Reference no: EM133226156

In the following example, describe the strengths and limitations of this introductory paragraph.

Since the mid 1990s media scholars have shown how corporate and federal funding determines and limits public television programming (Hoynes 1994; Bennett 1997; Dornfeld 1998; Stavistky 1998; Witherspoon et al. 2000). By threatening to remove future funding or by choosing not to fund program proposals, federal and corporate funding sources successfully deter public television stations from producing or airing programs that are politically, socially, and economically controversial. However, public television stations also generate a substantial amount of their annual funds from viewers during pledge drives. Indeed, pledge drives have become increasingly important as corporate support has dwindled over the past decade, and federal appropriations have come under attack (Witherspoon et al. 2000; Hoynes 2003). To date, research examining the public television viewer's role in determining and informing public television programming is rather underdeveloped. Given the decline in corporate and federal funding, this research is overdue. By examining the viewers' position in public television, scholarship can more accurately explain pressures and trends that lead to programming that stations deem "safe" while considering public television's position and services in the larger social and cultural environments.