DATE: Monday, September 1, 1997             TAG: 9709010069

SECTION: FRONT                   PAGE: A3   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: KNIGHT-RIDDER NEWS SERVICE 

DATELINE: WASHINGTON                        LENGTH:   80 lines

BROADCASTERS TO FOLLOW FCC RULES AND AIR 3 HOURS OF EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS

As the new school year begins, kids aren't the only ones with homework. Television broadcasters, under pressure to produce better programming for young people, have their assignments, too.

Beginning today, under a new Federal Communications Commission rule, commercial broadcast stations must air at least three hours of children's educational shows each week. That is more than they do now, by most people's definition.

Parents should quickly notice the difference, particularly on Saturdays, the traditional slot for children's shows. The major networks either have added new shows or revamped old ones to meet the FCC's new educational standard.

This fall's programs will tackle a range of subjects from science and geography to issues of self-esteem, peer pressure and acceptance.

Broadcasters also are turning more to child-development experts to help them craft shows that both teach and entertain.

Advocates for better children's television say the lineup is promising - so far.

``They're all offering the programming,'' said Sandra L. Calvert, an associate professor of psychology at Georgetown University in Washington and an expert in children and the media. ``The question is how good will these shows be and how long will they last.''

Broadcasters say they are committed - and not just because of the new FCC rule.

``We've taken the mandate quite seriously,'' Geraldine Laybourne, a former Nickelodeon president who now oversees children's programming at ABC, told media reporters earlier this summer. ``We've embraced it, we've had fun with it, and we didn't measure it out by the teaspoonful.''

The new rule grew out of thousands of comments to the FCC, which regulates the broadcast industry, from parents and others fed up with children's shows on the small screen.

Broadcasters hope the new shows will address these concerns.

For example, this Saturday, ABC will unveil a block of children shows, including the animated ``Science Court,'' which revolves around comedy and science experiments in a classroom setting; and ``Recess'' and ``Pepper Ann,'' two cartoons dealing with social issues kids often encounter.

CBS has a revamped version of an old PBS series called ``The Ghostwriter Mysteries,'' in which children solve mysteries using reading, writing and problem-solving skills. The network also is offering a series called ``Fudge,'' a former ABC show about a precocious boy's adventure in school and at home.

NBC is keeping its popular teen-oriented lineup featuring ``Saved by the Bell,'' ``Hang Time,'' and ``NBA Inside Stuff.'' Critics have questioned the educational value of these shows, but the network defends them as having messages that teach teens. The network also is offering a new show called ``City Guys'' about two New York teen-agers of different races.

Fox already has several shows dealing with children and the lessons they learn. ``Bobby's World'' features a 4-year-old; ``C-Bear and Jamal'' is about a 10-year-old and his teddy bear; and ``Life with Louie,'' based on the comedian Louie Anderson, follows an 8-year-old through various adventures.

Shows such as these can influence children because studies show they spend more time watching television than they do reading books, doing homework or working on the computer. The Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania says children ages 2-17 watch 2.1 hours of television a day, or 766.5 hours a year.

Peggy Charren, the leading lobbyist in the movement for improved children's programming, said she is hopeful that the new FCC rule will at least make some of what children are watching more worthwhile. However, she said, three hours is not nearly enough to satisfy her idea of educational programming.

``My goal was to get TV to look more like a good children's library,'' Charren said. ``Come the new season, parents are going to pay more attention to what their kids watch, broadcasters are going to pay more attention to something other than the bottom line.''

The Children's Television Act of 1990 required stations to better serve children. But the law never set an hourly quota for kid shows, nor did the FCC define educational programming.

Some stations passed off cartoons such as the ``Jetsons'' and ``Power Rangers'' as educational. Shows that were truly considered instructive were scheduled too early in the mornings for kids to see. Under the new rule, the shows must air between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. Eastern time.

Cable television is not covered by the FCC regulation.

Send Suggestions or Comments to webmaster@scholar.lib.vt.edu