Update: PBS Ombud Says Show Made "Big Mistake" Keeping Quiet on Pundit... [View All]

[bridgit]

'In a thoughtful article on the PBS Web site, network ombudsman Michael Getler says PBS and its show, "To the Contrary," made a mistake -- and may have violated the network's own ethics guidelines -- by failing to tell viewers that an occasional commentator to the show was also a Bush administration official.

"It seems to me that it is a big mistake for the program and PBS — no matter what the Labor Department says — not to make her other full-time association clear to viewers in some fashion," Getler wrote. (Earlier, we reported that show host Bonnie Erbe said the government told her Czarnecki could not be identified as an official.) "If they don’t want to change the on-screen captions, then Erbe ought to at least describe the association verbally to viewers, and state that is not speaking for the department. Viewers can understand that.'

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/001357.php