David Boaz makes a
fantastic cultural case against federal funding of PBS, an
organization that consistently confuses its ability to cater to a
niche bourgeoisie audience with an unquestionable moral crusade on
behalf of all. Here’s the final paragraphs, but please do go read
the whole piece:
The main point here isn’t the money, it’s the separation of news
and state. If anything should be kept separate from
government and politics, it’s the news and public-affairs
programming that informs Americans about government and its
policies. When government brings us the news — with all the
inevitable bias and spin — it is putting its thumb on the scales
of democracy.
A healthy democracy needs a free and diverse press — but
Americans today have access to more sources of news and opinion
than ever before: more broadcast networks than before, cable
networks, satellite TV and radio, the Internet. Any diversity
argument for NPR and PBS is now a sad joke.
We don’t need a government news and opinion network. More
important, we shouldn’t require taxpayers to pay for broadcasting
that will inevitably reflect a particular perspective on politics
and culture. The marketplace of democracy should be a free market,
in which the voices of citizens are heard, with no unfair advantage
granted by government to one participant.
Ken (Old Texican)| 6.2.11 @ 9:51AM
Shawn,
you are KIDDING right?
Hey! We NEED the PRAVDA!
Rick V.| 6.2.11 @ 11:22AM
Hmmm . "We shouldn't require taxpayers to pay for broadcasting that will inevitably reflect a particular perspective on politics and culture." Sounds good, but how can we make people understand that? I know, let's cut all the funding for PBS and divert it to Fox. You know, share the wealth. Then let's see how that goes over with the New York Times.