GROUPS CALL FOR NEW LEADERSHIP AT CPB AFTER REPORT REVEALS ETHICAL VIOLATIONS AND "POLITICAL TESTS" IN HIRING

[SOURCE: Free Press, the Center for Digital Democracy, and Common Cause press release]
Free Press, the Center for Digital Democracy, and Common Cause called on Corporation for Public Broadcasting President Patricia Harrison to resign following the long-awaited release of an Inspector General's report, which exposes extensive wrongdoing by the leadership of the CPB. The report found that "political tests" were a "major criteria" in hiring Harrison to oversee the CPB. The groups also demanded that the CPB make public the "separate investigative report, along with specific evidence indicating possible wrongdoing," that Konz made available to the board as well as any additional documents provided to members of Congress. In response to the Inspector General's report, Free Press, the Center for Digital Democracy and Common Cause endorsed a series of measures that would: 1) Require the CPB Board to be governed in a bipartisan or independent fashion, mandating that its chairman and vice chairman not represent the same political party. The board should include more members with experience in public broadcasting, including producers of independent programming. 2) Restore transparency to the CPB Board by requiring open discussion and public votes on all matters. Meetings should be televised and archived online to encourage greater public accountability. 3) Reformulate the board's position on objectivity and balance, seeking to allow programmers -- not political appointees -- to determine what the public sees and hears. 4) Reduce the organization's political involvement by explicitly prohibiting the CPB board and management from hiring outside political lobbyists or consultants.
http://www.democraticmedia.org/news/CPBIGreport.html