Ads on PBS website angers parents

PBS has been running ads for several years on their regular programming. I wish they wouldn't do it on the kids' shows and perhaps we should start writing letters.

I don't worry about the girls and ads; I've taught them to ignore them and they do. I worry about PBS quality of programming if they have to answer to sponsors and worry about ratings.

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I really wish they could be totally ad-free but I'm satisified with the level of advertising they have on PBS at this point. My kids are still young enough that they don't really watch too much and so I have usually turned the "babysitter" off before they see the commercials.
Anyway, I think one way to try and help keep the ads to a minimum would be to encourage everyone you know to sponsor their local station.
As far as the Web site goes, my kids aren't on the computer much at all, so I'm not sure how I feel. We occasionally go to sesamestreet.org for some Elmo games, but I don't think I like the idea of ads. As I was typing this, my 3.5 year old walked over and said, "mom, can we go to PBS Kids on the computer?" because he saw the ad on the right hand side of this box where I enter comments. So, they do notice, and quickly.

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As I am someone who works in online advertising, I don't think they should omit ads all together. However, I think they should have strict quidelines as to the type of ads they choose to display.

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I've always noticed the ads, but my 19 month old ignores them, she just wants her show to come on. I doesn't bother me!

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As someone who works in the entertainment industry, we have to get paid somehow. It drives me crazy when people think great, quality content should be completely free.

You either have to pay for premium cable, buy a DVD or see an ad. Parents have the option to choose.

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If a bit of advertising is directly proportional to an increase in the quality of the programming- go for it.

I admit, my kids are a bit too old for PBS now, but I eagerly supported my local stations (KQED and KTEH) because it was always on in my home when they were little. I hope the quality of the programs remains a priority for these stations in the coming future.

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I am deeply disturbed by ads for disposable diapers, drug companies, all-inclusive resorts, and especially fast food giants on either end of Sesame Street. I long for a return to the days when it was truly sponsored by the number 4 and the letter H instead.

If PBS is going to be supported by advertisers, they need to cut back on the hours and hours of pledge drive nonsense every year. They need to go one way or the other.

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If you're a donor, you should call up and say "I am not donating to an advertising-sponsored channel. Particularly one that allows junk food to advertise on Sesame Street." And if you're not a donor? You shouldn't complain. ;)

About 6 months ago we called up to question why our local PBS station was running non-captioned versions of movies on Saturdays. Flash forward 2 months, and EVERY movie they ran on Saturdays suddenly was captioned- even movies we knew were not avaialble captioned. PBS had started captioning everything that they showed on Saturdays. We're not huge donors, either. $25/month.

They listen. More so than other stations. Let 'em know that McDonalds is not an appropriate sponsor of PBS children's TV.

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My kid LOVES the little pancake girl on the Pampers commercial. He doesn't lunge for the Pampers package when we go to Target, so for now I think we're safe from materialistic brainstorming. But in the future?

PBS' federal funding gets cut more and more every year. I encourage everyone to donate to their local PBS station if they get a lot of enjoyment out of the programming.

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I forgot to add I'm a member of KQED. Perhaps if more people actually joined there would be less reliance on ads and government funding (which also comes with strings attached).

I wonder why people are willing to subscribe to premium channels but so reluctant to support PBS.

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What's PBS ... yeah I /could/ google it.

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I encourage everyone to write congress and encourage PBS funding to be removed! If Public Broadcasting finds it must move further into the commercial realm to exist (watch their programming during the day and you will see commercials...not just grant mentions...but mechanisms to call product recall to the mind)...then it must remove it's parasitic self from the wallets of taxpayers.

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There are several great organizations out there to help fight against commercial targeting of children. (please see the enclosed link). There is also a letter writing campaign currently going on to address this specific issue with PBS.
Here are some facts about marketing to children:
CAMPAIGN FOR A COMMERCIAL-FREE CHILDHOOD
CCFC
big business
Marketing to Children:
an Overview
Marketing to children is big business
• From 1992 to 1997 the amount spent marketing to children shot from $6.2
billion to $12 billion. Today marketers spend at least $15 billion a year
targeting children. 1
• Children aged 4-12 made $30 billion in purchases in 2002, a remarkable
increase from the $6.1 billion they spent in 1989.2
• Children aged 12-19 spent $170 billion in 2002, a weekly average of $101 per
teen.3
• Children under 12 influence $500 billion of purchases per year.4
Marketing exploits children’s
developmental vulnerabilities
• Until the age of about 8 children do not understand advertising’s persuasive
intent.6
• Very young children can’t distinguish between commercials and program
content; even older children sometimes fail to recognize product placement as
advertising.7
• Marketers often use older children’s desire to fit in with their peers and
tendency to rebel against authority figures as selling points for their products.
A recent Pepsi ad celebrated teens who had been arrested for downloading
music illegally.
Children are bombarded with marketing
every waking moment
• Children see about 40,000 advertisements a year on TV alone, a figure that
does not include product placement.5
• Children see advertisements on the Internet, at the movies, on school buses,
in their classrooms and cafeterias.
• Almost every major media program for children
has a line of licensed merchandise used to sell
fast-food, breakfast cereals, snacks and
candy.
• Many toys, such as Coca-Cola Barbie and
McDonald’s Play-Doh are actually
advertisements for junk food.
• In their effort to establish cradle-to-grave
brand loyalty, marketers even target
babies through licensed toys and
accessories featuring media characters.
Very young children can’t distinguish
between commercials and program content

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It's too bad Congress keeps cutting funding for public television (and radio), which makes it necessary for these valuable entities to seek funding elsewhere. Perhaps instead of writing letters to PBS, we should be contacting our representatives and requesting their continued support of public media resources. Another way to eliminate the need for advertising dollars is to pick up the telephone and pledge private money during the yearly telethons. Public Broadcasting is not out to make a profit, but to continue to be able to provide free information and entertainment for the American public.

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PBS should be honest and call a spade a spade. Their "donors" are buying advertising time, plain and simple.
PBS should stop taking money confiscated at the point of a gun(tax money) under the auspicies of the "corporation for public broadcasting". This funds 90% of PBS.

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Sorry- those links were:
http://www.commercialfreechildhood.org/aboutus.htm

and letter writing campaign:
http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizationsORG/ccfc/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5089

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PBS is becoming just one more TV station that is in business to make money by advertizing. We are bombarded with advertizing and PBS was one refuge from it, no more. And now they are subverting young minds to eat Mc Donalds junk food. Who needs them?

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i watch pbs with my daughter daily, barney and sesame street. i think it is quite obvious why they have turned to mc donalds umong others. they need the sponsorship. people either can't or don't want to donate like they used too.
it is up to us as parents to instill proper eating habits in our children.

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In our house we don't watch cable or local t.v we haven't for 2 years if we wanna watch a movie (by we I mean my 3 kids) then we watch whatever dvds we have and since I know what we own I dont have to worry about the content. The kids don't miss it and niether do my husband and I, we do however have more time to spend with each other and more time being involved in each others and now my kids would rather pick up a book than sit watch a movie (most of the time)

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Do any of you understand that PBS is drastically underfunded? How dare any of you attack PBS when in fact it gets about 1/10 of the the budget of any normal network -- and the money comes from the government. Shame on anyone who thinks PBS should just "deal with not having ads"

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