Dayton Calls for Increased Federal Funding Vital to Keeping Sesame Street, Clifford the Big Red Dog on Public Television
Dayton Calls for Increased Federal Funding Vital to Keeping Sesame Street, Clifford the Big Red Dog on Public Television
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Mark Dayton today joined with 24 of his Senate colleagues in sending a letter to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Subcommittee on Labor-HHS-Education, urging them to increase federal funding for public broadcasting, particularly for children's programming. Last week, the House Appropriations Committee cut funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting by 50 percent and totally eliminated funding for the PBS Ready To Learn program, which produces high-quality children's programs, such as Sesame Street and Clifford the Big Red Dog.
"At a time when so many parents are concerned about the negative content their children see on television, it is perplexing that Congress would eliminate funding for positive, educational programming," said Dayton. "We need to do all we can to strengthen programs that help our children learn critical thinking and social skills, without violence and negative messages from the media."
Recently, the National Television Violence Study reported that nearly two out of three television programs contain violence, and children watching television are exposed to an average of six violent acts per hour.
The full text of the letter is below.
The Honorable Arlen Specter
Chairman
Subcommittee on Labor, Health
Services, Education, and
Committee on Appropriations
SD 184
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510
The Honorable Tom Harkin
Ranking Member
Subcommittee on Labor, Health
Services, Education, and
Committee on Appropriations
SH 123
United States Senate
Washingon, D.C. 20510
Dear Chairman Specter and Ranking Member Harkin:
We write to urge you to increase funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and
the Ready-to-Learn program, which support high quality children's programming such as
Sesame Street, Dragon Tales, and Clifford the Big Red Dog.
On Wednesday, the House Appropriations Committee cut the Corporation's budget by
25 percent from $400 million to $300 million. The bill also eliminated the $23 million allocation or the Ready to Learn program, the $39 million fund to allow Public Broadcasting Service PBS) stations to convert to digital programming, and the $50 million meant to upgrade the satellite technology that is essential to PBS' operations.
At a time when so many parents complain about the negative messages our media sends
to children, it is perplexing that members of Congress would eliminate one of the only programs that provide educational content through the media. We hope that you reject this approach and instead provide a vitally needed increase in funding for these programs.
Many parents are struggling to find positive shows for their children to watch among the
violent and lurid programming that dominates television. We know from the National Television Violence Study, the largest content analysis undertaken to date, that nearly 2 out of 3 television programs contain violence and children watching television are exposed to an average of 6 violent acts per hour. In fact, violence is more prevalent in children's programming than in other programming. And the amount of television violence is on the rise.
As parents are increasingly anxious about the negative messages their children receive
from the media, these television programs represent the only safe harbor for many parents. Shows like Sesame Street and Dragon Tales, which receive essential support from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, have been helping children learn critical thinking and social skills for decades. These shows are a fun, engaging and a valuable part of millions of children's daily lives. Parents feel confident exposing their children to these shows because they are safe, free of violence, and designed to stimulate children's rapidly developing brains.
We know that children spend an enormous amount of time watching television. According to research recently released by the Kaiser Family Foundation, children between the ages of 0 to 6 spend an average of two hours a day watching television or videos, and children between the ages of 8 and 18 spend 3 hours watching television. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Ready to Learn make some of the healthiest and most valuable programming available to our children. We sincerely hope that you will do all you can to strengthen these critical programs.
Thank you in advance for your consideration of this important issue.
Sincerely,
Senators Mark Dayton (MN), Daniel Akaka (D-HI), Max Baucus (D-MT), Joseph Biden (D-DE), Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Jon Corzine (D-NJ), Christopher Dodd (D-CT), Byron Dorgan (D-ND), Tim Johnson (D-SD), John Kerry (D-MA), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Carl Levin (D-MI), Joseph Lieberman (D-CT), Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Barack Obama (D-IL), Mark Pryor (D-AR), Jack Reed (D-RI), John Rockefeller (D-WV), Ken Salazar (D-CO), Charles Schumer (D-NY), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Ron Wyden (D-OR).
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