of controversy that may
run counter to our accepted cannon, or one group's accepted cannon
ought to be seen as a healthy sign that we are a nation tolerant of
ideas, confident--as the recent tide of geo-political history has
shown--that the best ideas will always prevail.
One hundred and sixty-six years ago, in 1838, well before the Civil
War, Abraham Lincoln challenged us to consider the real threat to the
country, to consider forever the real cost of our inattention: ``Whence
shall we expect the approach of danger?'' he wrote. ``Shall some
transatlantic giant step the earth and crush us at a blow? Never. All
the armies of Europe and Asia could not by force take a drink from the
Ohio River or make a track in the Blue Ridge in the trial of a thousand
years. No, if destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author
and finisher.'' As usual, Mr. Lincoln speaks to us today with the same
force he spoke to his own times.
The real threat always and still comes from within this favored
land, that the greatest enemy is, as our religious teachings constantly
remind us, always ourselves. Today, we have become so dialectically
preoccupied, stressing our differences; black/white, left/right, young/
old, in/out, good/bad, that we have forgotten to select for the
mitigating wisdom that reconciles these disparities into honest
difference and collegiality, into a sense of belonging. And we long,
indeed ache, for institutions that suggest how we might all be bound
back to the whole. PBS is one such institution.
The clear answer is tolerance, a discipline sustained in nearly
every gesture and breath of the public television I know. We are a
nation that loses its way only when we define ourselves by what we are
against not what we are for. PBS is that rare forum where more often
than not we celebrate what we are for; celebrate, why, against all
odds, we Americans still agree to cohere.
On the other hand, we in public television must not take ourselves
too seriously. Sometimes our greatest strength, our earnestness and
seriousness, has metastasized into our greatest weakness. Usually a
faithful and true companion, that earnestness and seriousness is
sometimes worked to death. And Lord, how we sometimes like to see our
mission as the cure. I remember once, after giving an impassioned
defense of what we do at PBS, a man came up to me and said simply,
``It's not brain surgery, you know.'' He was right, of course, but
sometimes we do effect subtler changes; help in quotidian ways.
Not too long ago, on a perfect spring day, I was walking with my
oldest daughter through a park in a large American city on the way to
her college interview. We were taking our time, enjoying the first warm
day of the year, when a man of about thirty, dressed in a three piece
suit, approached me.
``You're Ken Burns.'' he asked.
I nodded.
``I need to talk to you about Baseball,'' he said under his breath.
``Okay.'' I hesitated.
Then, he blurted out: ``My brother's daughter died.'' I took a step
backward, stepping in front of my daughter to protect her.
``Okay,'' I said tentatively. I didn't know what else to say.
``SIDS.'' he said. ``Crib death. She was only one.''
``I'm so sorry,'' I said. ``I have daughters.''
``I didn't know what to do,'' he said in a halting, utterly sad
voice. ``My brother and I are very close. Then I thought of your film.
I went home to our mother's house, got our baseball mitts, and went to
my brother's. I didn't say a word. I handed him his mitt and we went
out into the backyard and we played catch wordlessly for an hour. Then
I went home. . . . I just wanted to thank you.''
Maybe it is brain surgery.
Mr. Chairman, most of us here, whether we know it or not, are in
the business of words. And we hope with some reasonable expectations
that those words will last. But alas, especially today, those words
often evaporate, their precision blunted by neglect, their insight
diminished by the shear volume of their ever increasing brethren, their
force diluted by ancient animosities that seem to set each group
against the other.
The historian Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. has said that we suffer today
from ``too much pluribus, not enough unum.'' Few things survive in
these cynical days to remind us of the Union from which so many of our
personal as well as collective blessings flow. And it is hard not to
wonder, in an age when the present moment overshadows all else--our
bright past and our unknown future--what finally does endure? What
encodes and stores that genetic material of our civilization, passing
down to the next generation--the best of us--what we hope will mutate
into betterness for our children and our posterity.
PBS holds one clear answer. It is the best thing we have in our
television environment that reminds us why we agree to cohere as a
people. And that is a fundamentally good thing.
Nothing in our daily life offers more of the comfort of continuity,
the generational connection of belonging to a vast and complicated
American family, the powerful sense of home, and the great gift of
accumulated memory than does this great system which honors me by
counting me a member one of its own.
The Chairman. Very well said, Mr. Burns.
Ms. Taylor, welcome.
STATEMENT OF LORIS ANN TAYLOR, GENERAL MANAGER,
KUYI HOPI RADIO
Ms. Taylor. Chairman McCain and Members of the Committee,
greetings from Hopi, and thank you for this opportunity.
Today, I would like to focus on the Native American public
radio system, which consists of 32 radio stations located
throughout Indian country in nine states, reaching more than
500,000 listeners. Native Public Radio is supported by the work
of the American Indian Radio on Satellite, a program
distribution operation based in Lincoln, Nebraska, and Koahnic
Broadcast Corporation, a major national production center with
offices in Anchorage, Alaska, and Albuquerque, New Mexico.
My perspective is based on my experience and
responsibilities as General Manager for KUYI, an FM station
located on the Hopi Reservation in Northern Arizona. My station
has been on-air for 4 years.
As sole service providers, Native stations offer some of
the best examples of the powerful benefits that accrue to
communities because of strong public broadcasting outlets with
deep local roots and strong commitments to local service. The
Indian Country News Bureau, a partnership between Northern
Arizona University's public radio station, KNAU, and KUYI, was
established in response to a desire in both communities to have
better local news coverage. And it works, because both partners
agree there is an important need to introduce Native American
issues onto the mainstream National Public Radio communications
highway. As a result, stories like the Hopi people's vote
against gaming cannot only be heard on KUYI, but on Arizona
Public Radio and NPR, as well.
Native stations play a significant role in keeping Native
languages alive, and, in some cases, have led to a resurgence
in Native-language use. On my reservation, the loss of the Hopi
language is more than 90 percent in some villages. This fact
makes our Hopi language programs extremely important.
Native stations provide important educational and health
programming. KUYI Housecalls, a weekly program, connects the
radio station with the work of the Hopi Healthcare Center by
providing critical information on diabetes, alcohol and
substance abuse, and heart disease.
Whether broadcasting from remote Native communities in
Bethel and Barrow, Alaska, the Pine Ridge Sioux Reservation, or
Navajo lands in New Mexico, the overarching role of Native
Public Radio is to serve as an important voice and leader
within Native communities.
CPB provides much of the funding that makes Native Public
Radio possible, and these investments are producing important
returns. Native America Calling, a daily live call-in program
about relevant and current issues, connects tribes
electronically. AIROS distributes programming 24 hours-a-day,
allowing stations to extend their broadcast days while making
the most of very limited staff resources.
CPB's support of core Native radio programming has been
critical to its development and survival. On average, CPB
provides nearly one-third of overall annual revenues for Native
stations.
In spite of its many successes, there is no question that
Native radio operates in very difficult environments and
continues to face enormous challenges. The circumstances,
resources, and history of the Native radio system are very
different from mainstream public radio and its model of
listener-based contributions and financial support. Financial
constraints, tribal dynamics, widely scattered Native
populations, and poor tribal economies with high unemployment
are all significant limiting factors.
One of the most promising changes on the horizon of Native
radio is the proposed establishment of the Center for Native
American Public Radio. With an initial investment from CPB, the
center will serve as a critical role in identifying and
developing specific strategies to bring new resources into the
Native public radio system. It will also provide leadership and
efficiency, and make centralized services available in
engineering and financial management to help stations enhance
their operations. The center will be established within the
National Federation of Community Broadcasters, an organization
dedicated to serving community stations for over 29 years.
The CPB provides vital assistance, and its continued
support of the Native public radio system is critical. Congress
can help by providing continued funding for CPB and by
supporting CPB's key priorities for Native Public Radio's long-
term sustainability.
I thank the leadership of CPB, and in particular President
and CEO Kathleen Cox and Senior Vice President Vincent Curren
for making it a priority to take a firsthand look at the state
of the Native American public radio system and for working hard
to improve that system. On behalf of the Native American public
radio system, Chairman McCain and Members of this Committee,
thank you for the years of support and the wise guidance you
have given to public broadcasting.
I ask that this Committee reauthorize the Corporation for
Public Broadcasting and continue to support the good work that
it does.
Thank you. Asquali.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Vicente-Taylor follows:]
Prepared Statement of Loris Ann Taylor, General Manager,
KUYI Hopi Radio
Introduction
Chairman McCain and members of the Committee, thank you for this
opportunity to offer testimony in support of the reauthorization of the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Today, I would like to focus on
the Native American Public Radio system which consists of 32 radio
stations located throughout Indian Country in nine states reaching more
than 500,000 listeners. Native Public Radio is supported by the work of
the American Indian
Radio on Satellite--a program distribution operation based in
Lincoln, Nebraska, and Koahnic Broadcast Corporation -a major national
production center with offices in Anchorage, Alaska and Albuquerque,
New Mexico.
My perspective is based on my experience and responsibilities as
general manager for KUYI, an FM station located on the Hopi Reservation
in Northern Arizona. My station has been on-air for four years.
The Role of Radio in Indian Country
As sole service providers, Native stations offer some of the best
examples of the powerful benefits that accrue to communities because of
strong public broadcasting outlets with deep local roots and strong
commitments to local service.
The Indian Country News Bureau--a partnership between Northern
Arizona University's public radio station KNAU and KUYI--was
established in response to a desire in both communities to have better
local news coverage; and it works because both partners agree there is
an important need to introduce Native American issues onto the
mainstream National Public Radio communications highway. As a result,
stories like the Hopi people's vote against gaming can be heard not
only on KUYI but on Arizona Public Radio and NPR as well.
Native stations play a significant role in keeping native languages
alive and, in some cases, have led to resurgence in native language
use. On my Reservation, the loss of the Hopi language is more than 90
percent in some villages. This fact makes our Hopi language programs
extremely important.
Native stations provide important educational and health
programming. KUYI House Calls, a weekly program, connects the radio
station with the work of the Hopi Health Care Center by providing
critical information on diabetes, alcohol and substance abuse, and
heart disease. KUYI in partnership with the Hopi Junior-Senior High
School established the first Radio Class with the two-fold mission of
building succession for the radio station and to open career
opportunities for local students in the field of communications.
Whether broadcasting from remote Native communities in Bethel and
Barrow Alaska, the Pine Ridge Sioux Reservation, or Navajo lands in New
Mexico, the overarching role of Native Public Radio is to serve as an
important voice and leader within native communities.
Funding Indian Country Radio
CPB provides much of the funding that makes Native Public Radio
possible and these investments are producing important returns. Native
America Calling, a daily live call-in program about relevant and
current issues, connects tribes electronically. AIROS distributes
programming twenty-four hours a day, allowing stations to extend their
broadcast days while making the most of very limited staff resources.
CPB's support of core Native Radio programming has been critical to its
development and survival. On average, CPB provides nearly one-third of
overall annual revenues for Native stations.
In spite of its many successes, there is no question that Native
Radio operates in very difficult environments and continues to face
enormous challenges. The circumstances, resources and history of the
Native Radio System are very different than ``mainstream'' public radio
and its model of listener-based contributions and financial support.
Financial constraints, tribal dynamics, widely scattered Native
populations, and poor tribal economies with high unemployment, are all
significant limiting factors.
The Center for Native American Public Radio
One of the most promising changes on the horizon of Native Radio is
the proposed establishment of the Center for Native American Public
Radio. With an initial investment from CPB, the Center will serve a
critical role in identifying and developing specific strategies to
bring new revenue resources into the Native Public Radio System. It
will also provide leadership and efficiency; and make centralized
services available in engineering and financial management to help
stations enhance their operations. The Center will be established
within the National Federation of Community Broadcasters (NFCB), an
organization dedicated to serving community stations for over 29 years.
Conclusion
The CPB provides vital assistance and its continued support of the
Native Public Radio System is critical. Congress can help by providing
continued funding for CPB and by supporting CPB's key priorities for
Native public radio's long-term sustainability.
I thank the leadership of CPB and in particular, President and CEO
Kathleen Cox and Senior Vice President Vincent Curren for making it a
priority to take a first-hand look at the State of the Native American
Public Radio System and for working hard to improve the system. On
behalf of the Native American Public Radio System, Chairman McCain, and
members of this Committee, thank-you for the years of support and wise
guidance you have given to public broadcasting. I ask that this
Committee reauthorize the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and
continue to support the good work that it does.
Chairman McCain, I would also like to submit a couple documents for
the record as part of my testimony.
______
July 12, 2004
Chairman McCain and Members of the Commerce, Science, and
Transportation Committee:
I am writing today to share with you some of the accomplishments of
Koahnic Broadcast Corporation, the Native media center headquartered in
Anchorage, Alaska, and to let you know how instrumental funding and
support from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting has been in making
these accomplishments possible.
Koahnic Broadcast Corporation (KBC), established in 1992, is the
leading producer of nationally distributed Native American programming
for public radio. From the Badlands of the Dakotas to the streets of
New York, and from the Bering Sea to the LA freeways, KBC's technically
and editorially high-quality programs are adding to the diversity of
viewpoints available to the American general public as well as within
and between Native communities.
In Alaska, where according to recent U.S. Census figures nearly 20
percent of the statewide population is Native, KBC has established KNBA
90.3 FM, the Nation's first Native public radio station in an urban
area. KNBA's progressive music format is infused with the music of
contemporary Native artists, and its morning, mid-day and afternoon
broadcasts feature local Native news, interviews with local Native
leaders and community members, community reports and public service
announcements.
Without CPB funding, radio stations serving diverse audiences in
the way that KNBA does would literally be unable to exist. CPB funding
has made it possible for KNBA to pioneer and refine its unique mix of
progressive music and award-winning Native programs by supporting both
local production and the acquisition of national programming. With CPB
providing basic annual support, KNBA is able to incorporate elements
like news from National Public Radio and the Alaska Public Radio
Network, and programs from American Indian Radio on Satellite in order
to broaden the listenership of the station while maintaining its unique
and important focus on original Native programming for local, regional
and national audiences.
Our yearly station grant from CPB funding supports our efforts to
build a sustainable financial base for KNBA over time. KNBA membership
dollars consistently grow with each membership drive, and CPB support
helps KNBA leverage funding from foundation funders and state arts and
humanities agencies, as well as business underwriting for cultural and
news programming on KNBA.
The mission of KBC is to be the leader in bringing Native voices to
the region and the nation, and in accordance with this mission, KBC not
only operates KNBA 90.3 FM, but produces three national Native American
radio programs: Native America Calling (NAC), National Native News
(NNN), and the weekly program of Native music and culture, Earthsongs.
These three programs reach national audiences through radio stations
nationwide, including almost every Native station. In addition, they
are available on the Internet for listeners worldwide to listen in and
participate in discussions.
Native America Calling, is a daily live talk program that links
Native radio stations and their listeners together in a national
discourse. Through NAC, members of rural and reservation Native
communities and Native people listening from urban areas can call in
and speak directly to people closest to Native issues. For its entire
17 years, National Native News has been the leading daily news service
focused on Native issues. NNN is perhaps the most widely heard, daily
minority news program in the country. Functioning as the equivalent of
the All Things Considered of Native radio, NAC and NNN are the uniting
force in Native radio and serve as the common carried programs.
Broadcast by nearly every Native station, these programs provide a
common voice for all American Natives.
Despite the recognized service these programs provide, they have
historically operated on a budget barely adequate to survive. CPB, a
committed and involved funding partner from the beginning, has
recognized the critical importance of these programs to Native radio
and has recently granted support through 2006 to NAC and NNN, to
strengthen all facets of both programs for long-term significance,
sustainability and viability.
Native radio stations are providing important service to their
communities. They are often considered essential institutions in their
communities and, in many places, are the only source of hard news and
information about issues of concern to Native Americans. In addition,
they are also key cultural assets; keeping Native languages alive, and
acting as a holder of history and culture-acting as a ``home'' to those
who live within, the station's signal.
CPB funding investments in programming and infrastructure have
clearly paid off, as national programming for the Native radio system
has become an essential element in the program service offered by
stations in their communities. Native America Calling, for example, has
almost universal live carriage by Native stations and provides the only
national daily conversation among Natives about important issues.
Koahnic Broadcast Corporation is proud of our many accomplishments,
including the numerous regional and national awards for news programs
and cultural features we have produced, the opportunity to provide
training and assistance to early-career Native broadcasters and to
rural Native stations such as KUYI in Arizona and KCUK in Chevak,
Alaska, statewide broadcasts of the annual Alaska Federation of Natives
Convention and nationwide broadcasts of significant Native events
including the 3rd and 4th annual Native American Music Awards, our
success in growing membership and underwriting revenues, and the
establishment of a Native Program Fund Endowment designed to ensure
that quality Native programming is sustained over time. This pride in
our accomplishments is greatly mixed with sincere gratitude for the
essential part CPB has played both in our success, and in the growth of
Native broadcasting throughout the Nation.
Best regards,
Jaclyn Sallee,
President and CEO.
______
July 1, 2004
Wayne Taylor, Jr.,
Chairman.
Caleb H. Johnson,
Vice Chairman.
Senator John McCain,
Chairman,
Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee,
Washington, DC.
Dear Senator McCain:
I am writing this letter in support of KUYI 88.1 FM, a Native owned
radio station. I write in support of continued funding of Native radio
in Indian Country. KUYI made its on-air debut on Dec. 20, 2000 after
years of planning and development. The station has never looked back,
but is instead progressing toward increasing standards of excellence.
Last year, Vincent Curren, senior vice president of Radio for the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) visited KUYI to understand
what makes Native radio stations so unique. Mr. Curren expressed how
thoroughly impressed he was with the station's service and described it
as one ``that provides an amazing level of community service and serves
as a model for other stations to follow.''
KUYI is just one of 32 Native radio stations in 9 states in the
United States. CPB allows Native radio to have a strong, far-reaching
voice on Native homelands. We need more stations like these in Indian
Country. Such stations provide a wealth of knowledge and cultural
exchange.
KUYI, and others in Indian country, is not just a radio station;
it's a school without walls. It's an institution that teaches, employs,
educates, and provides a voice for the community.
I have found in my capacity as public relations officer for the
Hopi Tribe that KUYI is indispensable. My office provides a weekly
broadcast called the ``Hopi Tribal Report''. It is a news format
program that provides updates to the Hopi public about occurrences in
the tribal, state and Federal government. Further, whenever breaking
news occurs, I immediately call KUYI because it is a guaranteed source
to keep the Hopi community abreast of developing stories. I trust that
it will continue to be such an institution. It provides a tangible
means to preserving the Hopi people's heritage and culture especially
when the broadcasts are conducted in the Hopi language. Similar radio
stations on other reservations can attest to these claims as well. I
hope that Native radio will continue to be a legacy for all Native
people. I have faith that funding and support from CPB will not be
interrupted for Native radio.
Respectfully,
Vanessa A. Charles,
Public Relations Officer,
The Hopi Tribe.
______
July 9, 2004
Senator John McCain,
Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee,
Washington, DC.
Dear Senator McCain,
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) has been instrumental
in making possible the Indian Country News Bureau (ICNB) partnership
between public radio stations KNAU and KUYI.
The ICNB gathers and distributes significant news from northeastern
Arizona and the Four Comers area to public radio stations throughout
the region. Numerous reports have been nationally broadcast on NPR,
National Native News and other public radio programs.
Northern Arizona University (NAU), the licensee of KNAU-FM, has as
one of its Strategic Goals to ``Be the Nation's Leading University
Serving Native Americans.'' NAU is proud to be a partner in the Indian
Country News Bureau initiative.
One of public radio's principal functions is providing lifelong
learning opportunities as a public service. Indian Country News Bureau
lives up to that lofty ambition. Listeners to ICNB reports have gained
tremendous insight into issues and concerns of Native American people.
They have heard about the successes as well as the challenges facing
indigenous people. For instance:
Navajo tribal consideration of the death penalty
White Mountain Apache economic recovery from devastating
fires.
Zuni water rights legislation.
Hopi tradition of cross-country running.
ICNB productions have received awards from the Arizona Associated
Press, the Radio Television and News Directors Association, the
National Federation of Community Broadcasters, and Public Radio News
Directors Incorporated.
Perhaps most significantly, ICNB has advanced understanding between
Native and non-Native peoples. None of this would have been possible
without initial financial support and encouragement from the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
I urge the U.S. Senate to reauthorize CPB and to continue its
generous financial support of CPB.
Respectfully submitted,
John Stark,
KNAU General Manager.
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
Mr. Frid?
STATEMENT OF PETER A. FRID, CEO AND GENERAL
MANAGER, NEW HAMPSHIRE PUBLIC TELEVISION ON BEHALF OF THE
ASSOCIATION OF PUBLIC TELEVISION STATIONS
Mr. Frid. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It's an honor to have
the opportunity to testify today on behalf of the Association
of Public Television Stations, which represents local licensees
all across America.
Prior to joining NHPTV, in 1996, I managed public stations
in Corpus Christi, Texas; Juneau, Alaska; and Long Island, New
York. What all of these stations have in common is their public
service mission. Each station must meet its local community
needs for programming, education, and outreach. I emphasize the
word ``local,'' because, simply put, public television
stations' localism is without rival today.
Mr. Chairman, let me express our stations' support for the
bipartisan approach that you and Ranking Member Hollings have
taken in reauthorizing the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967. It
strikes the right balance between reform and not trying to fix
what isn't broken.
The institution of public television is more necessary now
than in 1967, for many reasons. Let me offer three:
First, education services. NHPTV's Knowledge Network
provides education services at all levels, including the Ready
to Learn service, which has no parallel in commercial
children's television. Ready to Learn combines high quality PBS
programming with local station outreach workshops, and achieves
measurable improvement in early childhood learning. NHPTV is
also proud to offer online teacher training through the PBS
TeacherLine service, which is a line to the individual state
curriculum standards. Both services were authorized by the No
Child Left Behind Act, and neither could exist without the
delivery system of local stations backed by a national
programming service, PBS.
Second, public affairs. Mr. Chairman, you were a frequent
visitor to our state in 2000, and, of course, are familiar with
the Presidential primary debates that NHPTV sponsored. But
candidate access to our airways is not limited to high-profile
races. In 2002, we broadcast seven separate Federal and
statewide candidate debates, and we'll do the same this year.
And our nightly public-affairs program, New Hampshire Outlook,
offers direct access to political candidates at all levels.
Third, universal service. It is important to recall that
the 500-channel world exists only for those households that pay
for cable and satellite subscription services. For one in five
Americans, it does not. People like Steve Barba, in Dixville
Notch, rely on us for New Hampshire-based programming.
Connecting Steve and others to our service is reason enough for
Congress to fund public television.
Mr. Chairman, as you prepare to introduce your
reauthorization bill, we ask that you continue funding CPB.
That is the lifeblood of our stations. Nearly all the funding
is distributed directly to stations by formula, and represents
an average of 15 percent of the stations' budgets. The CPB also
has provided additional funding to help stations meet special
needs. For instance, a CPB-funded grant allowed NHPTV to
initiate the Partnership for a Safe New Hampshire to address
emergency management and preparedness for our homeland
security.
In short, the annual CPB appropriation has a real impact on
helping stations fulfill the twin objectives of localism and
public service. We believe it follows that expanding the input
of local stations in governing CPB would improve responsiveness
of the system to localism. Current law designates that two of
the nine seats on the CPB board be filled by representatives
from local stations. We propose that that number be increased
and to provide additional input for local stations. Reforming
the governance of CPB in this manner creates more assured
accountability for stations and CPB to the communities that we
serve, and we look forward to working with the Committee and
CPB to accomplish that goal.
Finally, Mr. Chairman, our local stations view digital
transition as their greatest opportunity to serve the public.
Since the DTV transition began, our system raised more than a
billion dollars to make the conversion. We are, therefore,
hopeful that your draft bill will reauthorize two key programs,
CPB's temporary digital program, and the Department of Commerce
longstanding Public Telecommunications Facilities Program.
In 2002, a PTFP grant paid for the digital conversion of
our transmitter and tower in Keene, New Hampshire. And this
year, New Hampshire Public Television received an additional
grant from CPB to convert our master control room to digital.
These programs are good investments for the Federal Government
in the truest sense of the word.
Digital television means more than simply broadcast
television, and we ask that you consider expanding the
definition of what may be funded to include datacasting. At
NHPTV, we see enormous potential to enhance our work with K-12,
higher education, and the New Hampshire Office of Emergency
Management through datacasting.
And, finally, we hope that you will authorize funding to
replace PTV's interconnection system, which links local
stations with PBS.
Our stations currently spend an estimated $36 million a
year to run two redundant transmitters, and about $20 million
per year replacing analog equipment. Those costs, together,
exceed the $50 million Congress appropriated last year to CPB
for digital funding. We look forward to the day when this money
can be invested in the delivery of services rather than old and
costly technology.
Many of our stations would be willing to surrender their
analog spectrum early if three conditions existed: bold post-
transitional carriage of our signals on cable and satellite,
the availability of low-cost converter boxes, and, you guessed
it, a new stream of funding derived from the eventual auction
of public television spectrum. In this case, NHPTV, for
instance, might be capable of returning our analog spectrum by
2006, well in advance of the 2009 hard date proposed by the
FCC.
Allowing public television to benefit from at least some of
the proceeds raised by auctioning that spectrum is a win-win
for the public. First, as Committee Members like Senator Sununu
and Senator Ensign have noted, the economic activity generated
by new uses of the spectrum would far exceed the actual dollar
value of the spectrum itself. Second, witnesses at the July 9th
hearing agreed that the early clearing of only part of the
broadcast band--for example, the 21 percent that is held by the
PTV stations--would harness market forces to accelerate the DTV
transition. Senator Hollings has some thoughtful ideas in this
regard, and we appreciate the time and attention that he has
given this issue in the final year of his great public service
career.
In sum, Mr. Chairman, we respectfully ask that the
Committee approve the reauthorization of the Public
Broadcasting Act to ensure public television's near-term
future, and to move immediately to take advantage of the
historic opportunities created by DTV transition as a means of
ensuring public television will be an effective institution for
public service for generations to come.
Thank you for this opportunity, and I'd look forward to
your questions.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Frid follows:]
Prepared Statement of Peter A. Frid, CEO and General Manager, New
Hampshire Public Television on Behalf of the Association of Public
Television Stations
Thank you Mr. Chairman. I am Peter Frid, Chief Executive Officer
and General Manager of New Hampshire Public Television. It is an honor
to have the opportunity to testify today on behalf of the Association
of Public Television Stations, which represents 150 local stations
across America.
Mr. Chairman, public television stations are as distinct as the
communities they serve. Prior to joining NHPTV in 1996, I had the
opportunity to manage public TV and radio stations in Corpus Christi,
Texas; Juneau, Alaska; and Long Island, New York. What these and other
stations have in common is their mission: striving to serve the
individual needs of their communities. While both technology and the
media landscape have changed greatly since passage of the 1967 Public
Broadcasting Act, the mission of public television stations remains
constant: to serve the local public interest through education, culture
and citizenship.
Public Television's Commitment to Localism
I emphasize the word ``local'' because, simply put, public
television stations' localism is without rival today. Each station is
engaged in meeting its local community needs for relevant programming,
education and outreach. Licensed to the University of New Hampshire,
NHPTV, along with the other 175 individual public television licensees
nationwide, is and will remain locally controlled, operated, and
programmed.
As the Committee takes the first step toward reauthorizing the
Public Broadcasting Act, we hope that you will recognize the enormous
significance and value of having at least one locally controlled
television station in every media market.
Mr. Chairman, on behalf of public television stations, let me
express our support for the bipartisan approach that you and Ranking
Member Hollings have taken to reauthorizing the Public Broadcasting
Act. It strikes the right balance between reform and not trying to fix
what isn't broken. If enacted, it will ensure the uniqueness of public
television's mission of public service to our communities.
How Public Television Serves Communities
It is fair to ask if public television is necessary in today's 500-
channel television world; if the missions of the Public Broadcasting
Act of 1967 are still relevant. The answer is that this institution is
more necessary now than in 1967 for many reasons, but let me briefly
offer three:
Education Services. NHPTV's ``Knowledge Network'' provides
education services at all levels, from early childhood learning
to distance learning to teacher professional development. One
example of our innovative approach to promoting literacy in the
community is a program we established with the New Hampshire
Department of Corrections to reconnect prisoners with their
children through reading. Project Story Time videotapes
prisoners reading an age-appropriate book, then the tape and
book are shared with the child and custodial family to
encourage family literacy and bonding.
Public television's unique children's programming service,
known as Ready To Learn, has no parallel in commercial
children's television. Ready To Learn combines the high-quality
children's programming and curriculum materials provided by PBS
with the local outreach workshops offered by local stations and
achieves measurable improvement in early childhood learning.
For our state, this is one of the most successful educational
outreach efforts we've ever undertaken, far exceeding what we
originally envisioned.
NHPTV is also proud to offer online teacher training through
the PBS TeacherLine service, which is aligned to individual
state curriculum standards. Both of these programs were
authorized by No Child Left Behind and together receive about
$47 million in grants from the Department of Education. We have
leveraged those grants with local foundation and corporate
funds that have allowed us to reach every corner of New
Hampshire through broadcast, the Web, and face-to-face
community workshops. However, these and other educational
services would not exist without the delivery system of
independent local stations backed by our national programming
service, PBS.
Public Affairs Coverage. Mr. Chairman, you were a frequent
visitor to our state in 2000 and of course are familiar with
the presidential primary debates that New Hampshire Public
Television sponsored. But candidate access to our airwaves is
not limited to high-profile races; we are equally proud of the
debates, candidate forums and ongoing public affairs coverage
we provide for local races throughout each election year.
For instance, in 2002, we broadcast seven separate Federal or
statewide candidate debates and will do the same this year. And
our nightly public affairs program, NH Outlook, offers
substantial direct access for, and coverage of, political
candidates at all levels. In 2002 alone, we provided in-depth
profiles of more than a dozen mainstream and third-party
candidates and conducted many more in-studio interviews. We are
proud of our ability to offer candidates free, unfiltered
access to the public.
Universal Service. Third, the long-established national policy
of truly free, universal service dates to the Communications
Act of 1934 and it is literally a responsibility for public
television. Earlier, I mentioned today's 500-channel world. But
it is important to recall that this world exists only for those
households that pay for cable and satellite subscription
services.
At least one in five Americans are not part of that world and
many more households have over-the-air television sets that are
not connected to such a service. Some of those Americans are
economically disadvantaged. Some are in rural areas or on
reservations and literally don't have the choice of
subscription services. Many of them truly have the greatest
need for the services we provide. In any case, connecting these
Americans to our services is reason enough for the Congress to
provide support for public television.
NHPTV's ability to serve both the urban and the very rural parts of
New Hampshire is critical to bringing our state together. Steve Barba
of the Balsams in Dixville Notch often mentions that our station
affords him access to New Hampshire-based programming by connecting him
to the state. Through our programs, NHPTV affords the residents of the
Great North Woods a share of voice.
CPB Funding and Localism
Your bill, Mr. Chairman, would continue the critical funding for
the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) that is the lifeblood of
our stations. Nearly all of that funding is distributed directly to
stations by formula in the form of Community Service Grants. This
funding represents on average 15 percent of most stations' budgets, and
is critical to our ability to fulfill the missions I described.
In addition to the community service grants, CPB has also provided
critical funding for special projects that have helped us to meet
special local needs. For instance, a CPB-funded grant from the National
Center for Outreach allowed NHPTV to initiate ``The Partnership for a
Safe New Hampshire'' project. The station brought together the NH
Library Association, Volunteer NH, and UNH Cooperative Extension to
hold eight forums to help geographically diverse communities address
emergency management and preparedness for homeland security.
In short, Mr. Chairman, the annual appropriation that Congress
provides to CPB has a real and measurable impact on ensuring that local
stations can fulfill the twin objectives of localism and public
service. We appreciate that your draft reauthorization bill does not
tear down this proven system.
As our stations raise most of their budgets in the community, they
must be responsive to local needs. We believe it follows that expanding
the input of the local stations in governing CPB would improve the
responsiveness of the system to fulfilling localism objectives. Current
law designates two of the nine seats on the CPB Board to be filled by
representatives of local public radio and television stations. Mr.
Chairman, we propose that this number be increased to four of the nine
seats, allowing more system representation to be introduced to the
Board gradually, as existing Board terms expire. Reforming the
governance of CPB in this manner creates more accountability for the
local stations to ensure that funding is used according to the
objectives of Congress. It also increases CPB's accountability to the
communities the stations serve. We hope your final bill includes this
provision.
The Digital Transition
Mr. Chairman, if one accepts that public television's mission has
grown since 1967, we are fortunate today to have a 21st century
delivery system to meet it. I am speaking of course of digital
television, which has geometrically expanded our capacity to meet our
mission. Since the DTV transition began, our system has raised more
than $1 billion to make the conversion. As of today, 264 of the
country's 357 PTV stations are transmitting a digital signal in markets
that include more than 87 percent of households, and we are optimistic
that most of the remainder will be on the air by the end of this year.
Our true challenge now is to move from simply delivering a digital
signal, to creating and delivering actual digital services. For
instance, our stations have pledged to devote one-quarter of their
digital bandwidth to educational programming. Also, many of our
stations are creating public service datacasting services such as
offering a portion of their bandwidth for local emergency alert
communications.
It is no exaggeration to say that our local stations view digital
as their greatest opportunity ever to serve the public and we are
grateful that your draft reauthorization bill would help us to fulfill
that promise. Allow me to highlight key portions of the bill in this
regard:
First, the draft bill reauthorizes two key programs, CPB's
digital fund and the Department of Commerce's Public
Telecommunications Facilities Program. Why two programs? The
CPB digital program is a temporary one aimed at putting
stations on the air in digital, while PTFP, which predates DTV
by 35 years, is an ongoing competitive matching grant program
that funds infrastructure. A 2002 PTFP grant paid for the
digital conversion of our transmitter and tower in Keene,
southwestern New Hampshire. The PTFP program is a good
investment for the Federal Government in the truest sense of
the word for it allows us to leverage revenue from local
sources and we appreciate your support for it.
Second, the bill expands the definition of what may be funded
to include datacasting services. Such services take digital
television beyond the television set, for instance, allowing a
station to directly transmit video curriculum to schools or to
provide a platform for emergency communications. At NHPTV we
see enormous potential to enhance our work with K-12, higher
education, and the New Hampshire Office of Emergency Management
through datacasting.
Third, the bill authorizes funding to build a new
interconnection system that will link PTV stations with each
other and the national programming service. Interconnection was
at the heart of the original Public Broadcasting Act. While it
is unseen by viewers it is literally the backbone of public
television, as it serves as the national programming transport
system. The current system must be replaced soon as satellite
contracts are expiring. Congress appropriated a down payment
last year, and this bill provides the authorization to finish
the job--and, I might add, replace radio's separate
interconnection system when the time comes.
Allow me to offer one additional thought about the DTV transition.
The law requires public stations, along with commercial stations, to
return their analog spectrum to the government when the DTV transition
is complete. As you know, some experts estimate that, absent policy
changes, the transition could drag on for more than a decade. In fact,
a 2002 NAB study pegged the so-called ``natural'' transition date at
2021.
Mr. Chairman, when presented with the opportunities that digital
broadcast could offer in our ability to enhance our service to our
communities, public television embraced this project. In New Hampshire,
we have been extremely fortunate that our University and the New
Hampshire State Legislature embraced the potential of digital as well.
Recently, the University System of New Hampshire Chancellor, Stephen
Reno, stated before the Governor's Capital Project Hearing that the
continued funding of NHPTV's digital conversion is critical to the
University's plan to have the station play a key role in delivering
distance learning to our state.
But, with this asset in place, we are still challenged by the
necessity of maintaining our analog transmitters as well. This will
contribute significantly to the complexities of operations, additional
electrical costs and, if the deadline to shutting off our analog signal
is significantly delayed, the prospect of having to replace at least
one if not two of our analog transmitters. Nationwide, our stations
currently spend an estimated $36 million per year to run two redundant
transmitters, and about $20 million per year replacing analog
equipment. Those costs together exceed the $50 million Congress
appropriated last year to CPB for digital funding. We look forward to
the day when this money can be invested in the delivery of valued
services to our state and not the re-investment in old and costly
technology.
As our association testified before this committee on June 9, many
of our stations would be willing to voluntarily surrender their analog
spectrum early if three conditions existed: full post-transitional
carriage of our signals on cable and satellite; the availability of
low-cost converter boxes; and--you guessed it--a new stream of funding
derived from the eventual auction of PTV stations' spectrum. In this
case, NHPTV, for instance, might be capable of returning our analog
spectrum by 2006, well before the January 1, 2009 ``hard date''
proposed by the FCC Media Bureau.
Public television stations occupy 21 percent of the broadcast
spectrum and we are eager to work with this committee to develop a plan
for returning it to the government as soon as practicable. Allowing
public television to benefit from at least some of the proceeds raised
by auctioning that spectrum is a win-win for the public.
First, as Committee members like Senator Sununu and Senator Ensign
have noted, the economic activity that would be generated by freeing up
this spectrum for other uses would be an enormous boost to the economy.
Most experts believe that activity would far exceed the actual dollar
value of the spectrum itself. Second, a consensus of witnesses at the
June 9 hearing agreed that an early clearing of only part of the
broadcast band--for instance, the 21 percent of it held by PTV
stations--would harness market forces to accelerate the DTV transition.
Our association has proposed that at least a portion of the revenue
derived from auctioning PTV's spectrum be used to create a fund
dedicated to digital educational services, but there are many options
worthy of consideration. The distinguished Ranking Member, Senator
Hollings, has some thoughtful ideas in this regard and we appreciate
the time and attention that he has given this issue in the final year
of his great public service career.
In sum, Mr. Chairman, we respectfully ask that the Committee
approve reauthorization of the Public Broadcasting Act to ensure public
television's near-term future, and that it move immediately to take
advantage of the historic opportunity created by the DTV transition as
a means to ensuring public television will be an effective institution
of public service for generations to come.
Thank you and I look forward to your questions.
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
There have been complaints about public broadcasting having
a liberal bias. In a February 2004 hearing before the House
Energy and Commerce Committee, Congressman Regula reminded
public broadcasters that, quote, ``McDonald's made a fortune
catering to everyone's taste.'' I also note that the--PBS
recently added two conservative commentators to its national
programming lineup.
Ms. Cox, do you believe that the stations should attempt to
cater to everyone's tastes?
Ms. Cox. Absolutely, Senator McCain.
The Chairman. Mr. Matthusen?
Mr. Matthusen. To the extent that we can, we try to
represent all points of view.
The Chairman. Mr. Frid?
Mr. Frid. Absolutely. I think the stations are very
sensitive to the need for objectivity and balance. Our local
programming, for example, really works to offer diverging
viewpoints. We believe, as holder of the license and the trust
of the public, that our efforts to achieve objectivity and
balance is an important thing for us to consider.
The Chairman. Ms. Vicente-Taylor?
Ms. Taylor. Absolutely. With the Indian Country News
Bureau, we have some unique situations. As you may recall, the
Hopi and Navajo, for example, have had years of tension between
them. And so, balance and fairness and objectivity in covering
those stories are extremely important.
Also, the Indian Country News Bureau covers stories about
Hopi people themselves, and we live and work with these people
in our communities, and so we're keenly aware that we need to
be balanced and objective in our stories there, as well.
The Chairman. Do you believe that--Ms. Vicente-Taylor, do
you believe that CPB's funding formula adequately takes into
account the special needs of stations like KUYI that are
located on reservations, most low-income areas of America, and
have difficulty raising money from listeners?
Ms. Taylor. I think there can be some improvement in the
way funding is channeled into Native American public radio
stations. I don't think the model of mainstream public radio is
completely compatible with how funds should be raised. For
Hopi, for example, our unemployment is so high--sometimes as
high as 55 percent--and rather than having pledge drives to get
money from families that are worried about putting a roof on
their heads or feeding their children or clothing their
children to give money to KUYI, I would rather try to look at
other models, and we're trying to figure those things out.
The Chairman. Ms. Cox, I hope you will try to help figure
those out. Public broadcasting on Native American reservations
have difficulties because of the nature of the degree of
poverty that exists on those reservations, and I hope you
will--and the board--look into those special needs situations.
Ms. Cox. Yes, sir. As a matter of fact, in the fall, we're
beginning a new consultation, on both the radio and television
side, to consider the best use of all of our funds, and, in
particular, the CSG funds, the community service grants, that
go to the stations. As you're well aware, we service a variety
of stations, from the stations just described to some of the
largest and strongest stations in the system, so it's a careful
balancing act, but we do have that very much in mind.
The Chairman. Mr. Burns, you have consistently chosen to
display your documentaries on public television, and not
provide them for bidding in the open marketplace that now
includes History Channel, Discovery Channel, A&E, and others.
Why? And wouldn't this free you from seeking corporate
sponsors?
Mr. Burns. It probably would, in the long term, Mr.
Chairman, but I think my remarks about attention are extremely
important. We don't go to the cinema or to the ballet or to the
symphony and expect, every few minutes, to be interrupted. And
so, too, would I like my work in an uninterrupted form. There
are other venues where that could take place--notably, pay
cable stations.
The Chairman. Financially, it would have benefited you
significantly.
Mr. Burns. It might have. But I think that we have to
measure riches in lots of different ways. I stand before you
proudly telling you that if there's a film that you don't like
of mine, it's all my fault. And I have colleagues in all those
other networks that say, ``Well, that film didn't work out
because they took it away from me and re-edited,'' or, ``They
made me use this person,'' or, ``They made me use that
person.'' I stand before you, sort of, the proud citizen of
public television, and say that if you don't like one of my
films, it's all my fault. And I'm pleased to be in a network in
which that's the case.
The Chairman. Ms. Cox, in April 2004, the GAO found that
CPB's funding and distribution of grants under the Television
Future Fund was not within the statutory authority under which
the Corporation operates. Specifically, the GAO found that
funds Congress designated for the distribution to the public
television licensees should not be siphoned off by CPB for
systemwide projects. Shortly thereafter, CPB announced it would
no longer use such station monies for the Television Future
Fund.
The GAO report only addressed the Television Future Fund.
Does the Corporation intend to eliminate or restructure the
Radio Future Fund or the Small Station Future Fund to comply
with its statutory authority, or do you believe the statutory
authority should be changed?
Ms. Cox. Senator McCain, as noted in our response to the
GAO report, we do disagree with the legal interpretation of the
statute. We had two different opinions that confirmed our
interpretation of the statute.
Nonetheless, with respect to our understanding of where the
station's financial situation is, on the television side, we
have, I believe, resolved any issue with respect to that. We
are returning station finances--money back to the CSG pool, and
we will not be contributing any additional money to the
Television Future Fund in the 2005 Fiscal Year.
On the radio side, I think that there are similar
considerations to be had. Again, we're of the view that the
stations have in mind the best ways to spend their money. So in
2005 Fiscal Year, we will not be contributing to the Radio
Future Fund. But we do have in mind the fact that, on the radio
side, the stations do enjoy the ability to aggregate funds
toward those kind of projects that can't be handled at the
local level. So we'll be engaged in consultation with them over
the year to determine whether they wish to--desire to have
that, in which case I think it maybe appropriate to seek
statutory clarification, in terms of our ability to accommodate
that.
The Chairman. Why did CPB have almost $24 million sitting
in its digital fund, unobligated, at the end of calendar year
2003, according to the GAO? And what are you going to do with
these monies?
Ms. Cox. That situation has also, I think, been addressed.
As the GAO report fairly accurately reported, the digital funds
came to us for the distribution of equipment, and that was a
new situation for us. We had to determine different guidelines
and a different method of getting that money out. We are past
those hurdles. I think that we have addressed--provided more
resources to the speedy expenditure of those funds, working
with the stations. So we are--again, have put more resources
toward that. We have had the appropriate consultations, and we
will continue to do whatever is in our power to get that money
out the door as fast as possible.
The Chairman. Senator Nelson?
STATEMENT OF HON. BILL NELSON,
U.S. SENATOR FROM FLORIDA
Senator Nelson. Mr. Chairman, I ask consent that I can have
my statement entered in the record, and just a couple of----
The Chairman. Without objection.
Senator Nelson.--quick questions.
I passed one of my colleagues in the hall coming here, and
he was just singing the praises, Mr. Burns, of your opening
statement, and I'm going to look forward to reading it in the
testimony of this Committee.
I'm curious, how would you address critics who say that PBS
is too liberal?
Mr. Burns. Well, I think that, quite often, public
television has been a fairly convenient way to, sort of,
project other arguments into the fray. I've noticed, in the
course of a lifetime of watching public television, that it has
been a forum where lots of competing voices come, and there's a
wonderful fission that takes place from the collision of free
electrons. Remember Buckley's Firing Line has been on--was on
for more than 30 years, and hardly a liberal outpost. There
have been, I think, instances of individuals expressing a
liberal agenda, but I think it has been more than balanced by
other programming throughout.
And, of course, in my own work, one can't perform the kind
of historical triangulation that's required to make good
history without being balanced and fair to all sides. That's
exactly what history is about, the sort of accounting that
takes place in that work.
I'm proud to be in a network that is tolerant enough to
welcome lots of different opposing voices, and I don't think it
has a particular bias.
Senator Nelson. I'm concerned about the political discourse
in this country. We seem to have gotten to the point that it's
a lack of toleration for views that are opposite of our own,
and we castigate each other, and we use labels as ``liberal''
or ``ultra-liberal'' or ``ultra- conservative'' if someone has
a view different than our own. I just don't want you all to
fall in that trap as we see that happening with other outlets
of information.
Mr. Frid, you stated that public TV broadcasters would be
willing to voluntarily surrender their analog spectrum early if
low-cost digital-to-analog converter boxes were available. What
do you see as the role for Congress in this? Should Congress,
for example, subsidize converter boxes?
Mr. Frid. I know that that's an idea that's been discussed.
I think one of the challenges that we will have is, once one
gets beyond those that have satellite and cable, there will be
a group of individuals that may not have the financial
resources to purchase converter boxes. And I think it's
certainly an idea that's worthy of exploration.
Senator Nelson. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
[The prepared statement of Senator Nelson follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Bill Nelson, U.S. Senator from Florida
Mr. Chairman, thank you for holding this hearing regarding the
reauthorization of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, known as
CPB.
I am a big fan of the programming and services provided by public
television and radio. Hardly a week goes by when I haven't tuned in to
a PBS or NPR program. In this age of increased media consolidation and
commercialization of news, PBS and NPR greatly assist in informing and
educating Americans about national and local issues.
Since its creation in 1965, CPB has played the central role in
overseeing the development of public broadcasting. I think that most
people would agree that CPB has done an excellent job over the years in
administering the Federal funds that Congress allocates. CPB has
carried out its mission largely immune from political pressures and has
acted in the public interest.
As CPB has recognized, broadcasting is now at a crossroads.
Broadcasters are in the midst of a multiyear digital TV transition. At
the same time, broadcasters are competing with cable television,
satellite, and the Internet to deliver programming. Now, more than
ever, Congress should ensure that non-commercial, locally oriented
public broadcasting is nurtured.
Without CPB, public broadcasting and the principle of localism
would suffer. I look forward to hearing today from the various
witnesses about how Congress can help promote vibrant and effective
public broadcasting. If there are specific problem areas that Congress
should address in the context of CPB's reauthorization, I would like to
hear about those issues as well.
I thank the Chair.
The Chairman. Senator Sununu?
Senator Sununu. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Burns, I'd offer up, maybe for future use, when someone
like John McCain asks you why you do what you do and the way
you do it, you could make a lot more money elsewhere, just
point out to John McCain, ``You could make a helluva lot more
money if you quit the Senate.''
[Laughter.]
Senator Sununu. But it's not necessarily a good idea.
[Laughter.]
The Chairman. But a popular move among some.
[Laughter.]
Senator Sununu. Could you talk a little bit about the
process for funding projects--CPB provides money to help fund
content, fund programming--and then the process for getting
your work distributed? Does that work well? Are there any
changes or concerns that you have or would recommend for either
the funding of content, or is there something that could be
done to make the process for distribution work better to
encourage innovation or independence or to help new producers
of content?
Mr. Burns. Senator, there's always room for improvement,
and I think we're constantly tinkering, as we are in this
republic, and will continue to tinker, I hope, for as long as
we're around.
The process is--I think most of my colleagues and I would
say we want to have that ten-picture deal that the commercial
networks would provide for us so that this rigorous fundraising
thing would disappear. But, at the same time, that rigorous
fundraising process makes us more honest, and stronger. Quite
typically, we'll get an idea to produce a film, we'll discuss
it with various colleagues who would be involved in its
production, we would produce a proposal, of not insignificant
length, that would be submitted to the Corporation for Public
Broadcasting. They have a rigorous proposal process. It's
vetted by other media professionals and also by experts in the
particular field. Sometimes we also are submitting a grant to
the National Endowment for the Humanities, which requires an
even greater and more rigorous proposal process. We get some
early seed money, and then the rest of the process is a kind of
patchwork quilt of funding, going out to private foundations,
going to PBS itself, going to individual state tourism--I wish
that Governor Allen was here. After the Civil War series,
tourism in the State of Virginia went up by tens of millions of
dollars, and the state actually called me and asked me if there
was anything else I was doing on Virginia; they'd like to
contribute.
[Laughter.]
Mr. Burns. And you could have knocked me over with a
feather, because no one, in my entire 25 years in public
television, has ever called me up and said, ``Do you want some
money?''
[Laughter.]
Mr. Burns. And the State of Virginia contributed to a film
I was working on, and completed the funding for a film I was
working, on Thomas Jefferson.
We go out, we moan and complain about how difficult it is
to raise money. There are great filmmakers out there, and great
ideas, and not enough money to go around, so we're excited
about the prospects of a generous reauthorization. But we like
the process, in the end, because of how rigorous it is, and
gets--we have to get our facts right, in the case of history--
and get it down.
And then I've been privileged to work with PBS Video, which
has been distributing my product for most of the time my films
have been available. And that has a dual function; not only are
they the best, I believe, distributors of this kind of
educational material, they know the territory better than
anybody else, and get it out to a wide number of people, but
the money they earn, in turn, gets folded back into production.
And that's a terrifically symbiotic kind of thing that goes on,
that I know that money that's being earned might eventually end
up back in a production budget for a subsequent film down the
line.
We've got a whole sequence of things we're looking forward
to over the next several years--the history of the second World
War, history of our national parks--we're finishing a film on
the boxer Jack Johnson--all of which have required that same
sort of teamwork and cooperation to get done. And as, sort of,
messy as it is--and I think that this institution knows about
messy processes--you wouldn't really want to have it any other
way, because the alternative then tends to focus the power into
just a few hands, and what I like about this is that there are
a lot of voices that contribute to our process all the way
through.
Senator Sununu. Within the production community, is there
concern that that kind of a system places people who aren't
quite as well known as you are at a disadvantage--new entrants,
new producers?
Mr. Burns. I think that funding constraints probably do
that more than the process itself, because if there was more
funding--but I broke in, I looked--when I started out, I looked
like I was 12 years old, and my first film was on----
Senator Sununu. So if you could do it, anybody could do it,
right?
Mr. Burns.--on the Brooklyn Bridge, and a lot of people
outside of public television were saying, ``No,'' as I was
trying to sell them the Brooklyn Bridge.
[Laughter.]
Senator Sununu. That was very good.
Ms. Cox, anything you'd like to add about the funding
structure for content, or the ease with which good content is
distributed across the spectrum of participants in the
Corporation?
Ms. Cox. Just to follow up on the last point, I think that
the--our ability to attract new, younger, and additional voices
to the public broadcasting world is extremely important. It's
one of the things that I'm going to be focused on, as well.
Two examples. One is--and I think that, Ken, you were part
of what call the Producers Academy, which is an effort to bring
in younger, but with some experience, producers into the public
broadcasting fold. We want to have people understand how the
system works so that we can bring them along and be able to use
their works as part of all the programming that we do.
Another example is this Crossroads Initiative that I
mentioned in my testimony. That was really an effort to--it was
an RFP. We took this out to--around the country in four or five
settings to explain what this was about, with a real desire to
bring in additional voices. And, as I said, we got 450
applications submitted for this kind of funding; 360 new
applicants. So I think it's--we do very much have that in mind,
and are trying to find ways to encourage additional voices
coming in.
Senator Sununu. Thank you very much.
The Chairman. Senator Lautenberg?
STATEMENT OF HON. FRANK R. LAUTENBERG,
U.S. SENATOR FROM NEW JERSEY
Senator Lautenberg. Thanks, Mr. Chairman.
I ask consent that my full statement be inserted into the
record as if read.
The Chairman. Without objection.
[The prepared statement of Senator Lautenberg follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Frank R. Lautenberg,
U.S. Senator from New Jersey
Mr. Chairman:
Thank you for holding the first hearing in ten years on
reauthorizing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB).
TV has been called a ``medium'' because it's neither rare nor well
done! Well, public television is the exception. And public radio is
equally outstanding. I'm not sure if it's possible to estimate the
beneficial impact public TV and radio have had on informing, educating,
and entertaining America.
I believe that CPB, National Public Radio (NPR), and the Public
Broadcasting Service (PBS) have been extremely successful in fulfilling
their mission and providing the highest quality of broadcast journalism
and services to all Americans.
NPR News, for example, has seen rapid growth in its audience--from
11.5 million listeners in 1994 to 22 million in 2004.
PBS is the leading provider of educational materials for K-to-12
teachers and it offers a broad array of educational services for adult
learners. Approximately 87 million people watch PBS each week. That's
more than any cable network audience.
I have to compliment the Nation's public TV and radio stations for
providing innovative educational and civic programming that enriches
the communities they serve.
In addition to providing the highest quality of programming in the
business, public TV stations are creating new ways to serve the public
interest, without Congressional pressure.
In my home state of New Jersey, for example, WNJN--the New Jersey
Network--is already using its digital signal to transmit job training
data to a test site in Trenton.
``Workplace Essential Skills,'' an historic partnership with the
New Jersey Department of Labor, is helping the unemployed get the basic
skills they need to compete for jobs.
New Jersey Network has also been involved with the State Office of
Emergency Management to provide secure links between emergency
authorities and nuclear power plant operators.
I commend public broadcast TV stations for offering these and other
valuable services as they make the transition from analog to digital
signals.
I look forward to hearing the testimony of our witnesses.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Lautenberg. And I'm sorry that I'm a little late
here. I would have preferred to be here than where I was, on
the floor, engaged in combat without combat pay.
[Laughter.]
Senator Lautenberg. I'm trying to fix that in an amendment
I have for those who are serving in Iraq.
[Laughter.]
Senator Lautenberg. I come out of the computer business.
The problem is that it was so long ago that maybe it's a
different industry. When I visited my old company, after having
been here a few years--we had giant computers wherever we were
located. The company is called ADP. It's a very big company,
and I started it with two other fellows--and I saw the room was
half empty, and I was in shock. I said, ``What's happened to--
have we lost so much business?'' Anyway, we've gotten better at
it. So the things that I may ask may have little relationship
to reality.
But I thought about--a long time--about how we might
educate our children differently. And now I'm talking about the
mechanical means. I'm not talking about the classroom subject.
We know that we have places, even in crowded little New Jersey,
where school buses ply the streets every day, and the kids are
brought to the classrooms, some of them fairly far distant from
a regional high school or something like that. And I know that,
in states like New Hampshire and others, like Arizona, have
that problem, of bringing--going to fetch these kids and so
forth. And I wonder whether there has been any thought given to
the possibility that the classroom--and this is through PBS
eyes--the classroom might move to the electronic delivery? I
think it must, one day.
And has there been any review of the possibilities that
public broadcasting might be part of a network that says, ``OK,
we're going to be giving you instruction over these 4 days a
week for your classroom work, and then on Friday we'll come and
have a professional visit you in the neighborhood--and
others''? Has there been anything done in--to your knowledge,
to try to initiate these kinds of specific learning programs
through a media broadcast?
Ms. Cox. Yes. And I think that Mr. Frid probably will have
some additional comments to bring to bear on this question.
But, as was mentioned earlier, public broadcasting is one of
their best-kept secrets of how much work that they are doing in
the educational world. Nearly two-thirds of the licensees are
associated with education licensees or work closely with their
schools in their communities. So the ability to use this--new
technologies in ways that benefit both the teachers and the
students is very much a part of the conversations that we're
having.
In fact, there has been some tremendous advances within the
system already, utilizing aggregated material geared toward
state standards that are available on a server or online or
broadcast. So there's--we are trying to explore the various
financial models to support that those kind of activities--
again, going to the level of support that would allow us to
really explore what we can do with this digital technology--but
the use of it for purposes of teacher training and school-based
training is absolutely front and center as part of those
conversations.
And I think, Peter, you might have some other things to
say.
Mr. Frid. Yes, Senator, I think, not only for K-12, but
also for higher education. I know that ours certainly--New
Hampshire Public Television is looking at a number of different
venues. One is, we are working with a number of local school
districts to create the Granite State Distance Learning
Network, which is a Internet-connected learning network that
provides the ability for different schools to dial in and use a
common instructor, those kind of things. We're looking at
access for students, whether they're at home or in the
classroom, utilizing video-streaming technology, where, again,
they could access the things that Kathleen was talking about,
in terms of not only courses, but other types of short program
segments.
I think one of the things that really I'm excited about,
and I think has great potential, is the opportunity for
datacasting, and that is that by utilizing our capability of
digital to be able to take program segments, instructional
materials, and feed them directly either into the classroom,
or, for that matter, right into the home--I know that our
Knowledge Network staff is working with a number of
homeschoolers in the state--actually, in the region--to provide
that kind of access. So there are some great opportunities here
that are ahead of us.
Senator Lautenberg. Does that kind of research or inquiry
come out of the operating budget for PBS? The kind of review--
--
Ms. Cox. There are contributions. There's research that
goes on around the system. CPB is engaged in some research; the
stations, as well. I know PBS has had an education agenda, as
well. So it's really--there are pockets of significant research
going on around the system.
Senator Lautenberg. Ms. Cox, how much of the budgetary--of
your revenues come from contributions and campaigns that you
organize, as compared to the government contribution?
Ms. Cox. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting gets its
funding from the Federal Government. So our funding is really
strictly just the appropriations.
Senator Lautenberg. I see. And when we get to NPR----
Ms. Cox. The system, as a whole, the Federal contribution
is roughly--it varies between 12 and 15 percent of the overall
budget.
Senator Lautenberg. So the rest of it is raised?
Ms. Cox. There is--almost 50 percent comes from members.
There is money that--I don't--I can't recall the specific
breakdown right now, but in terms of underwriting support from
foundations, and corporate support. So it's really back to the
idea that this really is a partnership of the Federal
Government. We also get significant support from state and
local entities, as well, all of which seem to be under some
downward pressure these days. Again, we're very thankful for
the continued steady support of the Federal dollar; again,
signifying how important that is as the bedrock of this
equation. So----
Senator Lautenberg. Mr. Chairman, the thing that it says to
me is that it confirms the public interest in these divisions
of the public broadcast, and it says that, ``We like what you
do.'' And I know my alarm clock goes off every morning, and
there's some mellifluous tone that comes over and tells me what
time it is, but it's better than somebody shrieking at me----
[Laughter.]
Senator Lautenberg.--from some commercial television.
If I may, Mr. Chairman, just one other thing. It's to Mr.
Burns. I don't know--I don't remember, in detail, your baseball
documentary, but was it prominently acknowledged that baseball
was invented in New Jersey?
[Laughter.]
Mr. Burns. Yes, I--Senator, I'd be happy to send you the
first episode of that series, called ``The First Inning,'' that
takes great pains to debunk the myth that it was born in
Cooperstown, New York, by Abner Doubleday, an illustrious Civil
War general, who apparently had nothing to do with baseball,
but was, in fact, born on the Elysian Fields, in Hoboken, New
Jersey.
Senator Lautenberg. Thank you. Do you remember the name of
the team?
Mr. Burns. Well, there was--the New York Nine was playing
another group of clerks from Brooklyn, and they were seeking
the refuge of the Garden State from the teeming metropolis of
New York, and adapted rules of rounders and cricket into a game
that we now recognize as baseball.
Senator Lautenberg. You've made my day.
[Laughter.]
Senator Lautenberg. Mr. Burns, have you had a chance to
look at the just-concluded 200th anniversary of the duel on the
cliffs of Weehawken, New Jersey? Quite a story, the Vice
President killed his opponent, was indicted, but never charged.
Things are same.
[Laughter.]
Mr. Burns. Senator, with regard--I have an anecdote that
doesn't address specifically your first question, but I get a
great deal of letters from teachers all the time that are
pleased that this material--all the films--are involved in
their curricula. And a very interesting several letters have
appeared from various parts of the country saying that some
school districts have remade their American history curriculum
to teach it using the baseball series. They saw it as a kind of
Trojan horse that not only communicated mathematics and
statistics, but the whole arc of American history and women's
issues and racial issues and issues of labor and management----
Senator Lautenberg. Terrific.
Mr. Burns.--all of that. And we're excited by the fact--I
think, in public television--that, unlike the rest of broadcast
and cable, which is like skywriting, which disappears in the
first zephyr, that we're committed, as are many of our
underwriters, to stick around with educational outreach. So I
think some of the questions that you have will be fulfilled in
the years to come.
Senator Lautenberg. Mr. Chairman, one more impertinent
question.
The Chairman. We're leaving the issue of killing people in
New Jersey?
[Laughter.]
Senator Lautenberg. I never spar with this Chairman when
he's sitting there.
But, no, the question about--you do such wonderful work,
and we're all indebted to you, to all of you for the work that
you do, because the volunteer side of America is a great side
of our society--but I would ask you, the impertinent question
is, do you get paid by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting?
And if so, couldn't you sell this product for lots more money,
assuming that you do get paid for the work that you do? I hope
you do. You deserve it.
Mr. Burns. I do, Senator. It's not commensurate with
professionals in the rest of television. But we write a budget
that includes salaries for the people that work on it, that are
modest. Afterwards, because of our stake in the ownership, we
can receive money through the sale of videotapes and----
Senator Lautenberg. I see.
Mr. Burns.--CDs and things like that. Companion books are
often a helpful way to do it. But it should be noted that, in
the case of the grants from the Corporation for Public
Broadcasting or the National Endowment for the Humanities, off
the top, they are paid back in a very simple and elegant
formula that permits us to return, back to the treasury,
incomes that we've made from these projects.
Senator Lautenberg. Wonderful. We congratulate all of you
for your work.
Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
The Chairman. I thank the witnesses for being here. We'll
try to mark up this reauthorization next Tuesday, and hopefully
we can get it through the Congress before we go out of session.
I think it's relatively noncontroversial. There is the issue of
more representation of station managers on the board, but I
think that's a relatively minor item. And, of course, the issue
of funding continues to be an issue of some discussion.
I thank all the witnesses. This hearing is adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 10:50 a.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
A P P E N D I X
July 15, 2004
Statement of the National Minority Public Broadcasting Consortia:
National Asian America Telecommunications Association, National Black
Programming Consortium, Latino Public Broadcasting, Native American
Public Telecommunications, Pacific Islanders in Communications
The National Minority Public Broadcasting Consortia submits this
statement in support of S. 2645, legislation reauthorizing the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). We also recommend that the
bill be amended to provide additional resources for the production of
multicultural programming for the public broadcast system.
Our mission is to bring a significant amount of programming from
our communities into the mainstream of PBS and public broadcasting. The
five communities represented by the Minority Consortia--African
American, Latino, Asian, Pacific Islander, Native American--are 29
percent of the U.S. population (2000 Census).
The Minority Consortia
With primary funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting,
the Minority Consortia serves as an important component of American
public television. By training and mentoring the next generation of
minority producers and program managers we are able to ensure the
future strength of public television and radio television programming
from our communities. Individually, each Consortia organization is
engaged in cultivating ongoing relationships with the independent
producer community by providing technical assistance, program funding,
programming support and distribution. We also provide numerous hours of
programming to individual public television and radio stations.
Through our outreach we help bring an awareness of the value of
public media among communities which have historically been untapped by
public television. Through innovative outreach campaigns, local
screenings of works destined for public television, and promotion of
web-based information and programming, communities of color are
embraced rather than ignored. The Minority Consortia's work in
educational distribution further increases the value of public
television programming by sharing its works with thousands of students.
While the Consortia organizations work on projects specific to
their communities, the five organizations also work collaboratively.
One example is our joint effort on the public television four-part
series, Matters of Race that aired last fall. That series explored the
complexity of our rapidly changing multiracial, multicultural society
in America.. The project resulted in more than television programming.
The project was designed so that modules could be pulled out for
classroom use. It was also formatted for radio broadcast and for the
Internet, and included extended interviews. This project provided a
great opportunity for extensive and diverse community outreach and
collaboration throughout its development, distribution, and use.
We also worked with American Public Television on 6 one-hour
programs (named Colorvision) featuring the work of Native American,
Asian American,, Pacific Islander, Latino and African American
filmmakers and television producers. It is now in national distribution
for all public television stations.
The programming we, both as individual organizations and
collaboratively, help bring to public television is beyond the
production reach of most local television stations. We support the
bill's proposal for increased funding for production of local
programming but believe there is also a great need for increased
funding for major programming efforts such as those we and other
independent producers undertake.
From 1997 to 2002, the Minority Consortia delivered over 88.5 hours
of quality public television programming. Collectively, we have also
funded 250 projects and 440 producers/directors. These accomplishments
have been recognized with over 123 prestigious national and regional
awards, including numerous Emmys. While most of our work is focused on
film, of note is that the Native American Public Telecommunications
(NAPT) also works in the area of public radio. NAPT developed the
Native American public radio satellite network (AIROS) that provides
live radio streaming 24 hours a day to over 70 Native American and
mainstream public radio stations in the U.S. (including Alaska).
CPB Funds
The National Minority Public Broadcasting Consortia currently
receives funds from two portions of the CPB budget, organization
support funds from the Systems Support and programming funds from the
Television Programming sections. CPB financial support is critical to
the work of our organizations. We believe that we make a major
contribution to public broadcasting with a very modest amount of
funding, but there is so much more that should be done.
The organizational support funds we receive from CPB are used not
only for operations requirements but for also for a broad array of
programming support activities and for outreach to our communities. We
received $1,850,000 in FY 2004 CPB funds for organizational support
($370,000 for each organization). This represents 0.48 percent of the
FY 2004 CPB appropriation. We have received only very small increases
in operations support funds in the past several years.
The programming funds we receive from CPB are re-granted to
producers, used for purchase of broadcast rights and other related
programming activities. Each organization solicits applications from
our communities for these programming funds. We received $3,181,815 in
FY 2004 CPB funds for programming ($636,363 for each organization).
This represents 0.83 percent (less than one percent) of the FY 2004 CPB
appropriation. Our CPB programming funds have remained virtually flat
over the past nine years, despite increases in CPB appropriations.
Recommendations
The Minority Consortia recommends modest increases in the
proportion of CPB funds--from the System Support and Programming
portions of the budget--to support the production of multicultural
programming. We also welcome any suggestions the Committee may have for
additional ways in the CPB bill to achieve this goal.
System Support. While the Minority Consortia currently receives
funding from the System Support portion of the CPB budget, the
authorizing statute makes no direct mention of support for the kind of
contributions we bring to public television and radio. The current law
notes that funds are for capital costs relating to telecommunications
satellites, payment of royalties and other fees, interconnection
facilities, assistance for stations that broadcast in language other
than English, ``and, if available, funding permits for projects and
activities that will enhance public broadcasting''. We recommend adding
to this portion of the statute that one of the activities for which
funds under this section should be used:
``for organizations that support the public broadcasting
needs of the African American, Latino, Asian, Pacific Islander,
and Native American communities through training, production,
distribution, promotion, outreach, and funding'', and
``not less than 1.5 percent of the total CPB appropriations
are for the National Minority Public Broadcasting Consortia for
activities under this section.''
Television Programming. The current law states that of funds
available for television programming, ``a substantial amount shall be
distributed to independent producers and production entities, and
producers addressing the needs and interests of minorities for the
production of programs.'' We are pleased that the S. 2465 would retain
this language. To it we would add:
``not less than 2 percent of the total CPB appropriation is
for the National Minority Public Broadcasting Consortia for
activities under this section.''
Report on Diversity. The current law requires CPB to publish an
assessment every three years on the needs of minority and diverse
audiences and its plans to address these needs. These reports can also
serve to explain the value of multicultural programming and we are
pleased that the bill would retain this reporting requirement.
We will provide the Committee with a copy of our publication, ``The
Minority Consortia: Bringing New Voices to Public Television'' which
describes in more detail the contributions made by our organizations,
individually and collectively, to public broadcasting.
Thank you for your consideration of our recommendations. We as
minority communities in public broadcasting see new opportunities to
increase diversity in programming, production, audience, and employment
in the new media environment.
______
July 2004
NATIONAL MINORITY PUBLIC BROADCASTING CONSORTIA
Latino Public Broadcasting
6777 Hollywood Boulevard, Suite 512
Los Angeles, California 90028
Luca Bentivoglio, Executive Director
Native American Public Telecommunications
Box 83111
Lincoln, Nebraska 68501
Frank Blythe, Executive Director
National Asian American Telecommunications Association
145 Ninth Street, Suite 350
San Francisco, California 94103
Eddie Wong, Executive Director
National Black Programming Consortium
145 East 125th Avenue, 4th Floor
New York, New York 10035
Mable Haddock, Executive Director
Pacific Islanders in Communications
1221 Kapiolani Boulevard, #6A4
Honolulu, Hawaii 96814
Carlyn Tani, Executive Director
______
Response to Written Question Submitted by Hon. Byron L. Dorgan to
PBS
Question. One of the most important services that public
broadcasting provides today is quality educational programs for our
Nation's children.
When the Corporation for Public Broadcasting was established in the
late 1960s its goal was to offer programs that weren't available
anywhere else. But today, with hundreds of channels offering every
imaginable kind of program, the children's programs are the ingredient
that differentiate public television from the rest of the media. In
fact, with the decline of locally-originated programs, many Americans
would likely consider that children's programs such as Sesame Street
offer the best justification for continued Federal support of public
television.
I would like the Public Broadcasting Service to provide the
Committee with information that quantifies how much funding is
currently dedicated to their children's programs. The report should
delineate the sources and associated amounts from the Corporation for
Public Broadcasting, the Ready to Learn Program, other Federal
programs, public television station support, nongovernmental
fundraising efforts that include foundations and corporate
sponsorships, and any other sources, so that the resources available to
ensure the continuation of quality educational children's programs can
be assessed.
Answer. PBS appreciates the recognition of and support for its
quality children's programs and is proud of its record of 35 years of
offering programs that kids and parents love and trust. PBS continues
this tradition today.
As a testament to their quality, PBS children's programs continue
to win prestigious awards. For example, the year 2004 marked the
seventh consecutive year that PBS earned more Emmys for its children's
series than any other broadcast network. Programs including Sesame
Street, Between the Lions, and Jakers! The Adventures of Piggley Winks
were among the winners.
PBS continues to be relevant with new offerings like its PBS KIDS
GO! block, which debuts on October 11, 2004 with programs and online
content for early elementary school kids like Maya & Miguel and
Postcards from Buster, which promote cultural diversity, pro-social
behaviors, and English language acquisition.
While children's programming is a marquee product for PBS, we are
able to feed nine hours of unique children's programming each weekday
to local stations through the National Program Service for a more
reasonable investment than it takes to fund some other kinds of
educational programming. There are a number of efficiencies that
operate to help stretch children's programming dollars. For example,
children's programming has the advantage of a long screen life, as the
audience continually turns over when children outgrow shows and new,
younger children watch library programming for the first time. In that
way, fewer new programs need to be created for children than for other
audiences. PBS also negotiates favorable deal terms, and doing so
returns money to PBS' National Program Service for additional high-
quality programming.
PBS' quality programs are funded with monies from a variety of
sources. The total production cost for PBS children's programs in
broadcast year 2003 * was about $74 million. This number
does not include contributions from the U.S. Department of Education,
which most recently contributed $8 million for Federal FY 2004. From
year to year, children's programming costs vary depending on such
factors as the timing of new program launches and the number of new
episodes. Following is a breakdown of PBS children's television funding
for the most recent time periods available.
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\*\ ``Broadcast year 2003'' numbers generally reflect funds
allocated for new programming broadcast during the time period July
2002 through June 2003 as well as the renewal of distribution rights
for previously broadcast programs, as reported by program producers to
PBS.
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Public Television. For broadcast year 2003, producing stations
funded about $5.8 million in children's programming, PBS through its
National Program Service funded about $19.5 million, and the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting funded about $6.4 million.
Producers, Corporate, Foundation. Non-station producer funding
accounted for about $27.7 million in broadcast year 2003. Corporate
underwriting accounted for about $8.3 million in broadcast year 2003,
and foundation support accounted for about $1.7 million.
Government. For Federal FY 2004, the Department of Education
contributed $8 million through Ready to Learn for programming such as
Arthur, Between the Lions, and Sesame Street. For broadcast year 2003,
National Science Foundation contributions accounted for about $4.4
million for programming such as Cyberchase and Zoom.
PBS will continue to be the leader in children's programming,
expanding into new areas such as the GO! block and supporting every
program with rich online educational content. Although there are many
children's offerings provided by other channels, PBS programming is
unique in its commitment to educational quality and universal access.
For example, PBS works with experienced educational film or television
producers who involve children, educational researchers, parents,
educators, daycare providers, and subject-matter experts in the design
and production process.
As a result of our focus on education, PBS is trusted by parents
and teachers, and is especially popular among homeschoolers. A recent
study by Harris Interactive found that a majority of American
caregivers agreed that PBS KIDS offers ``educational programs from
which (their children) can learn.'' PBS KIDS also received the highest
overall quality score of any competitor in children's programming, and
parents felt that PBS is a ``trusted and safe place for children to
watch television.'' We agree, and we will continue to make quality
children's programming a priority.
Thank you for your interest in PBS children's programming.