Just Don’t Tell the Kids It’s Educational

CBS, backed into a corner by the government and pushed around by competing networks, has devised a new children’s programming formula: educational TV shows on a cut-rate budget.

The network introduces an entirely new Saturday morning lineup today, with all six programs produced by Nelvana Limited, a Canadian company that made the network an offer it couldn’t refuse.

Benefiting from Canadian and French government subsidies covering as much as 30% of its production costs, Nelvana agreed to supply CBS animated programs for a fee of $50,000 per episode--less than a quarter of what other networks pay for their children’s fare.

The arrangement has irked some U.S. suppliers, who see irony and more than a little cynicism in CBS fulfilling Federal Communication Commission guidelines requiring TV stations to air three hours per week of educational children’s programming by going that route. The Canadian subsidies, one producer of children’s television noted, create a model “with which no U.S. company could effectively or fairly compete.”

Westinghouse Electric Corp. promised to meet the three-hour goal in September 1995, before the rules were formally adopted, when the company was seeking approval to acquire CBS amid opposition from children’s advocacy groups.

The network’s first “FCC-friendly” lineup premiered last fall, but that roster--consisting of live-action shows such as “Beakman’s World” and “The Ghostwriter Mysteries”--attracted less than 200,000 children during an average week, compared to well over 1 million recorded by Nickelodeon, ABC and Fox.

CBS also finished far behind the Warner Bros.-backed WB network, which, like Fox, can cross-promote its Saturday lineup with kids’ programs airing Monday through Friday. Recognizing this handicap, NBC bailed out of the children’s arena six years ago and now directs its Saturday morning resources toward live-action series aimed at teenagers.

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Lucy Johnson, CBS’ senior vice president responsible for daytime and children’s programming, acknowledged that her network faces a serious handicap reaching kids and would probably be “seriously reevaluating” its children’s programming commitment had Westinghouse not made its pledge to the FCC.

“We can’t compete with the same props our competitors can,” Johnson said. Indeed, one rival network executive said of CBS’ kids’ schedule, “I don’t even get their [ratings] anymore.”

Last fall, CBS decided to go back to the drawing board, laying out its specific needs for programming at a reduced cost. With Disney (which owns ABC), Fox and Warner Bros. producing and owning most of their shows, Nelvana seized the opportunity.

“We said, ‘We can make this work,’ ” said Nelvana President Toper Taylor, who estimated his company’s total commitment to the venture at $30 million.

Nelvana, which has produced such shows as “Babar” and “The Magic School Bus,” came up with a list of animated properties based on popular children’s books. The lineup includes “Franklin,” following the adventures of a young turtle; “Dumb Bunnies,” about a family of lovable but naive bunnies; and the self-explanatory “Flying Rhino Junior High.”

While not as overtly educational as “Sesame Street,” CBS and the producers contend the programming meets FCC guidelines by teaching moral lessons and problem solving.

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Some TV executives say precedent suggests otherwise, noting that government mandates alone can’t inspire children to watch programs that don’t interest them. Moreover, because CBS has the oldest audience profile among the major networks, its ability to reach kids against well-armed foes like Disney and Warner Bros. seems remote.

“You can’t legislate what kids are going to watch,” said Alan Bell, president of Freedom Broadcasting, which owns both CBS and ABC affiliated TV stations.

“Is the regulatory process, which is noble in purpose, connected to reality? Does it accomplish anything? . . . The kids don’t get regulated by a government bureaucrat. They do whatever they damn please.”

Advocacy groups insist that educational fare can prosper commercially and that allocating such time toward that end represents a small price for the networks in exchange for their valuable broadcast spectrum.

Jeff Chester, executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Media Education, which lobbied for the children’s rules, said CBS has made a good-faith effort to meet that commitment but expressed some concern about financial priorities--as opposed to what’s best for kids--dictating its current approach.

“None of these programs would be on the air if the rules hadn’t gone into effect,” Chester noted, adding, “One would hope that CBS sees it has a serious commitment to make [to children].”

The challenge remains formidable. Many CBS stations won’t even run the programs on Saturday, airing local news in their place while scheduling kids’ fare Sunday morning or some other time.

Nelvana’s Taylor admitted the shows face “a lot of skepticism on the station level” but maintained there is a history of kids discovering programs they like, which helped make cable’s Nickelodeon the children’s leader. Nelvana also hopes to benefit from the fact that its shows are based on familiar literary properties.

CBS is trying to alert kids--and especially their parents--about the kids lineup via its Web site, radio advertising and on-air promotion during its daytime lineup. Still, critics say the network has scant incentive to reach kids because the structure of its Nelvana deal virtually guarantees CBS a profit even with meager ratings.

“I have a problem with saying, ‘We don’t care how we fail, as long as it doesn’t cost us any money,’ ” said one TV executive, who contends CBS’ lineup was assembled “with no regard for the audience.”

CBS and Nelvana argue otherwise, but they concede their initial expectations remain modest, hoping ratings can build slowly from last season’s results.

“With success, doors will open,” Taylor said. “It’s our responsibility to make educational series compelling, entertaining and enjoyable.”

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CBS’ new children’s programming begins at 7 a.m. today on Channel 2.