In "Kids' TV Grows Up," former APPC professional-in-residence Jo Holz looks at the evolution of children's programming from Howdy Doody to SpongeBob SquarePants.

In "Kids' TV Grows Up," former APPC professional-in-residence Jo Holz looks at the evolution of children's programming from Howdy Doody to SpongeBob SquarePants.
Peggy Charren, a major force in improving children's television -- and a grassroots activist whose work was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom as well as the inaugural Annenberg Public Policy Center award for distinguished lifetime contribution to children's television -- died Jan. 22 at her home outside Boston.
Visiting Scholar Jo Holz (ASC ’81) joined the Annenberg Public Policy Center in July to begin work on a sociocultural history of American children’s television. Her resulting book will cover the development of major television shows from the beginning of children’s programming up through present-day offerings.
Although most parents agree that their kids should watch less television, they also aren’t certain how to pull the plug, according to a new study by researchers at the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, RTI International in Research Triangle Park, N.C., and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
In February, Kathleen Q. Abernathy, Commissioner, Federal Communications Commission; Edward J. Markey, D-MA; Jill Luckett, Vice President, Program Network Policy, National Cable & Telecommunications Association; Patti Miller, Director of the Children and Media Program, Children Now; Vicky Rideout, Vice President of the Kaiser Family Foundation; Amy Jordan, Senior Researcher, Annenberg Public Policy Center, and Emory
Despite Significant Changes to Media Home Environment, Parents Still Most Concerned about Kids’ TV Watching, V-Chip Ratings and Three-Hour Rule Not Doing Job In Helping Parents Guide Children’s Viewing Habits Study examines how families use media and explore the implications of two major public policy initiatives established to help parents better supervise their children’s television
The Annenberg Public Policy Center’s evaluation of the past three years’ implementation of the FCC processing guideline known as the Three-Hour Rule indicates that broadcasters have been fairly consistent in their response to the regulations.
This report examines the quantity and quality of broadcasters’ second-year efforts at implementing the mandates of the FCC’s “Three-Hour Rule.” Reported here are analyses of the education strength of E/I programs airing in Philadelphia and other parts of the country.
This report focuses on the impact of the “Three-Hour Rule” – first implemented in the 1997/98 season – on the workings of the children’s television industry and the kinds of television programs children see over the nation’s free airwaves.