Muppet Lobby Loses Their Funding

Another victim of the cruel GOP attempt to trim the budget (from Cubachi):

UPI is reporting that Congress has voted for the amendment by a party line vote of 235 to 189. By not providing funds to the Corportation for Public Broadcasting (which in turn, funds NPR and PBS) within the $61 billion cut from the 2011 budget.

In its current form, the bill will withdraw any obligation on the part of Congress to fund the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which dolls out public media funds, beyond 2012. Currently, the CPB receives around $420 million, or $1.40 cents per capita from the federal government.

Patricia Harrison, the Chief Executive of the Corporation of Public Broadcasting said PBS and NPR are “trustworthy” media that fulfill the needs of the public:

Public media is local, trustworthy, and educational.
Federal dollars fund “community-based public television and radio stations and program producers who create unique and trusted content,” she said.

Public outlets serve “the educational and informational needs of this country,” she said.

There used to be a Sesame Street store at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, CA that did big business. The licensing of the characters also brings in big bucks. Somewhere out there I'm sure there's a big business that would love to put their sponsorship on programs carried by PBS. There simply is no need for public funding of any kind for PBS or NPR. It's a luxury we can no longer afford.