The future of public television is a subject for impassioned discussion. Whenever people concerned with its undeveloped potential get together early in November at Springhill Conference Center in Wayzata, Minnesota several national leaders of public television met with Minnesota people representing media business and a concern Community to probe the potential of public television both nationally and locally the day and a half session examined what several ambitious public television stations around the country are doing for in with their communities WGBH Boston WJCT in Jacksonville, Florida WTTW in Chicago three other guest speakers were Glenn Robinson former University of Minnesota law professor now with the Federal Communications Commission Henry Loomis chairman of the cpb Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Ralph Rogers president of the board of the public.Broadcasting Service, the atmosphere was one of concern but informality as Glenn Robinson of the FCC opened his remarks came here in that spirit and now I find myself. the bonds that I really have a lot more to learn before I just started saying there is an additional problem in that. I can't really speak for the FCC because can't give a view of the FCC because the FCC has no view. We are a collection of a Tom positive 7 persons and a rather large staff and Not only couldn't represent the the institution but the institution has had a somewhat ambiguous role with regard to public television. In fact my I am I am the self-styled educational commissioner. They had a professor handy. So they put all the assignments on him. Whatever. They maybe it's kind of interesting that the title education as I hear television stations broadcasting Community seems clearly to now prefer the term public broadcasting and I must say that's the way I see it. In fact, I was particularly interested to hear then press doubt the future of broadcasting as a an instructional medium passing over the question of the distinction between instructional and education. What really is a medium. I guess that's about the way I see it to I I have a feeling the instructional medium broadcasting does not. List of instructional purposes does not effectively utilize broadcasting as a medium and that they're probably Alternatives that are more affected, but I'll come back to that moment. Couple of situations that were prompted by yesterday's discussion last night's discussion about what it means to be. What what public broadcasting means? Public broadcasting is going through I think I may be wrong. It said impressionistic judgment gotten awfully quickly seems to be going through a crisis of identity and it clearly is no longer educational television. But it is a little unclear. Once you depart from educational being an educational. What is it? The public medium is we hear a lot about well, it's going to be different from commercial television. It's got to be different from what the network provides commercial stations provide. That's strictly got to be the case up to a point otherwise really much justification for preserving these channels and setting them apart because they are huge opportunity cost. I don't say that they're lost unwise I think but we have to realize that there is a cost involved in in in. Allocating a purpose and that the cost it seems to me can be justified. Only if public broadcasting is something distinctive. But having made that obvious point that everybody I think agrees to now, I think it's necessary to avoid pushing it too far. There are a lot of things that public broadcasting can do that commercial television cannot do But there are a lot of things that it does just like CBS ABC and NBC. weather in the entertainment field the cultural field public affairs Community Affairs education the public broadcasting should should Super self-conscious about trying to separate itself from what commercial television does those things that I can do best without the commercial constraint and to do them very well as I think it does. I also think it's a mistake to view the distinctive character of public broadcasting as something necessarily implies serving manure to audiences that it will in fact, generally. Not try to should not try to serve. Mass audience has been quite the same since the CBS does or ABC or NBC. It is not an audience maximization. If there's anything to be free of commercial that they are free of the constraint of trying to maximize audience, but at the same time I want to stress it seems to me that this is a public media. Midst of people's medium. It's the cab drivers. It's the welders. Is the educators? It's the nabobs those philosophers abroad is talking about it's everybody's medium. If it's going to be funded publicly if it's going to be supported widely contain a diversity. It may not reach all the people at any one time but it really ought to try to recall the people back but means to to use this Mass medium. This is a mass medium. Point-to-point communication Services bicycling meeting worry about audience pulls all the time a 5. Okay, you get a 5 or 3 rating you don't worry about that all the time. But I if I work overtime I was only reaching 3% of a household's 5% of the households that would concern me because I would I would be What is it that justifies the public expenditure? I think of of the things that I should do. In particular areas, I really have been fascinated the last couple days doing some of the product or Presta. I have to confess on. I'm not a great public television Watcher except for even I recognize Sesame Street as being new channel to hear channel 26. But I've been particularly impressed at the product here and hearing the strong hearing. What is what is the only observations I would make on it? For category by category again, very impressionistic opinions and in purely personal finished. first of all public affairs What are the things that interest me was the Watergate coverage? We're getting there first. I think that's very useful thing. But it is it is always struck me that the one thing that commercial television really doesn't do is investigative reporting, mentioned the fact that the Watergate investigators Washington Post writers were models Well, they really were models interesting thing is if you look at television. You don't find that kind of investigative reporting on Commercial television once in awhile on a local basis. Yes, but most of the big public investigative things are really newspaper. Occasionally. The network will do a good documentary an in-depth study of Pensions or an in-depth study of of the selling of the Pentagon or or nerve gas in Utah or something like that. And I don't know how what the ratings on these things are. Well. Bye-bye, bye-bye. The 30% share standard, but I would guess most of those with the what 15. Well, I surprise me because I am super impressed with those it seems to me that that's journalism that public affairs at its very finest. Now if the idea is to do something, but but it's expensive and and our commercial constraints there are they're all as a constraint about well that we have to be careful because of our sponsors Etc. Public television doesn't have those constraints. I would hope that more of that sort of thing. What other area there seems to me if we're looking for deficiencies and Commercial what commercial television. You're hard-pressed to find anything on the media about the media if you want to know something about how television works you read a newspaper. Show me mention the other day or I guess earlier today about seeing a show at Blue is on ABC about Primetime the decision-makers. The one thing that stands out about that program Minister was virtually unique. most people have the idea of commercial television and it's a bunch of commercial nabobs not feel soft from a bong sitting up a top New York skyscrapers manipulating forget the reality of that you're interested in public broadcasting. nevertheless To me, it would be an important task for Public Broadcasting to bring home fax at least about public broadcasting and maybe a little bit about as well. There's a whole area of the needs to be tapped there but is not. this is not a small problem because basically the trust in the medium of mass communications television extraordinaire Lumpur and it is fading and in spite of the of the great things have been achieved. I think that there is a widespread distrust of the media and when it's not just mr. Nicholas Porter there is The idea that there's there's not only bias in the reporting of news if that's true, but there's a sort of massive conspiracies in New York. good programming I think there's a lot that needs to be said about how decisions are made in the in the broadcast media and and how the medium how the media work. one point that was raised several times on Community Access I don't know whether this comes on her public affairs. I guess it does. I didn't detect too much enthusiasm for the moment speakers reaction to I have nothing against it in concept. It's just the Again, I think it's necessary to be realistic. Public broadcasting succeeds if it gets public support on a massive clicking of dials in the audience simply will not help it help. So perhaps he goes I'm interested about you want to get on there. There's got to be a disappointing. There's got to be takes time to take effort to produce quality program. You don't just do it by having somebody. Before camera now I have nothing against the idea of a shade structure supported the station to support. and I think it's got to got to judiciously Limited in order to I mentioned one comment earlier about educational television. Let me see all those probably we're seeing. We are going to see. increased use of non broadcast facilities I know expert Missouri, but I would I would certainly expect to see service point point Communications. And of course everybody mentions cable. Future cable right now is a few few years off and I'm not terribly futuristic futuristic linclon, so I can't really talk to 50 years from now, but I eventually that will become an important educational instructional medium. But I would make the pitch. the education of Education in a broader sense does not have to be exclusive of entertainment culture of public affairs and education is it does not have to even be public it does not even have to be non-commercial. So you mentioned yesterday that or earlier today? I guess they didn't think Sesame Street was your educational. I guess not. I have my doubts as to the the true instructional value. Per minute of time of exposure that program but it's marvelously entertaining and then I think cultural East. Almost any program I've ever seen it it. It doesn't instruct the whole point is not simply to instruct on how to put together a sentence or something like that a lot of cultural values which which I think it does at the same time in a way which stimulates children. or adults like myself I just think that too terribly educational purpose. I really don't care to distinguish between something like a Corrigan ABC the educational value of which I cannot vouch for and and some instructional television program on Neanderthal man the labels mean nothing and I would not get hung up cuz I think somehow, including the FCC on the Instructional category the educational category in the main thing I think is to have a mix of program mix and and to do excellent all of those things that are done. Play say I came here to listen to Lord Dunmore. We're talkin and I should but I've learned a great deal. Following Glenn Robinson of the Federal Communications Commission Henry Loomis chairman of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting address the conference. I have made most of the prejudices and ideas that I had before I came have already been discussed with so much of this is is really repetitive or perhaps in the form of summation much new I think that we all agree that the two words that probably should be associated with public broadcasting other words excellence and innovation. Those are the things that we are to put up front and in lights. And that's going to take time. It's going to take money to take skill. I agree with lamb that we shouldn't we should have Spire to an audience that is composed of all the people. But I think all the people some of the time. I would hope that you a cube ornament over. Of a month. Would be ideally 100% but in fact, there's obviously not stations that we have heard Boston Jacksonville those that have very sizable Hume audiences. If you look at their audiences in the term of a of a month there in the 70 80% kind of figure which is a is a very high figure it out. Boston is one of us is okay. But at least you know where you what is possible to do. I agree very much with the Jacksonville priorities that each of the local stations should have the number one priority of the local community. How many ways you serve both of you by making National stuff for available to them like you should be looking at it from the I need that it cannot get in somebody else. I think that increasingly and this is true in many of the areas. They are thinking of themselves not so much as public television for public radio, but as telecommunication centers using whatever the technical means of transmission might be the most suitable. There is one technical memes that has not been discussed. Today was rather surprised me and asked the 2500 megahertz band in television. This is point. The point is not broadcasted at requires a special receiver know the lamp enter at the place to receive it. I know channels is 16 is how close to next city is until 4? Some of the public television stations have shown a lot of imagination and forethought and have gotten many or one case or of the frequencies assigned to them. I might talk about Cleveland as in it as an example. Cleveland has I think it's 16. I think that's all that was available at statement for the other cities. Are they got them all and it beat out the Archdiocese, which is not an easy thing to to do. I'm Henny Penny front. They're broadcasting on by remember right 7 of those frequencies simultaneously. for instructional to the schools I need station over a. Of years. Put the receivers in and the antennas on the individual schools. I think there are 80 watt in the city. with the school system that enables if used for of those channels simultaneously so English is on one channel in math on another different grades and stuff for advanced much more flexibility to the school to the teachers and all the rest for the They have two channels that is between the hospital medical school and medical school and the hospitals. This is paid for by the medical school and it is. Ability to watch operations and have V expert on lung cancer what not talkin to the student. I don't have two very interesting channels switch from Case Western University to Industrial concerns. I think they're about 8 in where they are broadcasting graduate courses and college-level courses in engineering and physics and such tactics to the employees of the manufacturer for credit. This case the industrial concern is paid for the whole operation. They pay Case Western and then k space station. These things are all run out of one little small room with all the other cats in pain, but it also is providing a service over and above and distinct from its regular broadcast least for now until unless cable is in and yeah and you're going I agree that they like Jacksonville and like Boston like many of the good stations local public affairs is a key ingredient. We have many of the local commercial stations. Do not do a good job this parrot some City to do a better job opportunity opportunity. The same thing is true of your local cultural institutions. As we discussed earlier, I think public television works with the local cultural institution that can help to improve the local cultural institution. Just like bringing in The Soloist to the symphony orchestra in some cases. I think local sports is an area that is some people called that is neglected Sports of either a special nature. Where are there only three people to like it. Don't forget to go in Boston start doing Tennessee Commercial and it was meant to be in esoteric Sport 4 on a tablet. I guess. I still do it. High School sports are covered in some areas and is very popular and brings a a new aspect of a unique aspect which is available. I think that the thing that normally public television has is time it is not restricted by the commercial requirements doesn't have to break. It doesn't have to put in commercials. It doesn't have to make money at Prime Time is what permits The Primetime gavel-to-gavel no commercial station to do it 4 weeks the way the way we do. I think it also permits us to do they in depth specials in depth in culture or whether they're in-depth in public. The commercials do occasionally we ought to be able to do them much more longer or the Opera any of those times. I think we Can do much more in education and I mean education not instruction. In that area of providing information that is useful to the public. But not that public or not that kind of information that you will get credit for in a course sense. I think that Sesame Street was the first in that area. I think what they're saying production outfit is not going I'm feeling good, which is trying to get help information. 2 blue-collar types that don't know it on such things as nutrition and hypertension and all those sort of things. But do it in a way that they will think is entertaining can't be somebody coming home and telling them that they are to not drink to be out of there in process of drinking some more subtle approach. I think there are two other examples of this both of which I think I've been mentioned. Today today wanted to be a sensitive and delicate problem. Where are great many people just don't have the information. I said serious problem if I only gave them information in general, but it got them in touch with their local in this case Public Health institutions. As you know, this was one of the few cases where you could document Effectiveness because they use of the VD clinics went up dramatically stopping every time the thing is repeat that program is repeated. They go up again, which is a clear one or two cases you can Another one is a very recent one drink drank drunk on the subject of Alcoholics themselves, and I found one gentleman got so mad that he kicked the front end of his TV. So I guess that proves that you least got his emotions around. One of the things that we are concerned with it's more parochial concern. But what is the function of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting? I agree with land that I think the whole industry is in the process of trying to determine what what they are and what they should be the same thing is true of Corporation. And if I had to use one word, I would say it was future has a job is to try to be concerned about the future of public broadcasting. Where should it be going with could it go what can you do to help it? The law says we're meant to provide leadership as well as provide to really needs not order and that's as it should be. I think we can help by first of all to finding our own goals and missions and perhaps conduct help conduct seminar such as this when you end up with a wider agreement on the goals and missions of individual Stations of the corporation of Education of all the different bits and pieces. I think we should try to work to develop a consensus on what are the priorities? Message of ascertaining needs both on a local level and on a regional level on it on a national level. When I was working as assistant MIT, somebody asked my boss call Compton what his job was. He said his job was to create the atmosphere in which creative people can create. I think that that is a a definition of a job that I can use frequently. I think in many ways it is the definition of the job of the corporation. I think we can do this by trying to create a system. assistant way out responsibilities and authority of the different pieces of it generally known and accepted and that they mesh A system that uses the uniqueness of our different media of Television of radio of Can sex so far and where the two or three can work together capitalizing on the lawn suits of each classic example, of course is when you have a symphony as you did here and you have the sound Karen simultaneously on on FM radio That's a classic example of where the alien radio each provide a unique piece that is better than either one of them alone. And I'm sure there are many other areas where this is possible public radio can provide most of what is available and what is being said at much less to cost. And that perhaps that isn't an area that we should try to set up cross R Us more consciously almost go through the bidding process to find out what who's long suit and then try to try to set it up more than we have. I think we should try to work more than we have in establishing institutions that are specialized in performing a unique. So I think this is where Ford has been so good in the past and if you looked at so many of these things you find it was an original Grant 10 years ago. Well, there's about four years ago that poor. Did you see this and Sesame Street? You see this in Jacksonville. You see this if Boston is hit in in in lots of places, not only for many other people. As the foundations of tickly for reduce in the area, perhaps we could work to try to feel some of that guy. We have been trying to do it for example and helping Bostic with established a unique facility in the production of Science Program. ctw already exists for a type of program I think that can be and should be other such centers that specialize in drama. It's another example where we and Fordham endowment of the Arts are trying to establish the center in this case. It happens to be Los Angeles. I think that the endowment of the Arts and Humanities which hasn't been mentioned much today, which surprised me because their budgets increasing very rapidly increasing Lee interested in understand that they can gain from television and radio Humanities in radio that we've got to bring them into this mix not only because they have Joe but because they have knowledge and ideas and judgment in the area and you matter that have a good way to find a new man. We haven't done much mention on the subject of technology. I think that the corporation's role is to work with the rest of the industry and Industry outside to be aware of what is technologically possible to again try to put in seed money to start a technological development. For example satellites. We all know about visitor policy issues as to what kind of satellite try to get from the FCC do we act just commercially with the present birds do we look for something in the future except for a vector? Another example is Faith development of broadcasting on radio for the blind which requires the development of it as a receiver and it's not very fancy technology the questions how to do it and do it in mass production. PBS is done some excellent work in the same era field those kind of things. I think we all ought to be alert to looking at new developments that will permit whole new area to reserve now. and I think we have the function of trying to provide the research base for the What is system research base intensive or what kind of audiences what works and what doesn't work the details of the demography of the demographic breakdown of what is not just a program? What what are we learn right now? We came to do a program and I liked it you like it. We got 10 letters and that was great and it was great. What are we? And I think that we should do much more acidic so that the programs we do next year are based on more factual information. In addition to what you will always need. duration of that feeling of talent, but you can have some more factual base under than we now have Our job is I said is to innovate and experiment. Or not us, but you find it when we can find it when we can't find it. Try to try to create it. I think part of this whole silly to increase the effectiveness of the communications between stations. So that each station doesn't separate try to reinvent the wheel. Len said how much he learned from this project and instruction broadcast. Sstation X gets a contract from their state. Is there some way that they don't have to start at Ground Zero as Linda Tripp will years ago that they could somehow help them it'll be different they'll be different problems. But at least he doesn't start at Ground Zero. There's a lot of that now, but I think it can be more systematized and pinpointed more specific needs of specific stations at specific time. And then the last point is training because the system could be no better than the individuals involved. Training is now done. Mostly on the job and sometimes we have the problem when we find real talents and develop it gets let off to the commercials or someplace else because of salary. We are now the corporation is concentrating into areas of training one is in the minority area. We're probably also starred in a woman area. We are not at the moment in that area, but we are in the minority area. Where we tell stations that we will enter an agreement with them, but we will pay half the salary of a minority staff person for 2 years. And this was robbed at the calf light on the theory that if we paid for it fall or we get was a bunch of tokenism. If we didn't put everybody in on a 5% it wouldn't be enough people to really really scratch to try to get so it's 50-50 was about right to put in a real Swagger money. So they be careful what they did and they really use the first conversely 50% of the salary of the two years is a is a pretty good car competitive and a competitive by the degree of responsibility the station commits to give the person. And we've had I think pretty good luck with this way of spending at the moment about $200,000 a year in this area. We have all kinds of blacks Tucanos Eskimos everything else Indians. We have one radio station manager. We have quite the number in production area most of these people. Some are so excellent that they've already been laid off in the commercial which is okay. If she is one more talented person that's in the system and some have gotten enough self-confidence that they have decided to leave and go to college which is probably also good and hopefully one of these days we'll go get him back. then the other area that we are game going to reactivate we did it several years ago and then we ran out of Is training at the other end of the spectrum for the very good to try to make them secure. Did you get the people that are now producing or directing or writing well and try to give each of them and we talkin tiny numbers to three. specialized opportunity another example for this is the way we did in the past with my Campesino at gbh enforcement. We're on a scholarship might spend time with the BBC in their science area. And that is where he got the knowledge and the training and the contacts that permitted him to come back and establish. What is now Nova? Another example is Alan Miller who was that time assistant conductor of the Denver Symphony Orchestra sabbatical. I came back and produced palero as they first pilot and which we now hope to fund in a in a continuing series. We have had some good one man show Jacksonville, man who has come back. He was the one who went to sweep come back and is now a coverage. And we are looking for that type of person the very very best each of you a different each of you has a different opportunity at a different responsibility and all we can do is help. Remarks by Henry Loomis chairman of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting the last speaker at the conference on the potentials of public television was Ralph Rogers president of the board of the PBS Public Broadcasting Service. Nobody wants to talk about money, but you have to talk about money because public television and in his old nomenclature educational television. Has been starved from the day it was born until today and we can philosophize all we want and it's a good idea because if you don't bring him, you can't create and we can talk about pie in the sky and all the frosting on the cake, but the fact remains is that there are a hundred fifty to licensees in the United States of America operating 254 transmitters and the total amount of funds available to do that for a year. I somewhere in the vicinity of 250 to 280 million dollars. Now don't get me wrong. That's a lot of money. But let's just see how much money it is in television, and this is supposed to cover Radio 2. Last year at the national level on National programming there was approximately 40 million dollars spent by public television. Last year, the three major networks on National programming spent over a billion dollars is one thing certain when you are poor and I can speak because I was as poor as any person in this room when I got started. You don't have to have a postdoctoral degree to understand that there are priorities. Are you may never have heard the word priority when you're that poor but you know that you've got to eat and you've got to have some shelter and you got to have some Rags on your back and we must never forget the fact that there are priorities which we must take care of with the limited funds are available to us. And every dollar that we spend on anything other than programming is a number two priority. This is a mass communications me. I am old enough to have lived through a. Of the existence of this planet where the greatest technological advances that the world has ever seen. I've been may I grew up with a kerosene lamp and that was a recent invention at that time. and I flew up here this morning in an hour and 50 minutes in a private jet but since the invention of the printing press there has never been an invention that has as much influence and Power. I'm people as that television set as we sit here today 96% of All American men women and children less than 50 yards from a television set. And there were some of them. Are yet to have their first experience with indoor plumbing now priority number one is what we put on that. television set That's our priority number one. And we must never forget it. This is a free enterprise nation and I believe in it, but that invention was not created for the purpose of selling soap or automobiles or deodorants. I have no objection to the commercial. Television people using it as a business and making money so long as the public is allowed to have their own public television. And so long as programs are on public television that the public are entitled to see in the hours when they have the time to see them. I let me just give you in just 2 minutes. A Viewpoint that is so important for you all in my opinion to remember because the people who said in this room have tremendous responsibilities to the rest of the people in the communities. We serve our role in instructional television. I use that to narrow down the word education is the news today is to deliver better quality and a better quality of Education to more people if we can do it better and if we can't some other method should be used And there are other methods and lots of other methods but there are things which we can do at a cost which so far. No other technology can do and it must be used for that purpose until something better comes along. And why are we still have the death last year the American taxpayer? paid 107 billion dollars for Education that was 11 billion dollars more than they paid the year before 7 billion dollars more than was paid the year before that + 7 billion + 7 billion + 7 billion more And are you willing to say? That the quantity and quality of Education being produced today has a greater cost-effectiveness. Then it had last year and the year before in the year before why is it that education is the only thing that we have which has never utilize technology to? increase the quality quantity of Education at a more effective cost This isn't just a mission of public television, but it is a mission of the people who are involved in public television. And that's every one of us now will switch over the cultural programming. It's a very simple thing every man woman and child in the United States. Would be better off and nobody can deny. If he or she could go and listen to the finest orchestras in the finest Stoppers and ballets and theaters and sit down with sculptors and they work shop and talk to office and listen to book reviews and I could go on and on but I don't have the time and they can't do it. There isn't enough time and there isn't enough money. But vicariously they can do it. They can travel to the ends of the Earth and see the finest Museum. They can go to the Louvre they can go to the product and they can go anywhere in the world, but they're not going to do it on Commercial television, but once every so often because it doesn't pay off. I have no quarrel with commercial television, but I quarrel with us because we must do it and we must find the money to do it and last and by no means least we've listened to public of his programming. What was the lesson you saw on the 5th of November was it who got elected who got defeated know it was a 36% of the freedom-loving Americans went to the polls to vote which meant that 18% of the voters decided. theoretically A why didn't they go? You have your theory? I have mine. My reasoning is that the American people are frustrated. They have the federal government and they have the state government and they have the County government and they have a city or town government and then they have the school board and then they have the Board of Regents and then they have the bureau's and bureaus and bureaus and agencies and this that the other thing and they don't know what kind of government they have. The fundamentals of this government were that the government was created to serve the people and now we are so frustrated that we are finding ourselves in the position that so many people before found themselves where the government is ruling the people and you have in your hands the tools to free the shackles of the American people by educating them about their government. You don't have to get on one side of the other. You don't have to get into this question of bias. All you have to do is educate them and teach them and that's the tool that you can use to teach them. And don't let anybody die virtue by saying wouldn't it be a good idea to do this with some of our spare dollars in this we don't have any spare dollars when Al gets up here and says that he's spending half as much on public affairs nationally this year than we spent three years ago that's criminal of the American people. On public television, it's the people's business and the American people must not lose control of public television because if they do they have lost the one great technological invention, which makes it possible now to replace that little town meeting of 1600 + 30 + 40 + 50 where everybody knew what was going on. That's the way everybody knows what's going on now if we put on the programs And as I conclude this I just want to say this to you. The local station is independent its autonomous. local stations have joined together now and have gone out into the community and I've gathered Layman by the hundreds and by the thousands to join with them to see that this Great technology is utilized for all the people they have hired great professionals to work for them who have great talents and the talents that they have are Limitless and they have new young men and young women coming along. They have an organization PBS that does not sit down there in Washington and tell him what to do on the contrary. They do what you tell them. You want done. They serve you they don't ruin you. And you pay for it. It's your money. And the long-range funding bill that nobody talked about today is based on a unique principle that you have to raise $2 and a half before the federal government gives you $2. So it's your business the people's business. It's your public color television and see that it remains yours. Ralph Rogers president of the board of the Public Broadcasting Service one of several speakers at a recent conference at Spring Hill Conference Center in Wayzata, Minnesota the subject under discussion the potentials of public television. I'm Connie Goldman.