It’s Nice of Fox to Let PBS Do A Little Victory Dance
Finally, the network of Sesame Street, Andre Rieu, Ken Burns, and interminable fund-raising drives (despite our already hefty taxpayer “contributions”) can throw itself a party.
A new poll conducted by GfK Roper Public Affairs & Media ranks PBS as one of the most trusted news sources and institutions, B&C reports.
40% of Americans polled report they trust PBS news programming a “great deal” Fox News came in second and CNN came in third…
But don’t party too hard, guys. The ultimate trust poll is the actual ratings and Fox rules that roost like the Washington Capitals own the Eastern Conference. Fox is so trusted by the news-watching public that its “Red Eye” show, comes on in the middle of the night, crushes everyone else’s prime time shows.
So enjoy yourself, PBS, but remember that while the public says it trusts you, it sure isn’t watching you much.
Other Posts of Interest:
- It’s Like the Mafia, Except It’s Chris Dodd and Chuck Schumer, Who Are Wimps
- If They Hired a Republican, He’d Die of Loneliness
- “Hey YOUUUU GUYYYYYYYYS!”
Category: It's Entertainment!, Oh, THAT liberal media.
1. This is the 7th year that PBS has been judged the most trusted. If you read the whole report on the results it is obvious why.
2. The implication that Americans pay a "hefty" amount for publlc broadcasting through their taxes hasn't been true since its beginning and in 1987 the percentage of government dollars has been below 50 % and continues to decrease. The study you reference by your HTML is evidence of this fact. And, the idea that viewers and listeners are not paying tax dollars for the commercial media they use is nonsense. One has to forget that the broadcast spectrum belongs to the American public and it was licensed, free of charge, to the broadcasters for public service. That most of it is used to make money that comes from the public through product and service sales is conveniently forgotten. And that includes all those channels whether or not the public uses them.
3. That commercial media has higher ratings per show is no indication of anything other than that TV watchers mostly want to be passively entertained. When they want to trust the information they seek, they chose public TV and radio.
4. Fact is that 87% of Americans chose programs on PBS and NPR each week. Certainly PBS it is the first choice of parents who want healthy programs for their children. NPR has had growth in news audience from about 11 million people in 2000 to over 33 million listeners per week.
5. My cheap shot: While facts get in the way of those with a bias against public media, it is always easier to acquire an uninformed bias by watching entertainment and celebrity news. And it evidently helps if the viewerlistener likes to be abused by their TV and radio shouters and ranters.
You're welcome.