Press Release
Pressure builds for ouster of CPB Chairman
Contact: Timothy Karr, 201-533-8838
WASHINGTON – Kenneth Tomlinson, chairman of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), is facing increased criticism from Congress and legions of concerned citizens for his political interference at PBS and NPR.
"For countless millions of Americans public broadcasting is the last stronghold for journalism that's not afraid to challenge the official view," said Josh Silver, executive director of Free Press. "Ken Tomlinson is a radical right-wing activist who sees any programming that deviates from his worldview as evidence of liberal bias."
On Monday, Free Press delivered nearly 100,000 petitions demanding Tomlinson's "immediate resignation" for abusing "his position to pursue a partisan agenda." The petitions were delivered directly to acting CPB President Ken Ferree alongside 50,000 petitions from Common Cause seeking an end to political interference at PBS and NPR.
On Tuesday, members of both chambers of Congress joined the call for Tomlinson to step down. In the Senate, Sens. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) held a press conference urging President Bush to remove Tomlinson from his post. They sent a letter to the president urging Tomlinson's ouster along with 13 other senators: Joe Biden (D-Del.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Jon Corzine (D-N.J.), Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.), Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).
In the House, Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) urged Tomlinson to resign because he "has let his zeal for imposing his own view of 'political balance' on public broadcasting interfere with his core mission -- to protect the nation's premier children's television network from funding cuts."
Markey made his remarks at rally on Capitol Hill to oppose drastic cuts in federal funding for public broadcasting recently approved by the House Appropriations Committee. Also appearing at the event were Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), John Dingell (D-Mich.), Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), Maurice Hinchey (D-N.Y.), Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.), Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) and Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.)
At the event, MoveOn.org presented petitions signed by more than 1 million Americans opposing the cuts in funding at CPB, PBS, NPR and local stations nationwide. A vote by the full House on the funding cuts is expected by Thursday.
"Tomlinson and his allies in Congress should understand that public broadcasting is not theirs for the taking," said Timothy Karr, campaign director of Free Press. "Public broadcasting belongs to all Americans, a vast majority of whom see PBS, NPR and other public media as the most trusted, fair and balanced sources of news and information on the air."
The CPB board of directors, who are meeting in Washington this week, delayed a vote on selecting the organization's new president. Tomlinson reportedly supports the hiring of Patricia Harrison, the former co-chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, who has no previous experience in public broadcasting.
"Tomlinson has overreached," Karr said. "The Corporation for Public Broadcasting was established to serve as a 'heat shield' to protect programmers from the political winds of Washington. Tomlinson has turned this shield into a partisan blow torch, and now he's feeling the heat."
Free Press has joined with Common Cause, Consumers Union, Consumers Federation of America and Media Access Project to announce plans for a series of local town meetings across the country, where the public will talk directly to broadcasters and policymakers about the future of public broadcasting.
For more information, see www.freepress.net/publicbroadcasting.
"For countless millions of Americans public broadcasting is the last stronghold for journalism that's not afraid to challenge the official view," said Josh Silver, executive director of Free Press. "Ken Tomlinson is a radical right-wing activist who sees any programming that deviates from his worldview as evidence of liberal bias."
On Monday, Free Press delivered nearly 100,000 petitions demanding Tomlinson's "immediate resignation" for abusing "his position to pursue a partisan agenda." The petitions were delivered directly to acting CPB President Ken Ferree alongside 50,000 petitions from Common Cause seeking an end to political interference at PBS and NPR.
On Tuesday, members of both chambers of Congress joined the call for Tomlinson to step down. In the Senate, Sens. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) held a press conference urging President Bush to remove Tomlinson from his post. They sent a letter to the president urging Tomlinson's ouster along with 13 other senators: Joe Biden (D-Del.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Jon Corzine (D-N.J.), Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.), Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).
In the House, Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) urged Tomlinson to resign because he "has let his zeal for imposing his own view of 'political balance' on public broadcasting interfere with his core mission -- to protect the nation's premier children's television network from funding cuts."
Markey made his remarks at rally on Capitol Hill to oppose drastic cuts in federal funding for public broadcasting recently approved by the House Appropriations Committee. Also appearing at the event were Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), John Dingell (D-Mich.), Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), Maurice Hinchey (D-N.Y.), Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.), Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) and Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.)
At the event, MoveOn.org presented petitions signed by more than 1 million Americans opposing the cuts in funding at CPB, PBS, NPR and local stations nationwide. A vote by the full House on the funding cuts is expected by Thursday.
"Tomlinson and his allies in Congress should understand that public broadcasting is not theirs for the taking," said Timothy Karr, campaign director of Free Press. "Public broadcasting belongs to all Americans, a vast majority of whom see PBS, NPR and other public media as the most trusted, fair and balanced sources of news and information on the air."
The CPB board of directors, who are meeting in Washington this week, delayed a vote on selecting the organization's new president. Tomlinson reportedly supports the hiring of Patricia Harrison, the former co-chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, who has no previous experience in public broadcasting.
"Tomlinson has overreached," Karr said. "The Corporation for Public Broadcasting was established to serve as a 'heat shield' to protect programmers from the political winds of Washington. Tomlinson has turned this shield into a partisan blow torch, and now he's feeling the heat."
Free Press has joined with Common Cause, Consumers Union, Consumers Federation of America and Media Access Project to announce plans for a series of local town meetings across the country, where the public will talk directly to broadcasters and policymakers about the future of public broadcasting.
For more information, see www.freepress.net/publicbroadcasting.
