Free Speech Icon Free Speech

More Propaganda in the Classroom

Recently Channel One News decided to tackle the evolution debate and focused on the Florida state board of education’s decision to revise science standards to proclaim Darwinian evolution as the foundation of biolgoy. If you’re not familiar with Channel One it probably means you’re not a high school student. Channel One is the self-poroclaimed “news and public affairs content provider to teens” and claims to reach six million students across the country every single day.


So, how does Channel One report the issue? Much the way the mainstream media does, poorly.
A public school teacher wrote me about this saying:

Our students watch the Channel One News broadcast every school day. Channel One gets into so many schools because they pay to put televisions in every classroom and pay all expenses. Schools are free to use the equipment for other purposes as long as our students watch the Channel One news program every morning.I wouldn’t mind the arrangement if they weren’t so biased. Every time they bring up the topic of evolution, they discuss the Scopes trial to elicit sympathy for the evolutionists. They always interview scientists on the evolutionary side and pastors or unknowledgeable students on the ID or creationist side.

Clearly, on this issue at least Channel One’s reporting leaves a lot to be desired. The video that students watched in their classrooms misrepresented not just what intelligent design is, but the entire debate ongoing in Florida and elsewhere. As the teacher indicated, scientists are interviewed about evolution and a minister is questioned about intelligent design. Not being a scientist or design theorist at all, he gives a poor and unclear definition of ID — presumably exactly what Channel One wanted.

Remember that in Florida it was the Darwinists who kept talking about intelligent design. No one ever suggested that ID be included in the state’s science curriculum, but Darwinist claimed this was what was happening. All that was ever proposed was the dogmatic teaching of only Darwinian evolution sans any critical analysis. A minority report was submitted, but likewise didn’t deal with intelligent design at all.

On their website, Channel One continues their misleading ways. Again, as the teacher pointed out above, they are focused more on the past than on the current realities.

It’s all about how we got here, and it’s always been controversial. Was it a divine creation or did we evolve from other species? Is there a third answer we aren’t considering?
Teacher John Scopes was convicted and fined for teaching evolution in his Tennessee classroom. The trial gained national attention and started the debate about what should be taught in schools and who should regulate it.

Interestingly they poll students about what should be taught, and cleverly have already selected “evolution only” for them.

channelonescreenshot.jpg


Of course now the issue in Florida is one of academic freedom. Will Channel One misreport that too?

Robert Crowther, II

Robert Crowther holds a BA in Journalism with an emphasis in public affairs and 20 years experience as a journalist, publisher, and brand marketing and media relations specialist. From 1994-2000 he was the Director of Public and Media Relations for Discovery Institute overseeing most aspects of communications for each of the Institute's major programs. In addition to handling public and media relations he managed the Institute's first three books to press, Justice Matters by Roberta Katz, Speaking of George Gilder edited by Frank Gregorsky, and The End of Money by Richard Rahn.

Share

Tags

__k-review