The Corporation for Public Broadcasting has asked the Congress to exempt it from a new federal law that cpb officials fear could lead to political interference in public television.
Under a 1988 law aimed at curbing wasteful use of federal money, the government-funded corporation must establish an inspector general’s office by April 18.
An inspector general could abuse his power to determine whether a cpb-financed program was a necessary use of funds, members of the corporation’s board warned at a meeting last month.
Such an official who was not sensitive to the cpb’s mission to fund alternative programming might question “the value of new or different or controversial programming,” said Daniel Brenner, a board member who directs the communications-law program at the University of California at Los Angeles.
Donald Ledwig, the corporation’s president, noted that the cpb had funded public-television programs that critically examined such subjects as aids and nuclear war.
The cpb supports a wide range of projects, including news documentaries and much of children’s programming.
fs6 The New Jersey Public Television Network will present “aids in the Public Schools,” a national teleconference for administrators and policymakers, on April 25.
The program will deal with the legal and policy issues of acquired immune deficiency syndrome. Scheduled topics include: schools’ need for an aids policy, employee contracts and student rights, confidentiality issues, and aids education.
The teleconference is scheduled for 1 to 3 P.M., E.D.T.
The program is also being presented by the PBS Elementary/Secondary Service, the education branch of the Public Broadcasting Service. Katherine Keogh, a professor of educational administration at Queens College, will be one of the moderators.
Educators interested in participating should contact their local PBS stations or the Elementary/Secondary Service, 1320 Braddock Place, Alexandria, Va. 22314.
fs6 Joe Clark, the New Jersey principal whose controversial exploits are recounted in the current movie “Lean on Me,” is set to make a guest appearance April 15 on the NBC situation comedy “227.”
Mr. Clark, now on leave from his job at Eastside High School in Paterson, will play himself in the program. Although the script was still being written last week, a network publicist said the plot called for Mr. Clark to visit Washington to motivate a student to stay in school.
The episode airs at 8 P.M., E.D.T.mw
