PBS News Hour

How Newton Minow's concern for children changed American TV

60 years ago this Sunday — on May 9, 1961 — then Head of the FCC, Newton Minow, gave his first major speech, declaring U.S. television programming a "vast wasteland," because he saw the missed opportunities of what TV could offer. The phrase helped lead to the genesis of PBS. Minow joins Judy Woodruff to discuss the legacy of that speech.

How Newton Minow's concern for children changed American TV

6m 2s

  • Run, Hide, Fight: Growing Up Under the Gun: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Run, Hide, Fight: Growing Up Under the Gun

    25m 50s

    Gun violence is the leading cause of death for American children and teens. Run, Hide, Fight: Growing Up Under the Gun captures how gun violence affects young Americans. PBS News Student Reporting Labs in collaboration with 14 student journalists from five U.S. cities, offer a look into how the same young people that have survived these traumatic events are leading the fight for a safer future.

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