PBS Foundation

News & Information

1 | 2 | 3 | 4

Remarks

Paula Kerger
Development Conference 2007
Wednesday, Oct. 03, 2007

Thank you and good morning.

As many of you know, I came from the world of public television development, so no matter what city we meet in, this conference always feels like a homecoming for me..

This year, DevCon feels particularly special because we are gathering at a truly historic moment in the life of public television.

Last night, Ken Burns’s “The War” concluded its initial run and if the overnight ratings are any indication, it is on target to becoming one of PBS's most watched programs ever.

By now, many of you probably know the numbers:

• The estimated total audience for the first night of “The War” was more than 18 million viewers.

• The 5.0 rating for “The War’s” debut was the highest rated program of any kind since an “Antiques Roadshow” episode in 2000.

• “The War’s” Web site has received more than 500,000 visits.

It is now the first result you get when you type the phrase “the war” into Google’s search bar.

• “The War” sparked more than 100 oral history projects at PBS stations throughout America and more than 50 locally produced documentaries.

Many of these outreach projects were made possible through the support of CPB.

It also produced the largest promotional campaign in PBS’s history thanks to our major corporate underwriters – Anheuser-Busch, Bank of America and General Motors.

• Now here’s a brand new statistic the PBS Research team just finished crunching for me:

According to preliminary data, the 8 p.m. editions of “The War” averaged a 3.8 overnight rating over seven nights – 192 percent higher than the average PBS overnight rating of 1.3.

All this comes down to one thing: No matter how you slice it, “The War” has been a major triumph for PBS and stations across the country.

It is a reminder of the power of public television, and it demonstrates again how much we can accomplish when all of us – PBS, CPB, the stations, our funders – come together on behalf of the American people.

And isn’t it gratifying to see quotes like those we witnessed in the days before “The War’s” debut?

Quotes like the one from the critic for the New York Post, who wrote that he has “never experienced anything more powerful than this.”

Or the one from the Chicago Tribune, which called the “The War” “magnificent.”

Or the one from the Christian Science Monitor, which described the series as “television at its most profound.”

Or the quote from USA Today, which suggested the entire nation owes a debt of gratitude to Ken and public television.

As if the success of “The War” wasn’t enough, consider the tremendous victory we experienced during this year’s Emmy competitions.

PBS dominated the News and Documentary Emmy Awards last week, taking home 10 awards, more than any broadcaster or cable network.

I had the high honor of presenting two special Emmys to the producers of “Frontline” and “P.O.V.” at this year’s ceremony.

Standing on the stage and watching the highlight reel of each program’s remarkable body of work was a moving experience.

The evening was a wonderful reminder of everything that makes public television unique.

Our success at the News and Doc Emmys comes on the heels of the nine Primetime Emmys PBS received earlier in September, and the 15 Daytime Emmys we took home in June.

By the way, this was the 10th consecutive year PBS received the most Emmys for children’s programming.

My friends, this is a great time to be in public television.

And yet for some of us, our joy is tempered by a sense of uncertainty.

Some of us cast a skeptical eye on tomorrow.

We look at the changes unfolding around us – the looming DTV transition, the rise of iPods and YouTube, the broadband explosion – and we feel a little fearful for the future.

Make no mistake: We should be concerned about the changes driven by the technological revolution.

Tomorrow does offer uncertainty – for public television and for every other form of traditional media.

But the future also offers enormous hope – especially for public media.

The surge in public service in the United States, the renaissance in philanthropy, the rich potential represented by our nation's increasing diversity – these are all encouraging signs.

I stood before you one year ago and shared my firm conviction that public television’s greatest days lie ahead.

I believed it then.

1 | 2 | 3 | 4