KCET Now Has the Chance to Redefine Local Programming
Los Angeles public broadcasting station KCET recently announced that it would no longer pay PBS dues to run national programming. What might this mean for public media? CSM Research Fellow Ellen Goodman and I weigh in at the Los Angeles Daily News:
Does this move by the flagship station in the country's second-largest television market signal the beginning of public broadcasting's end?
Not at all. True, come January, L.A. viewers won't be able to catch "Nova," "Sesame Street" and the "NewsHour" on their accustomed broadcast, cable and satellite channels. But there are other public stations in this market that can make sure such programming continues to reach those who want it.
The real question that the divorce of KCET and PBS raises is what service a well-funded public station can provide when it no longer transmits a national TV schedule. KCET now has the chance to redefine what it means to be a local broadcast station in a digitally networked world.
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