In light of the Public Broadcasting Service’s recent struggles with financial support, childhood memories from watching the network’s television shows, such as “Wild Kratts” and “Odd Squad”, are nostalgic for many students because of the lasting impact on their interests and life skills.
Following the end of US Federal Government funding, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting ceased operation in January 2025. The CPB funded local broadcasting stations, including the nonprofit PBS, which offers educational programming to the general population.
PBS now only relies on regional support, but it has not completely shut down due to the significant individual contributions from viewers of this well known media source.
One PBS show that recently celebrated its 15th anniversary stood out in popularity among students. “Wild Kratts” is known for its engaging lessons about animals and other aspects of zoology. Junior Benedicte Rios developed a similar interest after being inspired by the program inhis youth.
“I watched a lot of Wild Kratts. I enjoyed that show when I was younger,” Rios said. “I’m not sure if it’s at fault, but [now] I like archeology.”
Along with introducing various passions to explore, PBS has taught children lifelong lessons. PBS supplemented sophomore Tierney Gilmore’s foundational math skills at a young age, which benefited her problem-solving ability in everyday life.
“It helped me with math. That’s what Odd Squad was [about], and when I eventually got into school, I understood how it actually worked and how to apply it to the real world,” Gilmore said.
Since public broadcasting can benefit childhood development, there is support for raising money to preserve this form of entertainment. Gilmore believes educational entertainment should be supported.
“Children’s TV shows can get pretty out of hand [and] not be educational anymore,” Gilmore said. “It’s important to fund the educational ones, because what goes in your mind at a really young age predicts how you’re going to turn out in the future.”
