Dayton Daily News education reporter Scott Elliott writes about schools, kids, teaching and learning.
Home > Blogs > Get on the Bus > Archives > 2006 > September > 23
Saturday, September 23, 2006
This has to be a tall tale
(Larry the Cucumber and Bob the Tomato)
I like Veggie Tales. It’s a clever cartoon in which silly animated vegetables act out Bible stories. These videos are religious programming, for sure. The show’s religious message is prominent, if not especially in-your-face, as the stories all are moral lessons from a Christian perspective.
The story Saturday’s New York Times that NBC has bought the rights to broadcast Veggie Tales left me puzzled. The deal specifies that all references to God and the Bible be edited out before the show is broadcast on the network.
To which I can only say — huh?
A few questions you might have:
—Why would NBC want Veggie Tales at all if they find its religious nature offensive?
The stories retold in the Veggie Tales videos are BIBLE stories. Doesn’t the idea of telling Bible stories without mentioning God or the Bible seem a bizarre?
NBC says the show has “universally accepted religious values” but that its company standards prohibit the promotion of “any particular religion or a particular denomination.” Editing out references to God and the Bible, the network says, allows the show to meet their standards for broadcast.
—Why would the makers of Veggie Tales agree to such a deal?
One of the creators of the show told the Times he was shocked by the cuts that were required and never anticipated how extensive the editing would be. But he has not quit the effort as a “favor” to the media company that owns the show. That company said getting an edited version on the air is, in its view, better than nothing at all.
Veggie Tales is plenty popular and well known without NBC. I’m surprised the show didn’t try to find a different network or stick with the wildly successful video market.
What do you think? Would the unedited Veggie Tales really spark protests against NBC? Is an edited version of the show a good compromise?
UPDATE: I actually watched Veggie Tales on NBC Sunday morning and found the word “God” was not blepped or removed. The only noticeable difference was that the network appeared to cut the wrap up “moral lesson” at the end in which the characters generally talk about what happened and discuss what God and the Bible say about it. I wonder if the Times was in error when it said nearly all references to God would be edited out, or if the network made changes after the Times story appeared?
(Image credit: www.oklahoma.net)
Permalink | Comments (2) | Categories: Schools and Politics
A nasty little political fight
(Robert Slavin, Success For All reading program inventor)
Some big news is breaking today that has education junkies fired up.
It comes down to this — did officials at the U.S. Department of Education work to steer federal dollars earmarked to help kids read to companies they preferred? An explosive report, which the education department again tried to bury with a Friday afternoon release, says yes they did.
Sam Dillon of the New York Times has the stunning details here.
This has been a simmering controversy for months. Back in June I met Bob Slavin of Johns Hopkins University, inventor of the respected Success For All reading program and one of the first critics to come out and accuse the education department of not playing fair. Slavin said kids who might benefit from a program like Success For All were being denied so the department’s friends could make a few bucks.
Slavin is a huge big shot in the reading curriculum world but some thought took a big risk by speaking out. He must feel pretty vindicated today. The report includes E-mails within the department in which officials pretty openly discuss their efforts to craft the program selection committees to be friendly to certain companies.
Education Secretary Margaret Spellings was quick to say these problems occurred under her predecessor, Rod Paige. Some of the key players involved are no longer with the department.
The question is what happens next? What should the repercussions be for the department?
(Image credit: www.nysut.org)
Permalink | Comments (3) | Categories: Schools and Politics
