Montgomery, Alaa.. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey on Monday urged the board that oversees Alabama Public Television to postpone any decision on cutting ties with PBS until it considers Alabamians’ views on the issue and develops a plan for what comes next.
The Republican governor sent a letter to the Alabama Educational Television Commission ahead of a Nov. 18 meeting at which commissioners were expected to discuss the disaffiliation.
Some of the committee members were It prompted the idea of dropping a TV show Due to President Donald Trump’s federal budget cuts He hated public broadcasting and accusations of bias against NPR and PBS news programs from him and other conservatives. The decision to part ways with PBS means Alabama Public Television will no longer broadcast PBS programming, including “Sesame Street,” “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood,” “Antiques Roadshow” and “PBS NewsHour.”
“While I am sympathetic to the concerns that may have motivated this proposal, such sweeping and immediate action, especially if taken unilaterally by the executive branch, should only be undertaken after a comprehensive planning process and only with a comprehensive understanding of public opinion,” Ivey wrote.
Ivey asked the committee to conduct an expanded survey of voters in Alabama to “ensure their voices are heard.” She said the commission should also develop a secession plan “which should be available for public review for an extended period before any vote is taken.”
The idea to drop PBS arose at a committee meeting in October. Alabama Public Television Executive Director Wayne Reed said some commissioners asked him to research the possibility and ramifications of terminating the contract with PBS.
Commissioners were split at the Oct. 28 meeting, according to him Alabama reflector and al.com.
“I just, I don’t want to fund it,” committee member Les Barnett said during the meeting, according to the Alabama Reflector newspaper. “PBS has made themselves an enemy of what I stand for, and so I don’t like them, and I don’t follow the philosophy of feeding the beast.”
Alabama Public Television pays about $2.2 million annually for PBS programming.
The governor said it is essential that APT programming be “aligned with Alabama values,” but said the decision must be made “in collaboration among stakeholders.”
The possibility of dropping PBS sparked backlash from Alabama public television viewers and donors. Petitions and posts were shared across social media, urging people to “Save PBS for the Children of Alabama” and “Don’t Let Alabama Send Elmo Packing.”