Channel One--Television in the schools

[Gingersnap]

Any teachers out there familiar with Channel One (or its clones--if there are any)? I caught a glimpse of Focks News recently and after I recovered from atrophy of the brain cells I began to think about how our (American's) appetite for this stuff as "News" has grown. I don't have a tv, I should add, so I may be off base.

But it seems to me that most American adults, particularly in the post 9/11 environment are fearful of the future and of international threats to the U.S. We have a war on. People watch the news now probably more than ever, yet what passes as news, I don't have to tell this readership--is biased and superficial in the extreme.

So I got to thinking about Channel One, a "free" news broadcast created especially for secondary schools. Schools receive TVs and videoplayers (and now are moving to DTV) from Channel One in exchange for playing a Channel One product (with advertising for Pepsi, Nike, etc) every morning. Teachers are encouraged to make this an educational opportunity, thereby granting legitimacy to the idea that high gloss, info-tainment is a source of NEWS.

So any teachers out there ever watch one of these things? How do teachers feel about it? Are the broadcasts incorporated into lessons or discussion? And does anyone know how long this has been out (I found references to Channel One on a google search going back to 1991)?