Here's a brief update on the current status of public media.
In short: it ain’t good.
If you’re a regular listener to MMN, you probably know that over the more than 150 episodes that we’ve produced a sizable chunk of them involved conversations with documentary filmmakers whose work was broadcast on public media outlets like PBS and NPR.
Much of the reason that these documentaries have found a home at places like PBS is because they deal with important issues—is...
Here's a brief update on the current status of public media.
In short: it ain’t good.
If you’re a regular listener to MMN, you probably know that over the more than 150 episodes that we’ve produced a sizable chunk of them involved conversations with documentary filmmakers whose work was broadcast on public media outlets like PBS and NPR.
Much of the reason that these documentaries have found a home at places like PBS is because they deal with important issues—issues that impact the health of our democracy, our natural environment, the rights of marginalized groups, and often compelling human interest stories that the commercial broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox) fear won’t attract a big enough audience to sell to advertisers.
That’s not to say that thoughtful, well-made, and illuminating documentaries can’t be found on commercial broadcast networks or subscription-funded streaming platforms like Netflix, Apple TV, or Amazon Prime.
But public media is often the last bastion of informational and educational programming that is (or was) available to all: free of charge and free of advertiser oversight.
On August 1, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting announced that it would shut down after nearly 6 decades of services. In the aftermath of the announcement, I read and heard lots of concern—and no small amount of confusion—about what that means and why it matters.
Lucky for me, later on that same day, I read, in the online publication Vulture, an extremely helpful overview of what CPB is and how its relationship to public media works written by journalist Nicholas Quah.
So I thought I’d take some time to share excerpts from that article to help those concerned understand exactly where things stand. The article, which I’ve linked to in our episode notes, is titled “The Future of Public Media Looks Rocky”
Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers from across the creative spectrum. From providing fiscal sponsorship to presenting an array of informative and educational programs, Filmmakers Collaborative supports creatives at every step in their journey.
About the host: www.writevoicecreative.com and https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-azevedo/
Sound Engineer: A.J. Kierstead
