The queer's just keep pushing...

[007]

Culture Wars Pull Buster Into the Fray
By JULIE SALAMON

Published: January 27, 2005


Correction Appended

Wayne Godwin, chief operating officer of PBS, got a bit tangled as he tried to explain the PBS stance on gay characters appearing on children's television shows.

"In fairness I would have to say a gay character is not one we would not include," he said, and then clarified. "The fact that a character may or may not be gay is not a reason why they should or should not be part of this series."

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Yet on Tuesday PBS decided not to distribute to its roughly 350 PBS stations an episode of "Postcards From Buster," which was scheduled for Feb. 2 and included lesbian mothers, even though a few days earlier PBS officials, among them PBS's president, Pat Mitchell, viewed the episode and called it appropriate. That was before Education Secretary Margaret Spellings denounced the program, starring Buster Baxter, a cute animated rabbit who until now has been known primarily as a close friend of Arthur, the world's most famous aardvark. Ms. Spellings said many parents would not want children exposed to a lesbian life style.

Buster joined another cartoon character, SpongeBob SquarePants, as a focus of the nation's culture wars. SpongeBob was recently attacked by Christian groups for being pro-homosexual, though SpongeBob's creator said it was all a misinterpretation. Buster's offense was appearing in "Sugartime!," the undistributed "Postcards From Buster" show, in which he visits children living in Vermont whose parents are a lesbian couple. Civil unions are allowed in Vermont.

"Postcards From Buster" is a spinoff of "Arthur" that combines live action and animation and went on the air a year ago. In the series, aimed at young elementary schoolchildren, Buster travels to 24 different states with his father and sends video postcards home.

Buster appears briefly onscreen, but mainly narrates these live-action segments, which show real children and how they live. One episode featured a family with five children, living in a trailer in Virginia, all sharing one room. In another, Buster visits a Mormon family in Utah. He has dropped in on fundamentalist Christians and Muslims as well as American Indians and Hmong. He has shown the lives of children who have only one parent, and those who live with grandparents.

Marc Brown, creator of "Arthur" and "Postcards From Buster," said in a statement: "I am disappointed by PBS's decision not to distribute the 'Postcards From Buster' 'Sugartime!' episode to public television stations. What we are trying to do in the series is connect kids with other kids by reflecting their lives. In some episodes, as in the Vermont one, we are validating children who are seldom validated. We believe that 'Postcards From Buster' does this in a very natural way - and, as always, from the point of view of children."

Jeanne Hopkins, a spokeswoman for the show's producer, WGBH-TV of Boston, added, "We feel it's important that we not exclude kids because of what their family structure looks like." WGBH plans to broadcast the episode in March and offer it to other PBS stations.

Like the grown-ups in most of the episodes, the lesbian mothers in the "Sugartime!" segment are mainly background. "The concern really was that there's a point where background becomes foreground," Mr. Godwin said. "No matter if the parents were intended to be background, with this specific item in this particular program they might simply be foreground because of press attention to it and parental attention to it."

The question is, does the episode violate the grant under which WGBH received federal funds? Mr. Godwin said, "The presence of a couple headed by two mothers would not be appropriate curricular purpose that PBS should provide."

The grant specifies the programs "should be designed to appeal to all of America's children by providing them with content and characters with which they can identify." In addition, the grant says, "Diversity will be incorporated into the fabric of the series to help children understand and respect differences and learn to live in a multicultural society."

Brigid Sullivan, vice president for children's programming at WGBH, has been producing children's shows for 20 years, including "Arthur," for many years the top-rated children's show. "This asked for a project on diversity to all of America's children," she said. "We took it seriously and thought that with 'Arthur,' the No. 1 show on television for kids for years, we had something to draw kids in. Buster is Arthur's best friend, the child of divorce, he has asthma. Children sympathize with him. We had a breakthrough format, this animated bunny with his camera getting live-action sequence. Not to present a make-believe world of diversity but a real world."

Explaining the goal of the show, Ms. Sullivan said: "We want to reflect all of America's children."

"This is not about their parents," she said.


Correction: January 29, 2005, Saturday:

An article in The Arts on Thursday about a decision by PBS against distributing an episode of "Postcards From Buster," a children's program, because it portrays children whose parents are a lesbian couple, referred incorrectly to another recent controversy over a children's television character, SpongeBob SquarePants. Dr. James C. Dobson, founder of the conservative Christian group Focus on the Family, said this month that SpongeBob's creator had allowed the character to be used in a "pro-homosexual video." He did not say the SpongeBob character itself was "pro-homosexual." (The creator of the video said it was intended to teach children about multiculturalism.)

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/27/a...00&en=0d26e408d16f333a&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt

The son of a bitchin' libs and their attack dogs, the aclu SCREAM every time there's the hint of mention of "GOD" that's funded by the government, but when it comes to their favorite LIBERAL OUTLET, "pbs", then it's FINE to push their Godless, perverted, filthy sick faggot lifestyle down the throats, and worse yet, since adults fight back, OF OUR VERY YOUNG CHILDREN, and have the GOVERNMENT PAY FOR THAT!

I'm SICK of these queers and their filthy perversion. GET BACK IN THE FUCKING CLOSET you sick fucks, and STAY AWAY FROM THE CHILDREN!!!

 

[manu1959]

dude you better not come to san francisco during gay pride week

 

[007]

dude you better not come to san francisco during gay pride week

You're right. First sick fucker that made a pass at me would need an ambulance.

 

[007]

I have no problem personally if consenting adults want to get busy in their own privacy, but creating gay characters for children shows or cartoons is just plain bullshit!

The funny thing is so many gays will say they are confused or just grew up being gay now the next generation will say that sponge bob made me do it!

The big point though Evil, was that if there's a mention of "God" that has anything to do with the government, then the libs and the aclu are screaming bloody murder. But here on pbs, which is "funded" by the government, they want to push their queer agenda at our CHILDREN! They can't get anywhere pushing it at ADULTS, so hey, GO AFTER THE CHILDREN!

And why do the libs want to "do away with religon"? OBVIOUSLY because it stands in the way of their perverted, Godless agenda.

These fuckers piss me off to no extent.

 

[nakedemperor]

You're right. First sick fucker that made a pass at me would need an ambulance.

Oh, I don't think you'd have to worry about that happening.

 

[007]

Oh, I don't think you'd have to worry about that happening.

I'm not the one who should be worried ferry boy. People like you are.

 

[007]

When the time comes that she has the need for knowledge on it I will educate her on it, not the TV!

That's exactly right Evil, and I completely agree.

It's also this double standard the libs continue to impliment that pisses me off.

 

[007]

I don't think you will ever hear them admit to it but they do it quite a bit, In fact I think they have been hugely effected by it since Bush set foot in office!

The liberals right now Evil are absolutely SEETHING with hate and anger, that President Bush got reelected, and that they're the MINORITY in both the house and the senate. That's why they're trying this SNEAKY shit like this fag cartoon to spead their brand of sickness.

Oh... and gem, if you're going to nick my rep because you APPROVE of the queer perversion, have a spine and post your reasons why, instead of doing it behind everyone's, and my back.

 

[nakedemperor]

I'm not the one who should be worried ferry boy. People like you are.

Haha, fair enough. I've had to deal with getting the shit kicked out of me just for being bisexual, its just a part of life. I'm over it.

 

[OCA]

Pale no need to fret, soon all the pole smoking and rug munching HLCP mental defectives will be relegated to Massachusets, Canada and Vermont after 48 states vote to ban gay marriage. The queers can try this little skirmish and others,and when I heard this on the radio the other day it sounds like they've lost this skirmish, but the fact remains that they are wrong, the American people are onto them and are taking action now as evidenced this past November. Soon we will be back to where we should have been all along, confronting them about their sickness and helping these sickos get the medical help they need.

 

[OCA]

Haha, fair enough. I've had to deal with getting the shit kicked out of me just for being bisexual, its just a part of life. I'm over it.

Your not bisexual by nature there Nakey, why don't we be honest and say "on some days I choose to suck cock and on others I munch the clam", lets leave the dishonesty out, shall we. Oh and while were at it lets stop trying to tug at people's heartstrings by claiming to get the hell kicked out of you because of who you are. Its not because of who you are but rather because of who you are pretending to be. Now i'm not condoning beating up HLCP's but rather i'd like to see the continuation of our devastation of you people in the arena of ideas.

Sometimes I find it hard to believe you are an Ivy leaguer.

 

[nakedemperor]

Your not bisexual by nature there Nakey, why don't we be honest and say "on some days I choose to suck cock and on others I munch the clam", lets leave the dishonesty out, shall we. Oh and while were at it lets stop trying to tug at people's heartstrings by claiming to get the hell kicked out of you because of who you are. Its not because of who you are but rather because of who you are pretending to be. Now i'm not condoning beating up HLCP's but rather i'd like to see the continuation of our devastation of you people in the arena of ideas.

Sometimes I find it hard to believe you are an Ivy leaguer.

Ok, we'll have to agree to disagree that people aren't just "choosing to be gay". I never made that decision, its just the way I am. I'm not trying to tug at anyone's heartstrings-- its a simple fact that because of people who hate gays, gays will get beat up. I'm not asking for anyone's sympathy, I'm merely saying that its not going to make me "reconsider" my sexuality, because that's just not possible. I am bisexual by nature, and its not something that I or anyone else can change.

You'll find it rather distressing that the Ivy Schools are very tolerant and supportive of the gay community. Its a veritable sinners' breeding ground. I guess we'll just have to deal with the next generation of young professionals, politicials, and pundits being pro-gay rights.

 

[manu1959]

I am bisexual by nature, and its not something that I or anyone else can change. It is not a choice.

why is being gay the only beahvioural issue this argument works for?

I am religious by nature, and its not something that I or anyone else can change. Do you think i would choose to be like this?

I am sexist by nature, and its not something that I or anyone else can change. Do you think i would choose to be like this?

I am insert problem by nature, and its not something that I or anyone else can change. Do you think i would choose to be like this?

what a cop out...classic non responsibility

 

[OCA]

Ok, we'll have to agree to disagree that people aren't just "choosing to be gay". I never made that decision, its just the way I am. I'm not trying to tug at anyone's heartstrings-- its a simple fact that because of people who hate gays, gays will get beat up. I'm not asking for anyone's sympathy, I'm merely saying that its not going to make me "reconsider" my sexuality, because that's just not possible. I am bisexual by nature, and its not something that I or anyone else can change.

You'll find it rather distressing that the Ivy Schools are very tolerant and supportive of the gay community. Its a veritable sinners' breeding ground. I guess we'll just have to deal with the next generation of young professionals, politicials, and pundits being pro-gay rights.

In college its cool to be lib. Once you are out in the real world you will be a conservative since conservatism deals with real life and not theories.

 

[nakedemperor]

why is being gay the only beahvioural issue this argument works for?

I am religious by nature, and its not something that I or anyone else can change. Do you think i would choose to be like this?

I am sexist by nature, and its not something that I or anyone else can change. Do you think i would choose to be like this?

I am insert problem by nature, and its not something that I or anyone else can change. Do you think i would choose to be like this?

what a cop out...classic non responsibility

Being gay isn't a "problem", nor is it a bad thing. Which is why you can say "I was born prone to alcoholism, but I can change" because changing is beneficial.

 

[manu1959]

Being gay isn't a "problem", nor is it a bad thing. Which is why you can say "I was born prone to alcoholism, but I can change" because changing is beneficial.

first off all the muslim will disagree with you

being and achoholic isn't a problem nor is it a bad thing and as an alcholic i am extreamly offended by your statement

 

[OCA]

Being gay isn't a "problem", nor is it a bad thing.

I think its safe to say that this is an erroneous statement by all the voluminous information on the subject out there and that most of America vehemently disagrees with this.

 

[nakedemperor]

first off all the muslim will disagree with you

being and achoholic isn't a problem nor is it a bad thing and as an alcholic i am extreamly offended by your statement

Alcoholism kills 200,000 people a year. Not a bad thing?

 

[manu1959]

Alcoholism kills 200,000 people a year. Not a bad thing?

nope...weeds out the weak ones...darwins theory

 

[OCA]

Alcoholism kills 200,000 people a year. Not a bad thing?

Alcoholism like homosexuality is a choice. Both are bad, alcoholics kill alot more because it is more prevalent but i'd like to se just the numbers of AIDS victims who died in the last year and contracted it through same sex sex. The numbers are probably much more staggering given the small population of HLCP perversionists out there.