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In the 1920s, the young industry of broadcasting was regulated by the Department of Commerce and its secretary, Herbert Hoover. It was not at all clear how the new field of radio would be supported and who would pay for its programming. One option was to let the government own and control radio and underwrite the costs of programming. While this is the system used today in many countries around the world, it was unacceptable to most Americans because government control of radio would permit it to censor information it did not want citizens to hear.
A second alternative was to let those who were interested subscribe to radio programming and their fees would provide the economic foundation for radio. This was ultimately how pay cable became an important force in American life. A third alternative was to allow companies to buy radio time for a fee so they could sell their products and these monies would support broadcasting.
Advertising flourished and provided the economic structure for radio and then television. The goal of broadcasters was to attract the largest possible audience in order to be able to charge advertisers as much as possible for their messages. From the beginning, almost all broadcasting was designed to appeal to large audiences. Networks were created so that programming could reach the entire country. (Without a network, a signal could not reach further than the local metropolitan area in which the station was based.)
To meet the goal of capturing large audiences, broadcasters endeavored to create programming that would be accessible and understandable to the largest possible audience. In practical terms, this meant no Shakespeare, ballet or opera, few documentaries, and much popular entertainment. Radio and then television were enormously successful in creating programming that millions of people have wanted to hear and see.
The problem with the system was the lack of incentive to create educational programming that was less likely to appeal to large audiences. Economics created a network need to attract huge audiences and tended to give short shrift to programs that appealed to more specialized interests. While the needs of the many people were met, the needs of some were not.
Public television was created to fill the needs not met by commercial broadcasting. It was not dependent on advertiser support or the need for enormous audiences. Public television was free to create high-quality programming regardless of whether it garnered high ratings. It was in the area of children's television that public television made its largest strides. Programs such as Mister Rogers' Neighborhood and Sesame Street became a regular part of children's lives.
Public television was always envisioned as an alternative to commercial television. While its ratings are small compared to the commercial networks, it fills an important void. Since this monitoring project is looked at the entire world of television, we examined public television. The world of public television provides an interesting opportunity to examine whether the absence of advertiser pressure or demand for high ratings produces programming less dependent on violent themes.
Practically nothing that was monitored on public television during the two-week sample even comes close to raising concerns about violence. Some shows do contain elements or scenes of violence but it is usually so minimized or contextually appropriate that it is of very little concern.
Programming on public television can be divided into four areas, three in prime time and one on Saturday mornings: documentaries and news, arts and entertainment, nature and science and children's programs. All four types of programming were remarkably violence free.
Programs in the news category include Washington Week in Review and Wall Street Week. Absolutely no issues of violence were raised. A considerable number of documentaries ran during the two-week sample. Because these shows usually involve actual film footage, they may occasionally use images of violence. An episode of Nova followed a Navy submarine on a cruise. The show used film footage to show explosions of large ships, sailors hitting the ground and other shots of submarines during war. It was all part of the context and of no concern whatsoever. Another documentary on the Holocaust, Diamonds in the Snow, avoided graphic footage and focused on survivors' stories. The entire production avoided unnecessarily violent pictures and exercised much restraint. There was discussion of Nazi horrors but none of them were shown. American Experience examined the Holocaust from a U.S. point of view and exercised similar restraint. A third Holocaust program, Hotel Terminus: The Life and Times of Klaus Barbie, was entirely free of violent images. None of the news or documentary programs raised any problems in regard to violence.
This category includes original productions, concerts and performer showcases. Acts of violence are rarely featured in these productions and when violence is part of a show it is usually contextually appropriate. Restraint is evident everywhere.
Only one program in the entire two weeks of PBS raised any issues whatsoever. On 4/10/95 the film Shimmer aired on American Playhouse and raised some important questions. The film focuses on the lives of two boys living in a juvenile boys' home in Iowa during the 1950s. During one scene, a bully punches a boy until he falls to the ground. The boy's friend steps in and slams the bully's head against a metal pole. The schoolmaster intervenes and knocks the boy's friend down. There is a graphic picture in slow motion of his face hitting the ground, his face covered in blood. Treatment like this becomes the impetus for the two boys to escape from the home. The film does contain an advisory warning that "The following program contains material from which some viewers might take offense." After every break, the advisory is repeated. This program came closer than any other on PBS to raising concern about violence. Although graphic, the violence appeared in an adult program and was central to the overall plot. It could have been edited somewhat, however.
None of the concerts or performer showcases raised any issues at all.
While there were acts of violence in some of these shows, the violence was never a central part of the story and never raised any important issues. In one episode of Nature, a shark is shown tearing apart and eating a turtle. It is disturbing to watch, but entirely consistent with the theme of a program about nature. None of the other nature or science shows raised any concerns about violence.
Children's programming on public television includes Sesame Street, Reading Rainbow, Barney and Friends, Puzzle Place, Story Time and First Edition. Several scenes in Sesame Street showed characters arguing, usually the Muppets. They get angry, but not violent. There were no issues of violence in any of the programs.
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