Schools across the country have been closed indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic, so public television stations are trying to help fill the education gap facing young people.
Neal Shapiro, president of the New York metro area public broadcasting station WNET, told Cheddar Monday that PBS stations are offering kids the tools to stay on track with their schooling via educational television.
The broadcaster has been working with a group of teachers in New Jersey to provide educational programming during the coronavirus pandemic. "Teachers are actually teaching from their very own homes, and they are using TV in a very interactive way. So, now they’re teaching from nine to one [o'clock], and each hour is a different grade," Shapiro said of the educators.
Public educational television may be a "game-changer" for children going forward, he said, even after the pandemic is over.
"As we think about how life will be different, education is one of those ways," Shapiro explained. "I think there are going to be a lot more ways in which we can use educational television to fill that gap."
PBS provides a vast range of content between its news, educational, and arts programming. Shapiro said increasing content is one way the channels can help communities hunkering down.
"If you look at what we’re doing in the arts, that’s a whole other area where public television has kind of led the way," he noted. "In New York we’ve gone back and done some of our plays over the years. So, even though Broadway is dark we’re not."
WNET has also launched an Arts Only channel where they will stream Lionsgate Live! A Night at the Movies, hosted by actress Jamie Lee Curtis who is also sheltered at home.
Shapiro said channels have seen an increase in viewership on all platforms and credits the broadcaster's unique programming.
"I think one of the reasons we are particularly up is that there are still things PBS does better than other people," he said. "There is nobody who does deep documentaries the way we do. There’s nobody who has this rich library of fantastic drama and costume drama the way that we do."
Some of Tiktok's biggest stars have a message for the platform: It is time to pay up! As the platform has skyrocketed in popularity, many content creators have been given the opportunity to garner millions of fans and even sometimes billions of views. In 2020, the company launched a creator fund in order to incentivize the platform's users. However, while the group of creators has grown larger, the pool of money has remained the same, and creators are fed up, they claim as Tiktok becomes more successful. Senior Editor at Engadget, Karissa Bell, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
In 2021, QAnon, the community which traffics in conspiracy theories saw a rapid growth in its numbers. As a result of vaccine rollouts, a number of conspiracies surrounding them also began to circulate which then led to the rise of "Anti-Vaxxers". As a result, the QAnon and anti-vax communities have become increasingly intertwined and the results could be costing lives. Senior Researcher at Media Matters Alex Kaplan, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Neil Young gave the streaming service Spotify an ultimatum demanding that his music be removed if the Joe Rogan experience remained on the platform. Joe Rogan's platform has been questioned a number of times as a result of some of his takes on covid treatment strategies and at times downright misinformation. Ultimately, Spotify decided to stick with Joe Rogan's podcast. The Director for the Business and Entertainment Program at American University, John Simson, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Nutritional supplement beverage company Athletic Greens has achieved unicorn status. The company announced a new $115 million funding round, bringing its valuation to $1.2 billion. The company's flagship product AG1 combines 75 different vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients into one daily serving. Athletic Greens says it is poised to reach the millions of consumers who are currently driving the health and wellness market's exponential growth. Athletic Greens founder and CEO Chris Ashenden joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Michael Mitchell, senior director of brand at Mailchimp, joins Cheddar News to discuss the launch of Bloom Season and what every BIPOC entrepreneur needs to know to succeed.
Janet Jackson shared that she had a conversation with Justin Timberlake who had asked her if he should make a statement during the scandal over her Super Bowl XXXVIII wardrobe malfunction, in her new self-titled Lifetime documentary. The musical icon said that she viewed the incident as an accident and remains "good friends" with Justin Timberlake.
The gaming industry has seen multiple large scales deals this month alone, including Microsoft's megadeal for Activision Blizzard. And, seemingly in response, rival Sony, picked up Bungie for $3.6 billion, a studio once owned by both Microsoft and Activision. The sector is reportedly on track to spend $150 billion on mergers and acquisitions just this year alone, a record-breaking total, according to investment firm Drake Star Partners. Michael Metzger, a partner at the firm specializing in technology, media, and communications, joined Cheddar to discuss the flurry of deals in the gaming space and what might be behind the hot M&A activity.
Ari Redbord, head of legal and government affairs and TRM Labs, joins Cheddar News to discuss why Facebook is ditching its crypto project and what that means for the space.
