Censored kids’ program to air
Two dozen stations, including KCET-TV, will air “Sugartime!” -- an episode from the children’s series “Postcards From Buster” -- in the series’ regular 2 p.m. time slot Tuesday, even though PBS refused to distribute the episode because it contained scenes of a family headed by a lesbian couple.
“We looked at it and felt that the goal of our air is to reflect the wide diversity of our community,” said Mary Mazur, executive vice president of programming and production at KCET.
“Postcards From Buster” is a daily program produced by WGBH-TV in Boston that follows the animated bunny Buster as he travels to places around the country and visits with families of varied backgrounds and composition.
Last week, U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings wrote to PBS President Pat Mitchell, saying: “Many parents would not want their young children exposed to the lifestyles portrayed in this episode.”
The same day, PBS told affiliates they would not be receiving the episode. After WGBH offered to distribute “Sugartime!” itself, 24 of 350 affiliated stations said they would run it, a spokeswoman said.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
