Fox in the Henhouse: DC NPR affiliate WAMU is featuring Corporation for Public Broadcasting chair Ken Tomlinson on its Dianne Rehme talk show this morning....Tomlinson was recently reported by the NYT to advocate that NPR stations broadcast less news and more music.

Some stats:
$450 million Congressional money for public broadcasting
80% for TV
20% for Radio
Most money Congress appropriates for public broadcasting flows from CPB to local stations
Accounts for about 7% of operating funds for stations like WAMU or WETA

Rehme: How do you determine balance?

Tomlinson: Balance is not rocket science. Balance is to make sure within a program or an evening various points of view are heard...

Rehme: Trends in public support for public broadcasting?

Tomlinson: We should say public broadcasting should strive to represent all points of view. My concern two years ago was the Bill Moyers show on Friday night (Now). I sought to encourage creation of programs to balance that show. I don't want to continue to fight Bill Moyers. He does represent a libera point of view, I think we should have a program with the conservative point of view and let the people decide. There was an initial disagreement between me and head of PBS (Pat Mitchell) about the need to balance Moyers' show. After that disagreement ended, we moved on.

Rehme: Of course two things happened: Bill Moyers resigned from his position as host of NOW and the CPB gave $5 million to fund the new program with the conservative bent hosted by Paul Gigot (of the WSJ)...

Rehme: you hired polling firms to learn about public perceptions of NPR and public TV stations. What were results?

Tomlinson: The polls were generally good news for public broadcasting. McNeill/Lehrer was the original 'we report you decide' news program....While polls were positive, there were indications of concerns about balance. But it's a problem that's highly correctable. It's one of those evergreen issues we're always going to have to face.

Rehme: Am I incorrect that a majority of the US adult population does not believe that the news and information programming on public broadcasting is biased? In fact, the plurality of Americans indicates there is no apparent bias one way or other, while approximately one in five detects a liberal bias, and one in ten detects a conservative bias?

Tomlinson: That is a proper reflection of the poll.

Rehme: Then how does that lead us to believe that we must have something to balance a program like Bill Moyers?

Tomlinson: Well do you agree that Bill Moyers was liberal advocacy journalism?

...

Tomlinson: Last year PBS ran a three part series on oil. One part was on drilling for oil. Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens wrote CPB and said that program was not balanced!

Someone wrote and said NPR is anti-Israel. A single opinion from a member of Congress - leading Democrat from California (Brad Sherman from CA).

So I thought finding a means of assessing journalism is difficult. But why don't we find a way when people are concerned about alleged bias, why don't we create a situation to find a place where people can turn to with their complaint and have it dealt with professionally.

Rehme: Doesn't that go against the initial commitment of the CPB to provide a firewall between the Congress and public broadcasting, by bringing in ombudsmen who will in fact be political in nature of how they assess?

Rehme: On this program, we have always tried to represent the Palestnian and the Israeli perspective. And on each program we have been criticized by both sides. It (bias) is in the ear of the beholder...

Tomlinson: Let these things be dealt with on a case by case basis.

Rehme: Any complaints NPR was anti-Arab?

Tomlinson: All complaints that day in open hearing were that NPR was anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian reporting.

Rehme: Did that not surprise you?

Tomlinson: Interest groups become activated...I always say the best way to mount a campaign among liberals in this country is to say conservatives are trying to take over public broadcasting.

In the Jewish community there's been a lot of activism on this issue...

Rehme: How unusual was it for CPB to fund the new Paul Gigot/WSJ program at $5 million?

Tomlinson: We fund lots of new programs....they have to find sponsors after one year....

Rehme: You've already said Now with Bill Moyers was monitored, now should the new WSJ program be monitored?

Tomlinson: NOW was monitored only because a key leader was saying it was ok. We know WSJ is going to reflect a conservative point of view (so it won't be monitored) (It will essentially be side by side with NOW that represents a liberal point of view). Other programs will not reflect a conservative point of view. Balance will be built into the framework of the show (The Lehrer news hour)....

Rehme: A listener emails....the two people chosen for ombudsman Ken Body who endorsed GOP candidate Mitch Daniels in his bid for governor of Indiana and William Schultz, avowed conservative.....

Tomlinson: These people are professionals...I knew Body in a different point of his life when he was with the New Republic....

Listener/Caller: I think it's the investigative reporting by NPR and PBS that is in the eyesight/cross hairs of Mr. Tomlinson....

Rep. Ben Sherman (D-Ca): NPR should monitor/balance the content of its individual speakers, not that it has two Jewish speakers, one Arab speaker....

Rehme: CBP chair has told board that NPR should direct money away from national news broadcasts to classical music programs...

Tomlinson: We've had discussions...But we're not going to have any "redirection." We're considering our consultations with stations...We're going to try to provide some emphasis on local news...Some common sense encouragement of cultural programming

Rehme: But is that really the function of the CPB to define what stations put on their air by virtue of the money you allot for example to classical music as opposed to news?

Tomlinson: Some of that money may flow in the future to cultural programs, to local news.

Rehme: Classical program across the country has lost listeners, lost support, whereas news program has gained support, gained listeners, by virtue of its news program. So I ask again why would CPB be directing any monies towards the development of classical music programs when most stations have moved away from that?

Tomlinson: Music programming is very important in the history of public radio.

Rehme: It used to be.

Tomlinson: Power of musical programming is very important. Where reasonable we should encourage the development of music programming....

Posted by Laura at May 18, 2005 10:10 AM