Save Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood

Why Save Mister Rogers Neighborhood?

In June 2008, Public Broadcasting Service announced that it intends to soon change the way Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, the beloved children’s television program, is distributed to member stations.

PBS will cease transmitting the program as part of their daily syndicated lineup beginning in September. Instead, PBS will provide member stations with a single Neighborhood episode on weekends. This unfortunate decision essentially silences the special nurturing voice of Mister Rogers in the daily lives of today’s children.

Local public television stations, who make the final decisions about which programs to offer and when to air them, can still opt to broadcast Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood each weekday, but they are less likely to do so without the program being included in PBS’s syndicated feed.

We’re asking PBS to please reconsider their decision, and allow Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, with its timeless expressions of care for children, to remain a part of their syndicated Monday through Friday schedule.

And we are urging all PBS member stations to do what it takes to ensure that the lives of children in their neighborhoods can still be enriched each weekday by the gentle, authentic, life-shaping messages of Mister Rogers.

1 > Why Save Mister Rogers Neighborhood?

Contact PBS Headquarters

Let Public Broadcasting Service know how you feel about their decision to remove Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood from their syndicated weekday lineup. Consider mentioning that the burden placed on some member stations that want to continue showing the program Monday through Friday is substantial. Suggest that they reconsider their decision.

Tell PBS how important you feel the Neighborhood program is. You might want to relate a personal story of how Mister Rogers touched your life, or the life of a child you know.

Writing your message on a postcard will expedite delivery as all envelopes are subject to a security screening. You can send mail to PBS Headquarters at the following address:

Public Broadcasting Service
2100 Crystal Drive
Arlington, VA 22202
ATTN: Linda Simensky
Senior Director, Children’s Programming

Contact PBS online...

Contact Your PBS Station

PBS’s intention to remove Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood from their syndicated weekday feed forces local member stations to make a tough decision.

If they want to continue airing the Neighborhood program Monday through Friday, member stations will have one option that requires a considerable amount of time and effort. They can receive a transmission this summer from PBS containing an entire season to be broadcast from September 2008 to August 2009.

Unfortunately, some stations have chosen not to dedicate the resources necessary to do this, and are opting to simply let the Neighborhood disappear from their Monday through Friday schedules.

Please contact your local PBS station now, and let them know how important the continued Monday through Friday airing of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood is to you.

Find your local PBS station...

Latest Updates

Neighborhood Safe in Idaho — For Now20.08
Contacting Your PBS Station: Think First19.08
Fred Rogers: “These programs are timeless.”19.08
Watch Speedy Delivery & Vote Now18.08
Chicago Father, Artist Takes Action15.08
Indiana Airing in Jeopardy15.08
Mister Rogers in Trouble in Oregon15.08
Neighborhood Trouble in Southern California14.08
*Not* Livin’ on the Air in Cinncinati13.08
Mister Rogers’ Future in Central Florida13.08

Spread the Word

Please tell your friends about PBS’s decision and how it could essentially mean the end of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood in some areas. Ask them to lend their voices to our network of passionate supporters of this invaluable program.