Leave it to * to be partially responsible for the death of "Reading Rainbow"

[FLAprogressive]

"The PBS reading show "Reading Rainbow" -- starring " Star Trek: The Next Generation" and "Roots" alum LeVar Burton -- ends its 26-year run on Friday. Its longevity was the third-longest for a public television children's show, beaten only by "Sesame Street" and "Mister Rogers Neighborhood."

*snip*

Grant says the funding crunch is partially to blame, but the decision to end Reading Rainbow can also be traced to a shift in the philosophy of educational television programming. The change started with the Department of Education under the Bush administration, he explains, which wanted to see a much heavier focus on the basic tools of reading -- like phonics and spelling."

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/federal-eye/2009/08/did_education_dept_help_kill_r.html

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:(

[proud2BlibKansan]

1. How sad; this is a wonderful show

As a Reading teacher, I would like to add there is a lot more to reading than phonics and spelling.

[Tutankhamun]

2. Foniks iz stoopid.

[Tutankhamun]

3. LeVar Burton was a real douche on Jon Stewart's talk show.

I don't feel like typing out what happened right now, but Burton basically did this big long routine and used it as a setup to try to insult his host. It bombed, and Burton came off as a real douchebag.

[mitchum]

6. Burton was also a real douche on Maher years ago when he dismissed the...

idea of any class conflict in America.
He's a marginally talented lapdog.

[elleng]

4. Posted earlier,

and hoped for DUer responses. Upsets me a lot, as I and my daughters, NOW studying education in colleges, know a LOT about how to encourage childdren to read.

[regnaD kciN]

5. Of course they only wanted phonics and spelling...

They didn't want to fund education beyond Dumbya's own level.