Don’t ask, don’t show

First impressions are lasting ones.

One of Bill Clinton’s first big public acts was tackling discrimination against gays in the military. It was a worthy subject, but probably not the best subject to tackle first. Not only did the backlash lead to a screwy compromise (“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”), but it came across as an odd thing to squander the initial momentum of his presidency on — and set the stage for the failure of his health care initiatives.

Going from the opposite direction, the new Secretary of Education, Margaret Spellings, who started in her job on Monday, seems set to make an odd first impression, too.

The nation’s new education secretary denounced PBS on Tuesday for spending public money on a cartoon with lesbian characters, saying many parents would not want children exposed to such lifestyles.

The not-yet-aired episode of “Postcards From Buster” shows the title character, an animated bunny named Buster, on a trip to Vermont — a state known for recognizing same-sex civil unions. The episode features two lesbian couples, although the focus is on farm life and maple sugaring.

Education Secretary Margaret Spellings said the “Sugartime!” episode does not fulfill the intent Congress had in mind for programming. By law, she said, any funded shows must give top attention to “research-based educational objectives, content and materials.”

“Many parents would not want their young children exposed to the lifestyles portrayed in the episode,” Spellings wrote in a letter sent Tuesday to Pat Mitchell, president and chief executive officer of PBS. “Congress’ and the Department’s purpose in funding this programming certainly was not to introduce this kind of subject matter to children, particularly through the powerful and intimate medium of television.” She asked PBS to consider refunding the money it spent on the episode.

“Postcards from Buster” is a spin-off from the popular “Arthur” cartoon, and focuses on Buster traveling around the country with his video camera, exploring the places, peoples, and ways of life there.

That in so doing, a lesbian couple is encountered, though, is evidently unacceptable to Sec’y Spellings.

Spellings issued three requests to PBS. She asked that her department’s seal or any statement linking the department to the show be removed. She asked PBS to notify its member stations of the nature of the show so they could review it before airing it. And she asked for the refund “in the interest of avoiding embroiling the Ready-To-Learn program in a controversy that will only hurt” it.

In closing, she warned: “You can be assured that in the future the department will be more clear as to its expectations for any future programming that it funds.”

The department has awarded nearly $100 million to PBS through the program over the last five years in a contract that expires in September, said department spokesman Susan Aspey. That money went to the production of “Postcards From Buster” and another animated children’s show, and to promotion of those shows in local communities, she said.

The problem with soliciting and accepting government money, of course, is that it subjects you to the ideological whims of whomever is running the government (and subject to every taxpayer’s bitching about what is and/or isn’t shown). Sec’y Spellings is doubtless correct that “many parents would not want their young children exposed to the lifestyles portrayed in the episode,” but there are likely parents who would object to any number of other things shown, too. For example, the episode set in Utah mentions that (gasp) Mormons live there, and actually explores aspects of their lifestyle! Who knows where such indoctrination might lead?!

Alas, PBS has backed down on the matter, going further than Sec’y Spellings requested:

A PBS spokesman said late Tuesday that the nonprofit network has decided not to distribute the episode, called “Sugartime!,” to its 349 stations. She said the Education Department’s objections were not a factor in that decision. “Ultimately, our decision was based on the fact that we recognize this is a sensitive issue, and we wanted to make sure that parents had an opportunity to introduce this subject to their children in their own time,” said Lea Sloan, vice president of media relations at PBS.

[…] On the episode in question, “The fact that there is a family structure that is objectionable to the Department of Education is not at all the focus of the show, nor is it addressed in the show,” said Sloan of PBS. But she also said: “The department’s concerns align very closely with PBS’ concerns, and for that reason, it was decided that PBS will not be providing the episode.” Stations will receive a new episode, she said.

WGBH, which co-produced the episode, will be showing it, and will also make it available to other stations.

(via Julia)