ruffhauser

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 14:12:05 -0800

Public radio is already forcibly funded by money the government takes from the people. The ironic thing is: I would write a check for the programming today if the government would end its funding of public broadcasting and let these great shows compete for listeners in the marketplace. There really is no need in today's multimedia world for the government to subsidize broadcasting. If a broadcast program is good enough, it does not need government funding. Additionally, because it is, really, state-run media and the journalists are paid, in part, by the government, NPR's news coverage is always suspect. NPR told advertisers several years ago that its listeners were 66 percent wealthier than the average American and 150 percent more likely to be professionals or managers. These people can afford to pay for such programming if they really want it. Let's face it, tax-funded broadcasting, as well as other tax-funded cultural activities such as art and music, is a transfer of wealth from the middle class, which is taxed to pay for the news and entertainment of the upper middle class.

Seattlest: That Quacking Sound You Hear Is KCTS

ruffhauser