Kevin Sutton wrote:

>Karl Miller wrote:
>
>For some time it has seemed to me that both NPR and PBS were clearly for
>profit.  I wonder, does tax money still go to both?
>
>Less than 5 % of our local NPR budget in Dallas comes from the government,
>and that number is shrinking. They are certainly NOT for profit, and
>continue to be one of the few sources of information not tainted by a
>right wing agenda. Long may they prosper!

I wish I could share your enthusiasm.  Our local NPR station plays the
news, folk music a bit of jazz and several other locally produced programs.
In some ways they do a decent job with the local community.  Since we have
an independant all classical station here, I assume our NPR station saw no
need to address classical music.

As for the news (which is really outside the subject matter for this list),
I am one who sees all news filled with error and personal perspective,
always to be auditioned with care.

Again, if our local NPR station is any sort of model for NPR stations,
they have, from my perspective, an inflated budget which pays some of their
administrators more than they could get at a for profit station.  They have
a staff which is larger than most of our for profit stations.

When it comes to content of public broadcasting, I find little of merit.
The coverage of music seems to be designed to attract a large audience.
From my perspective they need the large audience to support the large
budget.  In seeking a large audience they must, by necessity, seek a lower
common denominator.  I reflect on the programs I view on the Discovery
Channel, A and E, etc.  They differ little from the better efforts on PBS.

What I have encountered, the coverage of classical music is superficial.
The artists and composers featured would be those whose work can be found
on the front ranks of the Billboard Charts.

I remember a time when it was truly something unique.  I recall a
television series featuring several programs of Copland presenting music
of the 20s.  It was my first experience with some of the music of Harris,
Cowell, Ornstein, et al.

In short, I find little in the programming of public broadcasting which
would qualify for a non-profit status.  Having just acquired a non-profit
status for my own record company, I know that one of the criteria is that
the organization must offer something that benefits society and is not
economically viable.  From my perspective, I don't see public broadcasting
meeting that criteria.  Perhaps it is because I gave up on them years ago,
and perhaps it is because I remember what I used to encounter in
educational broadcasting.

Typical of the thinking of public broadcasting was their poll on the
great classical works of the century.  For me, the perpetuation of the
"masterpiece syndrome" does more to discourage discovery and an open minded
perspective on classical music.  For me, this is at the core of what public
broadcasting has become.

Karl