The Mailbox
Letters and emails of general interest will be posted right here, so write to us and let us know what you think. Please note that not all mail will receive a reply. You can send us an email right now — just click here and use the “Contact Us” form.
Received May 27, 2007 via email…i was disturbed to stumble upon your program when i was flipping through the channels tonight.although i’m in favor of dignifying gays and lesbians, i wonder why my tax dollars are going to fund a program pushing a gay and lesbian agenda?being a dual citizen of greece and the states i was offended when i saw greece being portrayed as an intolerant society along with ireland and australia. (i.e. citing 26 percent of greeks not wanting a gay or lesbian neighbor)greeks as you are well aware of are overwhelmingly orthodox christians and therefore understandibly their ideologies don’t reflect those of the gay and lesbian community. bu that’s not necessarily a bad thing, however the program seems to think so, and there lies the problem. i believe the program shouldn’t tacitly and implicity portray social conservatives in a negative light, especially when many of them pick up your tab.
again, i believe you have a right to broadcast the tenets the programs believe in, but at the same time tax payers shouldn’t have to fund it. just my opinion!
steven
Colorado OutSpoken replies…
Dear Steven
Thanks for writing. First, we’d like to address your question regarding the use of public tax money to fund our program. You should know that Colorado OutSpoken is an all-volunteer organization that is funded completely through private donations and individual sponsors. We have, in the past, accepted funding as grants from philanthropic organizations; however, those organizations have been private institutions. Colorado OutSpoken receives no public funds of any kind.
To be completely fair, it should be said that Colorado OutSpoken is a 501(c)(3) organization — also called a “non-profit”. That designation means, among other things, that we are exempt from paying certain taxes and that we can benefit from provisions and programs established by government and private entities to assist organizations such as ours. Other non-profit organizations include charities, legal aid, public policy advocacy organizations, homeless shelters, non-violence advocates, public television and radio stations, and most all churches and religious organizations.
That having been said, it is also fair to say that our program is broadcast by a public television station (KBDI), and it is likely that some public money goes to support the continued operation of that station — but we don’t know that for sure, since we have never inquired about the details of the fiscal operation of KBDI. It is our opinion, though, that since KBDI offers programming that appeals to all sectors of our society, it is properly performing its mandated public function by airing our show along with others that may have differing points of view.
Second, to address your question regarding our “pushing a gay and lesbian agenda”, we must admit that our goal is to provide to the whole community (gay/straight, boy/girl, old/young, black/white, Christian/Muslim/Atheist, conservative/liberal, whatever…) accurate and informative material of interest to and about the GLBT community and its citizens. We really don’t think we have an agenda, other than to provide information that may not be widely available through other media.
However, your point is well taken with respect to the presentation of the statistics that were the focus of your letter. It probably would have been better to present the data as showing that 74% of Greek citizens had no opposition to having a gay neighbor instead of saying that 26% objected. Such a presentation would have highlighted the maturity and tolerance of Greek society as well as informing our viewers that progress has been made in reducing discrimination against GLBT people.
Your letter stimulated a spirited discussion among our staff, and we appreciate your comments.
