Potential New Source of Funding for Public Broadcasting

PBS President Pat Mitchell and other advocates for public broadcasting are trumpeting legislation in Congress that would create a huge trust fund—perhaps as much as $20 billion—to provide a ready pool of cash for noncommercial stations as well as libraries and universities.
The trust would be generated from a portion of revenues raised by the federal government's auction of reclaimed TV channels expected in 2008 and other spectrum sales planned in the future. The legislation, dubbed the Digital Opportunities Investment Trust, is sponsored by Rep. Ed Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat who has fought for years to build a pool of money for public broadcasting free from the political whims and budgetary pressures of Congress.
...The likelihood Congress will earmark so much money for a socially driven mission at a time of growing deficits and escalating costs of war would appear slim. After all, Congress is still debating whether to commit a much smaller sliver of auction revenue to help TV viewers buy equipment needed to keep their old analog TVs working after stations go all-digital.