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A recent letter to the editor in the Sun-Gazette criticized my letter defending PBS and NPR. The writer seems to think my letter was only about a desire that taxpayers fund my entertainment. While it is true that my letter begins with a nostalgic overview of programs my husband and I enjoyed on PBS over the years, most of the letter was devoted to the ways PBS and NPR are important to all viewers and listeners, especially in rural areas, and the ways in which people will suffer from the loss of this important source of information.
The letter criticizing mine says that there is no right to entertainment in the Constitution. True enough, but there are plenty of references to the importance of education in a free society, indeed, the right of all citizens to a good education, especially in the the 10th and 14th amendments and in Supreme Court defenses of this right in decisions liked Brown vs the Board of Education (1954). One might note that there is no right in the Constitution to mount expensive military displays like the one President Trump arranged for the weekend of his birthday and the anniversary of the creation of our military. It will cost in excess of $45 million dollars. The yearly allocation for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is $350 million and cheap at the price.
When Congress passed the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, a bipartisan effort, the purpose of this non-profit corporation was to provide non-commercial educational programing "in the public interest." Cultural purposes were also mentioned as well as furthering "the general welfare," and addressing "the needs of unserved and underserved audiences." And this includes their need for local weather forecasting, and information about public meetings, and the senior play at the local high school.
The writer doesn't seem to realize that the Corporation for Public Broadcasting was established by the Congress and intended to be protected from political winds and the whims of future presidents and political parties. And until recently Republicans as well as Democrats supported it and recognized its social and educational importance.
My point is that President Trump and the executive branch have no right to dismantle something established by Congress. And that is why the current Congress has the obligation to stand by the CPB, which it established in 1967, and preserve this important source of public information, education and even entertainment.
ELLEN BLAIS
Mansfield
Submitted by Virtual Newsroom