Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, R., vetoed a bill last week that would have funded operations of the state’s PBS station, Oklahoma Educational Television Authority (OETA), through 2026, accusing the station of indoctrinating young children.
“OETA, to us, is an outdated system. You know, the big, big question is why are we spending taxpayer dollars to prop up or compete with the private sector and run television stations? And then when you go through all of the programing that’s happening and the indoctrination and over-sexualization of our children, it’s just really problematic, and it doesn’t line up with Oklahoma values,” Stitt told Fox News Digital.
If the legislature is unable to override his veto, the state PBS network will cease operations this year. Shows on the network include perennial educational favorites such as “Sesame Street,” “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” and “Clifford The Big Red Dog.”
The governor’s office provided examples of OETA content that it considers objectionable, including a segment of “Let’s Learn” in which a children’s book titled “The Hips on the Drag Queen Go Swish, Swish, Swish” is read by someone called Lil Miss Hot Mess.
The governor’s office also pointed to a “PBS Newshour” feature on parents’ support for various gender care treatments including puberty blockers, a gay character in “Work It Out Wombats” which airs on OETA, PBS Kids’ “Clifford the Big Red Dog” introducing LGBTQ characters, a plethora of Pride Month programming on OETA, a special about a town of Christians and drag queens who “step into the spotlight to dismantle stereotypes,” and a same-sex wedding featured on PBS Kids’ “Odd Squad.”
In addition to being objectionable on a moral level, Governor Stitt also doesn’t believe these programs are particularly educational. “When you think about educating kids, let’s teach them to read and their numbers and counting and letters and those kind of things,” he said. “I mean, some of the programing that we’re seeing… it just doesn’t need to be on public television.”
Stitt offers other arguments as well, pointing out that if OETA programming is popular enough to be funded by public money, then it could easily be picked up by CBS, NBC, ABC or any other option that doesn’t require taxpayer dollars to stay afloat. “Oklahoma taxpayers are going, ‘Hey, hang on, time out for just a second. That’s not my values,’” he said. “I’m just tired of using taxpayer dollars for some person’s agenda. I represent the taxpayers” he says.
Drawing on an economic argument, Stitt believes we’re in a different world than the one that existed 67 years ago when OETA first aired in the Sooner State. “There’s so much television, there’s so much media,” Stitt said. “Maybe in 1957 you could have made an argument that you needed a public television station. That’s totally outdated at this point.”
