This year ZOOM, an educational show aimed at 8- to 12-year-olds, joins a growing list of cancelled PBS KIDS programs, including The Electric Company, 3-2-1 Contact and Square One TV. Meanwhile, Reading Rainbow, perennially on shaky funding ground, teeters ever closer to the edge. And Postcards from Buster, which received a much-publicized scolding from Department of Education Secretary Margaret Spellings earlier this year for producing an episode that included a family headed by two lesbian parents, has become a target for conservative criticism of PBS KIDS programming. (PBS KIDS is the arm of the network focused on children’s programming.)

With well-regarded programs like Nickelodeon’s Blues' Clues and Dora the Explorer—not to mention Internet offerings and video games—siphoning away PBS’s core young audience, some producers are worried about the long-term prospects of each of PBS’s 27 kid-focused programs.

Nickelodeon now broadcasts over 112 hours a week of original preschool programs, compared with approximately 38 hours for PBS. Nickelodeon's original shows for children comprise the 10-most-watched shows among children 2 to 5 in 2005, according to the network.

Several public broadcasting experts, including Alyce Myatt—until recently a manager of PBS children’s programming—are concerned that PBS administrators aren’t focusing enough on the educational and creative elements needed to strengthen the network's offerings for children. "I don't know why they aren’t getting it right," she says. "But they are certainly missing the mark, which has led them to a dilemma."

Such concerns have arisen against a backdrop of Congressional debates on whether or not to restore full PBS program funding. In June, a House subcommittee voted to cut funding for public broadcasting by 46 percent. However, faced with criticism from constituents, the full House voted to restore the funds, to a total of $400 million. That’s approximately $100 million less than the Senate’s appropriation, which includes monies to fund PBS’s transition to digital television. The Senate also voted to include $25 million for Ready to Learn, a program that funds many educational components of PBS KIDS shows. Soon, the Senate and House versions of the bill will go before a joint conference committee for debate.

Education & Outreach

Myatt – who worked at PBS for several years until 2003 and has also been involved with Nickelodeon, Scholastic and the Children’s Television Workshop—says one of her biggest concerns is that PBS administrators are not focused enough on promoting and developing the educational qualities of PBS KIDS shows.

A 2004 national survey conducted by Grunwald Associates found that PBS was ranked the number one television and video resource for classroom programming in the country. So Myatt says she was disappointed when she watched Pat Mitchell, PBS President, testify before a Senate subcommittee regarding governmental funding for public broadcasting on July 11. According to Myatt, it was a missed opportunity for Mitchell to bring the educational quality of PBS's children's programming to the forefront of the discussion. "Instead, she fell right into talking about 'political bias' in PBS programming," says Myatt.

In Mitchell's defense, the subcommittee was asking her questions about all PBS show offerings, not just children's programs. However, Myatt says that it’s the kids' shows that are the most profitable for the network, both in terms of finances and the goodwill generated from the public. "Why shouldn’t kids’ shows be the top PBS priority?" asks Myatt.

"When you’ve got the governmental spotlight on you, promote your strongest asset," says Myatt. "Bring it out front and use the publicity to make it stronger."

Danny Schecter, a media observer who has helped produce two series and several documentaries for PBS stations, agrees. "PBS should run more PSAs and informational programs about how to get people involved," he says. "They do it for pledge periods —why not for projects that matter?"

Producing with Education in Mind

Making education the selling point of all PBS KIDS programming calls for getting rid of shows that don’t fit the mission, according to Myatt.

"Why is Berenstain Bears on the roster?" she asks. Unlike shows like Sesame Street, Reading Rainbow and ZOOM, Berenstain Bears is not produced by a PBS-affiliated station or an education-focused organization. It and other PBS KIDS cartoons are produced by Nelvana, an entertainment company, and receive financial support from the makers of PLAYSKOOL toys. It's a straightforward cartoon with few explicitly educational components.

In 2002, explaining the addition of the Berenstain Bears and other cartoons, John F. Wilson, senior vice president and co-chief program executive of PBS, said, "At a time when there are fewer and fewer children's shows on television, we're pleased to expand PBS KIDS programming in response to the tremendous viewership and Web traffic it has generated."

"It’s a cheap way to get ratings," translates Myatt. "PBS could—should—be doing better."

Meanwhile, the beloved PBS mainstay Reading Rainbow, a Nebraska Educational Telecommunications-produced book program that’s hosted by LeVar Burton, continues to face financial struggles, despite research that indicates improved literacy and other learning values for children. (For more on this research, read CFK’s Rainbow’s End?)

Twila Liggett, the creator and executive producer of Reading Rainbow, was especially concerned when she read a July 11 article in the Lincoln Journal Star that quoted Nebraska Educational Telecommunications General Manager Rod Bates as saying that the Department of Education, which gives money to PBS to fund the show, isn’t happy with it. The Department of Education, he told reporter Jeff Korbelik, is leaning toward programs that “teach” reading rather than those that “encourage” reading, such as Reading Rainbow. The program currently has a commitment of $1 million from Ready to Learn monies to help produce five new episodes.

Liggett explains that the funding Reading Rainbow receives from PBS and Ready to Learn is crucial in order to produce new educational shows. "We can’t market and sell LeVar Burton stuffed toys, like Sesame Street can with Big Bird," she says.

Instead, the show’s producers have sought additional funding through foundations and companies like The Children’s Place clothing store. Even with these avenues of support, the number of new Reading Rainbow shows produced each year has fallen dramatically over the show's 22-season run.

"Big Bird is a Billionaire"

Unlike Reading Rainbow, many PBS KIDS shows are able to generate significant income through merchandising and licensing deals. Some lawmakers have argued that PBS shows should be able to support themselves without any public funds. "Big Bird is a billionaire," Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite (R-FL) said during a June House session debating governmental funding for PBS. "Americans should be shocked. This is the height of absurdity—a massive corporation shielding its profits so it can continue to feed at the government trough." (Governmental funding accounts for approximately 15 percent of PBS's $2 billion-plus annual budgets.)

Exactly how much money individual shows raise through merchandising and licensing is not information the network shares with the public. When asked to divulge funding models for PBS KIDS shows, Jill Corderman, a network spokesperson, said, "There are 27 programs within PBS KIDS and PBS KIDS GO! and each series has a different funding model. We do not handle licensing/merchandising agreements—the producers do."

Several series producers and publicists also wouldn’t go on the record for this story about the amount of merchandising and licensing funds they receive. “We do not wish to disclose this information," Elizabeth Cote, a spokesperson for WGBH, the public television station that produces such shows as Arthur, Between the Lions and Postcards from Buster, said via email. "Our PBS agreements have a confidentiality clause regarding financial terms so we are unable to provide PBS fund amounts."

When asked if WGBH-produced kids' shows could survive without governmental funding, Cote responded, "It is not realistic at all because we have very few products beyond books and videos, and the revenue helps keep the shows afloat but could not support them."

Cote says her team is confident that public support will keep Congress from reducing funds for PBS programming.

Changing How the Pie is Sliced

Distribution of government monies to various PBS KIDS programs is not based on any particular formula. Myatt says it's based more on the ability of producers to make arguments for money that align with PBS administrators' changing goals.

Thus, a show that is doing well in terms of licensing and merchandising, like Sesame Street, tends to grow more financially stable with PBS and Ready to Learn support, while shows like Reading Rainbow are perennially scrambling to find new funding streams.

"We used to have annual or semi-annual producers' meeting to discuss those kinds of issues," says Liggett. "But it’s not happening the same way anymore."

She says that she'd like to see PBS create some kind of formula or "dedicated funding arm" to help shows with educational merit that have difficulty finding new funding.

Myatt expands on that idea, saying that she'd like to see a system implemented to ensure that shows that are meeting certain educational criteria receive more dollars from the public funding stream.

Re-ZOOMED Creativity

When it comes to PBS KIDS shows, Myatt says that there should be more creativity on both the funding and programming side, if the programs are to compete with cable network offerings.

Myatt lobbied hard to create an educational book series for each program that would provide information to teachers and parents about each show's mission, and offer insights from educators and producers on the educational importance of each program. She didn't see that plan implemented before leaving the network, but still believes it would be a simple way to increase income for struggling shows like Reading Rainbow. "They also have to strengthen their Internet presence, and find ways to use that media to promote the educational outreach opportunities," she says.

"Why couldn't PBS become a C-SPAN for education with more programming on what can be done to strengthen education?" suggests Schecter.

Myatt says it takes a persevering attitude to work as a producer for PBS KIDS. She says her best advice to current producers is this: "You can't be afraid to rock the boat."

Resources:

• PBS Financial Information
• PBS KIDS

Rob Capriccioso is a staff writer for Connect for Kids.