MIF’s Public Media Briefing on Children’s Media Follow-up: Next steps for funders

As part of Media Impact Funders’ programming on the Future of Public Media (one of our core pillars), we recently hosted an urgent conversation on the role of PBS Kids and public interest children’s media in the aftermath of massive cuts to federal funding and a field increasingly shaped by commercial incentives.

The briefing spotlighted the historic role PBS Kids and its production partners have played in delivering research-based educational content for young audiences and ways that funders can help sustain this unique work.

Below, you’ll find key takeaways from the program, a brief list of options for funders looking to deepen their engagement, and opportunities to join working sessions next month and in the summer.

Please email Shannon Thomas at shannon@mediafunders.org if you would like to get involved in this work. MIF is committed to supporting this critical issue with members and interested funders.

We are grateful to our partners: Grantmakers for Education, the Early Childhood Funders Collaborative and Grantmakers for Thriving Youth.

And thanks again to the program speakers: Gregg Behr, Executive Director, The Grable Foundation, Sara DeWitt, Senior VP & General Manager, PBS Kids & Education, Jenn Hoos Rothberg, Executive Director, Einhorn Collaborative, Michael Murray, President & CEO, The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, Seeta Pai, CP of Children’s Media & Education, GBH, and Paul Siefken, President & CEO, Fred Rogers Productions.

The Role of PBS Kids

PBS Kids is a non-commercial, independent media company that provides free content for children. Their content decisions are based on what is best for children, not advertisers or algorithms. It is supported by a network of over 300 independent TV stations nationwide, reaching over 95% of households in the US with over 15.5 million users. Critically, PBS Kids content reaches over 9 million low income families each year and is accessed by 87% of homes with no internet access. Their offerings go far beyond TV video content—PBS Kids provides educational interactive games, in-person programming and free curricula and activities for caregivers.

Programming on PBS Kids is supported by a variety of different content partners. From independent production companies, like Fred Rogers Productions, who chose to work with PBS to fulfill their aligned mission of providing quality children’s media, to larger affiliate stations like GBH who produce content that goes out to the whole network of stations. These production partnerships allow for a vibrant range of characters and themes on screens and the ability to provide timely content that relates to current events and conversations. Local stations and independent producers also produce in-person programming and events, often in partnership with regional institutions like libraries and museums, that reach families directly and build community connections around their content.

This networked approach to content production, also allows for experimentation and innovation. New technologies to support ASL and closed captioning, the first podcast produced for children, and interactive viewing experience for kids were piloted while developing content locally and were adopted by PBS Kids nationally providing better access and representation to young audiences and their families.

Why children’s public media matters now

In a time where it’s easier than ever for children to access media content, PBS Kids is remaining at the cutting edge of technology, making sure kids and parents can access quality, educator-backed content and games across platforms and in today’s popular formats. Because PBS Kids’ mission is to serve the public, diversity and equality are essential components both on-screen and in production, ensuring children of all backgrounds and abilities see themselves represented in their favorite programs and can engage with the programming.

And research shows PBS Kids content stands out amongst commercial content in educational value, behavior and character development and family engagement. Some key stats presented include:

• 91% of parents agreed that PBS Kids is a trusted and safe source for children to watch tv & play games
• PBS Kids programs score 9.1 out of 12 on educational quality measures compared to a 7.9 for educational commercial programs
• Children who engaged with PBS Kids content gained an equivalence of one and half months of additional literacy development beyond traditional metrics
• A randomized control test showed that compared to commercial aggression-laded content, PBS Kids viewers demonstrated considerably less aggressive behaviors and had more pro-social skills
• 40% of PBS Kids content is consumed by adult audiences, meaning that parents & caregivers are watching with their children. Research shows that this co-viewing is a force-multipier that helps the values, lessons and social skills continue to flourish in the household and at school.

What’s at risk?

After funding cuts forced the closure of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and further disinvestment from the Department of Education, PBS Kids has lost over $30 million in annual federal funding. This number does not include funding that was cut from other federal agencies that support independent content creators that partner with PBS Kids to deliver their programming.

PBS Kids estimates that these cuts will result in significant production cuts, from 170 new episodes to 100; from 25-30 new games and activities to 10-12 and deep cuts to funds that supported in-person and place-based programming presented by local affiliates.

There will also be cuts that affect the infrastructure and day-to-day operations, as well as programming evaluation and research. These behind the scenes functions are vital to ensuring that staff can deliver quality programming, reach audiences and have evidence-backed materials to support the efficacy of their work.

How funders can help today.

There are many opportunities to support PBS Kids and their network of production partners, including a variety of entry points for funders new to this work. MIF is happy to work with you to identify which strategy best fits your needs and constraints and is happy to connect you with funders who are active in this space for further conversations.

To support PBS Kids today, funders might consider:

• Direct giving to children’s programming at your local PBS affiliate station. Or you can give to PBS Kids directly who can channel your gift to your local station(s). This support might be general operating, to support in-person programming or to develop media, games or learning tools.
• Support national content providers, like Fred Rogers Productions, who produce content for the entire system. This option is most suitable for issue-area funders looking to support content on certain themes and ideas.
• Provide general operating or support for infrastructure projects at your local station, or at the national level. Funding these behind-the-scenes functions provides capacity to deliver content and programming and can be a base for future sustainability of the network.
• Be an advocate for children’s public media with other funders. Existing supporters of public media and children’s content can showcase the efficacy of PBS Kids and their production partners in reaching target audiences and the proven impact of programming. Existing funders can also signal to curious and new funders that this is a low-risk sector in terms of media grantmaking.

Ways to stay involved:

Media Impact Funders and our partners will be convening two more working sessions in the coming months.  On Thursday May 28, we will host a dinner in San Francisco in partnership with Arthur Vining Davis Foundation discussing next steps. Then, later this summer, MIF will convene a small, virtual group focused on further action and collaboration later this summer.

If you are interested in attending the dinner and or joining the working session on PBS Kids, please let us know by emailing shannon@mediafunders.org.

Additional Reading & Resources:

• EDC’s Research Brief – “Expanding Opportunity for America’s Youngest Learners”
• Evan Shapiro – “It’s 10pm Do You Know What Your Kids Are Watching? – US Kids Content Landscape”
• Open Letter from Dr. Jenny Radesky in Zero to Three – “How the Attention Economy Impacts Young Children”
• For MIF Members – Rewatch the full program and read our Tip Sheet
• Seattle Children’s Research Institute – “Modifying Media Content for Preschool Children: A Randomized Controlled Trial”