April 28, 2023 video. 'Some of the stuff that they're showing, it just overly sexualizes our kids,' Gov. Stitt said of the public television station.
OKLAHOMA CITY — Gov. Kevin Stitt is pushing to eliminate the Oklahoma Educational Television Authority, alleging that the nation’s most-watched Public Broadcasting Service network is airing content aimed at indoctrinating children.
The network offers children’s programs such as “Sesame Street” and “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” in addition to the ever-popular “Antiques Roadshow” and news programs “Washington Week” and “PBS Newshour.”
Stitt on Wednesday vetoed a relatively routine bill that would continue OETA’s operations through 2026. Unless two-thirds of the members of the House and Senate join together to override the governor’s veto, OETA will cease operating this year.
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In a Friday news conference, the governor took aim at some of the network’s content and said it’s an outdated notion for the state to subsidize a television network.
“I don’t think Oklahomans want to use their tax dollars to indoctrinate kids,” Stitt said. “Some of the stuff that they’re showing just overly sexualizes our kids.”
Stitt criticized OETA for elevating LGBTQ voices and airing news content related to gender-affirming care for minors.
To back up Stitt’s claims, a spokeswoman for the governor sent the Tulsa World information showing that OETA promoted LGBTQ-focused Pride Month programming in recent years.
The spokeswoman also shared information indicating that two animated children’s cartoons — “Clifford the Big Red Dog” and “Work it out Wombats!” — that air on PBS affiliates have included lesbian characters in some episodes. The spokeswoman also sent a Fox News article that criticizes a “PBS Newshour” segment in which an Indiana couple talked about how gender-affirming care was beneficial for their daughter.
OETA Executive Director Polly Anderson said the governor’s veto of House Bill 2820 was unexpected.
She declined to comment further except to say, “It’s just really unfortunate that this is going to hurt the people of Oklahoma.”
The Oklahoma Legislature appropriated $2.8 million to OETA in the current fiscal year, a 10% decrease in funding from the prior year. The network also receives private funding.
OETA has programming that represents a variety of cultural, social and religious views, said Friends of OETA board member Ken Busby.
“OETA serves a diverse population, and Oklahoma has a diverse population,” he said. “People need to be given choices, and they can choose what they wish to watch and not watch. No one’s dictating that you have to watch this program or like this program.”
Busby said he was surprised and disappointed by the governor’s veto. But he expressed optimism that the governor will change his opinion about the network upon learning about how many people watch OETA and the public service it provides.
Especially for rural Oklahomans who don’t have cable television, OETA is a critical piece of the state’s emergency alert system, he said.
“Our broadcast towers are how we inform a lot of rural Oklahoma about disasters like tornadoes and thunderstorms,” Busby said.
Stitt last year vetoed $8.2 million in federal pandemic relief funding earmarked for OETA to enhance its emergency communications infrastructure.
The Oklahoma Legislature appears likely to override the governor’s recent veto related to OETA.
House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, said his chamber has traditionally supported OETA.
Senate Pro Tem Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, told reporters he once got called into his predecessor’s office after opposing a previous bill to continue OETA’s operations. Treat said he learned that OETA’s broadcast transmitters are critical for the Department of Public Safety and play a role in emergency communications across the state.
“Ever since then, I have supported its continuation,” he said.
About a decade ago, a group of GOP lawmakers unsuccessfully sought to defund OETA.
Tulsa County resident Sally Keel, 83, told the Tulsa World on Friday that her children grew up watching OETA. She still watches the channel more than any other.
OETA programming speaks to Oklahomans of all ages, she said.
“It’s a wonderful channel,” Keel said. “I’m just flabbergasted. I can’t believe this has come up.”
