Anybody here work in public television?

[LuckyTheDog]

Here is why I ask: As much as I love PBS, it really, really bothers me that the local station here has resorted to running pre-recorded "pledge drives" that are really just thinly veiled infomercials for DVD sets.

Sure, I know that, i I buy a DVD set, part of the money goes to my local station and that the price of the goods includes a membership. And yes, I know that PBS has been giving away premium gifts for years. But the infomercials seem to cross the line. These programs include no local people. The calls are handled by out-of-town call centers, and the main purpose appears to be selling the DVDs, for which any benefit to the local PBS station is a "bonus."

Is anybody else bothered by this trend?

If you work in public TV, can you enlighten me about how lucrative these infomercials are for the local stations vs. how much is pocketed by the DVD sellers?

[OregonBlue]

1. I've been wondering the same thing. OPB has run these plus one tired old "greatest hits" music show

day in and day out. It's so bad there is seldom anything watchable on OPB any more once "The News Hour" is over. I don't know if they are out of money or whoever is running their programming has just lost their minds. My mom, who is 89, loves the programming. Is that really the age level they want to be aiming for?