Embargoed until: 11:00 a.m. April 1, 1998

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Marianne Manilov or Kim Deterline, 202-737-1132 or 202-737-1141
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Channel One In Schools Costs Taxpayers $1.8 Billion Per Year
New University Study Calculates the Cost of Lost Class Time to Channel One

Washington, D.C. - Channel One, the in-school news and advertising program, costs taxpayers an estimated $1.8 billion in lost classroom time every year, including $300 million in class time lost to commercials according to a study released today at 10AM at the National Press Club in the West Room.

"Taxpayers will be shocked to learn they are spending almost $300 million a year for school staff to hang around while students are forced to watch commercials," said Alex Molnar, a study co-author. "Channel One was portrayed as a free lunch for schools. Instead, U.S. taxpayers hand over $1.8 billion worth class time. That's one expensive meal." The study was conducted by Molnar, Ph.D. Director of the Center for the Analysis of Commercialism in Education at the University of Wisconsin--Milwaukee and Max Sawicky, Ph.D., of the Economic Policy Institute.

Channel One operates in 40 percent of the junior high and high schools across the country. The program lends TVs and VCRs to schools, in exchange for which the schools require students to watch ten minutes of light news and two minutes of commercials. Advertisers pay Channel One close to $200,000 for each 30-second commercial. Most educational groups in the country have strong stands against the program including the PTA, which opposes "any provision which requires children to watch TV commercials as part their instruction." Other groups opposing include: National School Boards Association, the American Association of School Administrators, the national Association of Secondary School Principals, the AFT and the NEA. There have been numerous lawsuits against the program and it is banned in the state in New York.

"Every parent and teacher knows the most precious gift we have to give to kids is time," Marianne Manilov, Executive Director of the Center for Commercial-Free Public Education. It's wrong and it costs us as parents and as taxpayers."

The study found that the average cost to each public secondary school is $158,000 a year. The average cost of just the advertisements to each public school is $26,333 a year. The study includes a state- by -state calculation guide for parents.

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