1990
Feb. 16: PBS launches PBS Home Video [article]. Alvin Perlmutter proposes Voter’s Channel with aid from Markle Foundation to cover 1992 politics. (PBS doesn’t take the offer, and the plan falls apart in June 1991 [article].) Sept. 23-27: Ken Burns’ The Civil War breaks PBS audience records; he follows with Baseball in 1994 [article] and Jazz in 2001 [article], and numerous shorter projects in between.

1991
June 19: Walter Annenberg pledges $60 million over 12 years for new math/science project at CPB [article]. July: “Tongues Untied” wins condemnation and applause [article]. Heritage Foundation hires Laurence Jarvik to study public broadcasting [article]. NPR debuts Talk of the Nation.

1992
January: American Program Service is new name of EEN Interregional Program Service. March: CPB hires Richard Carlson as president [article]. March: Robert and Linda Lichter release political content analysis of PBS documentaries. Aug. 26: President Bush signs CPB reauthorization act with Senate amendment requiring CPB to monitor “objectivity and balance” in programming [ text of law]. October: Congress requires DBS operators to set aside 4-7 percent of capacity for noncom educational use. (U.S. Court of Appeals upholds set-aside in August 1996 [article & ruling]; FCC goes with 4 percent in November 1998 [article].)
..

1993
January: NPR Board ends annual dues struggles by “locking down” stations’ dues increases to their rate of revenue growth. Feb. 5: CPB report to Congress proposes expanded “ready to learn” preschool programming. March: PBS suffers flap over pledging during Barney & Friends [article]. May: Bruce Christensen says he’ll leave PBS presidency; in December, PBS names Ervin Duggan as successor [article]. May 18: Lawrence Grossman, PBS, WNET and WGBH propose Horizons cable channel, which later fails to gain cable carriage [article]. July: Twentieth Century Fund publishes task force report on public TV [article and summary of recommendations]. August: NPR names Delano Lewis as president [article]. Sept. 16: Radio Bilingüe starts Satélite radio service for Latino public radio stations [article].
..

1994
January: NPR moves into new D.C. headquarters [article]. July 1: APR becomes Public Radio International. July 11: PBS launches pilot of Ready to Learn Service for preschoolers. October: American Indian Radio on Satellite (AIROS) network starts up. November: Republicans win majority in House; new Speaker Newt Gingrich soon announces plan to “zero out” CPB funding [article].

1995
January: PBS Board plans to penalize stations airing 30-second spots [article]; furor erupts; and penalties are later tabled. March: PBS and MCI announce programming and online deal; it never gets going [article]. July 17: CPB creates twin Future Funds for public radio and TV. September: PBS Online debuts. September: Markle Foundation backs Lawrence Grossman study of his proposal for two nights of ad-supported weekend programming on public TV [articles & documents]. (The idea goes public in June 1997, but falters.) November: PBS announces production deal with Reader’s Digest Association [article]; publisher backs out within two years. Duggan pledges to hold down stations’ program dues under new Station Equity Model [article]. PBS and APTS launch governance reviews [article].
..

1996
Jan. 2: CPB Board adds radio station audience and fundraising criteria for grant eligibility, effective October 1998 [article]. January: PRI launches limited distribution of The World [article]. February: Rep. Jack Fields introduces trust fund bill, but it doesn’t advance [article & bill]. July: PBS names Kathy Quattrone to succeed Jennifer Lawson as chief program executive [article].

1997
Jan. 24: Richard Carlson resigns as CPB president [article]. February: PBS Board revises bylaws, increasing managers on board [article]. April 3: FCC sets 2003 deadline for public TV stations to begin DTV simulcasting [article]. April: Group of public TV stations pledges not to air 30-second spots; others already have them on-air [article]. June 30: Public broadcasting’s total revenues pass $2 billion by end of fiscal year 1997 [figures]. Oct. 1: CPB announces promotion of Robert Coonrod to presidency [article]. October: NPR and PRI presidents propose merger, their boards say no [article]. Nov. 5: Public TV stations create National Forum of Public Television Executives at convention in Austin [article & documents].
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1999
Jan. 1: American Program Service renamed American Public Television. Feb. 1: Former PBS Home Video distributor Michael Nesmith wins $47 million civil judgment against the network [article]. (In July, PBS settles with Nesmith for an undisclosed amount [article].) June: NPR and PRI announce plans to provide channels to CD Radio satellite service [article]. July: House leaders erupt as Washington hears about WGBH mailing list deals with Democrats [article & CPB document]. Sept. 6: PBS begins transmitting PBS Kids service for DBS and DTV [article]. Sept. 9: Ervin Duggan resigns as PBS president [article]. December: DirecTV commits to carry new PBS-You adult education channel [article].

2000
Jan. 20. FCC establishes new class of noncommercial low-power FM licenses reserved for local groups that don't already own stations [documents on FCC site]. In December, NPR and other broadcasters lead successful campaign to limit interference by restricting LPFM.
Jan. 28. After furor erupts among religious broadcasters FCC drops its December 1999 guidelines limiting nonsecular use of reserved educational frequencies.
Feb. 4. PBS hires Pat Mitchell, a CNN documentaries exec, as its president — the first producer to hold the job.
April 12. Minnesota Public Radio expands into California — buying Marketplace Productions in Los Angeles [article] — soon after taking on management of KPCC-FM in Pasadena.
September: Activists file second and third lawsuits that will help overturn board of Pacifica Radio.
Oct. 25. Six years after collapse of American Playhouse, U.S. drama returns to PBS with occasional programs on Masterpiece Theatre, with other new dramatic series planned.
Dec. 31. David Brugger retires as president of APTS after 13 years.
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To History home page | To Current Online home page
Web page created January 2001
Compiled by Steve Behrens
Adapted from A History of Public Broadcasting
Current Publishing Committee, Takoma Park, Md.
E-mail: webcurrent.org
Copyright 2001