Dear WETA:
We are writing in support of Dawn Porter’s letter to Jeff Bieber and to WETA regarding the programming of her film Spies of Mississippi and the rest of the films that several series offer for Black History month. It is frankly disturbing to note the spate of excellent and important films that are being displaced out of your prime time schedule and replaced with re-runs and Antiques Roadshow.
Running these programs in timeslots other than the ones set for the national series makes it difficult, if not impossible, to build effective civic engagement/outreach campaigns that bring an audience to a program. We are not unsophisticated about the nature of PBS and its relation to the local stations. However, many stations find a way to air the programs in the series slot and we believe that WETA also should be able to do this.
The treatment of P.O.V. and Independent Lens on your station is of particular concern to us for the reasons Dawn outlines very clearly in her letter. Those two multi-award winning series regularly promote the diversity of people portrayed, the program makers, and the issues addressed more than any other strand in the PBS system. In our nation’s capital, with its diverse population, we believe it is in the interest of all of us who care about public media that the issues Dawn raises about your programming be addressed.
Sincerely,
The Indie Caucus.
