Another battle for the CPB

ANOTHER BATTLE FOR CPB
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times 7/14, AUTHOR: Matea Gold]
Less than a year after the chairman of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting was forced to resign amid charges that he injected partisanship into the agency, President Bush has nominated to the nonprofit's board a television sitcom producer who has described himself as "thoroughly conservative in ways that strike horror into the hearts of my Hollywood colleagues." The nomination of Warren Bell, executive producer of ABC's "According to Jim" and a contributor to the online edition of the conservative National Review magazine, has puzzled and alarmed some public broadcasters, who fear he would revive the sharp political debate that engulfed the system last year. Bell said he was surprised by his nomination but stressed that he had no intention of letting his personal political beliefs influence his role on the board. He asked skeptics to withhold judgment until they have a chance to hear about his goals for the post. "I have every intention of working in a nonpartisan fashion with CPB," he said. "Anybody who spends 15 minutes talking to me will find that I am an eminently reasonable man." But Bell's past comments have raised eyebrows among some Democrats who serve on the Senate Commerce Committee, which must approve his nomination. Questions about his qualifications are expected to dominate his confirmation hearing, which has not yet been scheduled. "Based on what we know right now, this nominee doesn't appear to have the credentials and background one would expect for this position, which is in contrast to the other nominees," said California Sen. Barbara Boxer, a committee member. "I am also concerned about some of the partisan statements Mr. Bell has made over the years." The disquiet over Bell's nomination comes on the heels of last year's controversy, triggered by then-board Chairman Kenneth Y. Tomlinson, who worked aggressively to right what he saw as a liberal slant at PBS and NPR.
http://www.calendarlive.com/tv/cl-et-bell14jul14,0,3099233.story?coll=cl...
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