ALAWON v4n85 (October 9, 1995)
URL = http://hegel.lib.ncsu.edu/stacks/serials/alawon/alawon-v4n85

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                                                   ISSN 1069-7799
                             ALAWON
                 ALA Washington Office Newsline
                An electronic publication of the
         American Library Association Washington Office

                      Volume 4, Number 85
                        October 9, 1995

   In this issue: (137 lines)
     KIDS' TV -- FCC CALLS FOR COMMENTS
          ACTION NEEDED
     ALAWON SYSTEM UPGRADE: FEEDBACK NEEDED

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               KIDS' TV -- FCC CALLS FOR COMMENTS
                         ACTION NEEDED

There are no teeth in the Children's Television Act enacted in
1990.  Broadcasters are not required to meet any standards for
quality or quantity of children's programming.  The Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) is now calling for public comment
on the quality of educational programming for children in what,
some observers consider, may be the last chance for the public to
show its concern and to demand better.

The history of children's educational programming shows that
broadcasters will not voluntarily meet children's educational
programming needs.  In thirty-five years, increases in
educational programming have come only on the heels of massive
pressure.  Now, more than ever, massive pressure is needed.

The FCC is accepting public comments regarding children's TV
programming through October 16.  Letters and e-mail will be
accepted. (Check with the FCC for rules on making formal
comments.)  Additional letters and e-mail will be accepted
through November 15, although for the greatest impact, the FCC
should receive either formal or informal comments by the October
16 date.

The National Education Association and other groups have
suggested the following points to tell the FCC:

* your name and why this issue is important to you as a
(librarian, parent, teacher, etc.)

* the docket number: MM Docket No. 93-48

* what you want in children's programming; consider the
following:
     --The Processing Guideline should consist of one hour of
   "core" educational programming daily

     --Quality "core" programs should be:
          specifically designed to educate and inform children
          at least thirty minutes in length
          regularly scheduled
          aired between 7am and 11pm

Congress is poised to give broadcasters $37 billion worth of free
access to the airwaves.  If the FCC and Congress are giving away
this lucrative spectrum space, the public should demand, at the
very least, quality children's programming in return.  This is
only a very minimal acknowledgment of broadcasters'
responsibilities to serve the "public interest".

Please repost this message to other listservs to encourage
maximum comments to the FCC.  E-mail comments can be sent to:

     kidstv@fcc.gov

Mail comments should be sent to:

     Secretary, Federal Communications Commission
     1919 M Street, NW
     Washington, D.C. 20554

For additional information about this filing and to find out
about accessing their files electronically call: 202-418-0200

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             ALAWON SYSTEM UPGRADE: FEEDBACK NEEDED

Now that the ALA Washington Office has moved, ALAWON is being
sent out on a new Internet provider.  Additionally, the upgraded
computer system in the new offices is still being developed.

Some ALAWON subscribers have reported that they are receiving
garbled or hard-to-read ALAWON files.  In checking on these
problems, we suspect that there may be some system
incompatibility with a few subscribers' systems.

We regret any inconvenience to our readers and would appreciate
feedback from those of you who have been having problems.  If you
have received garbled ALAWONs (ex:. many hard-returns inserted at
the end of each line), please let us know and indicate what type
of e-mail program you are using  and any other pertinent
information that would help us determine how to improve the
situation.

We look forward to hearing your general comments about ALAWON as
well.  Once our new systems are completely established we will be
redesigning ALAWON to improve its readability to further improve
service to our readers.

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ALAWON (ISSN 1069-7799) is an irregular publication of the
American Library Association Washington Office, 1301 Pennsylvania
Ave., NW,  Washington, DC 20004.  Internet: alawash@alawash.org;
Phone: 202-628-8410; Fax: 202-628-8419. Editor: Lynne E.
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