Channel One News is a youth marketing company whose main purpose is to get advertising to a captive audience of impressionable schoolchildren. The company loans a school TV equipment in exchange for the school’s contractual pledge to show students a daily, 12-minute, hyper-commercial, TV program called Channel One News. Students lose one hour a week of schools time, which equates to one lost week of instructional time (32 hours) per year. No educational organization endorses the use of Channel One News.
Channel One has fallen on very hard times. Once they claimed over 8 million students were under contract. Since 1997 they have continued to lose schools and now they claim “nearly five million” students and the true figure is probably lower.
In May 2014, publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt acquired Channel One from ZelnickMedia the makers of the ultra-violent Grand Thief Auto video game series. Houghton Mifflin did not disclose the purchase price.
At the end of 2014 most of Channel One’s full-paying advertisers have abandoned the program.
From JIm Metrock: Thanks to the teacher who took time to call Channel One’s Demetrius Pipkin on some sloppy reporting. It’s a relatively minor thing, but it does show Channel One’s lack of attention to details. Mr. Pipkin tells students that 63% of people in a new poll are “COMPLETELY opposed” to bombing Syria....
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From Jim Metrock: In 1996 I found out about Channel One News. I was sickened by the thought of schoolchildren being compelled and often forced to view commercials during their school day. Since then Obligation, Inc., the nonprofit I run, has been steadily eroding this marketing company’s presence in American schools. Obligation never...
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Bob McCannon My email to the Media-L list serve (media educators) I’m very sad to hear of Bob McCannon’s death this week. He was a friend and mentor. Bob wanted purity in media education. No conflicts of interests -Don’t allow Big Media to fund efforts to inform the public about Big Media. He...
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From Jim Metrock: Those lovable youth marketers at Channel One are back at it. It’s just August and they are advertising age-inappropriate movies to children. This is standard fare for Channel One. They have done it every year since 1996 when I started to research and report on the company. There was some hope...
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From Jim Metrock: Channel One News had a major overhaul this year in an attempt to stop the relentless stream of schools dropping their TV show. They moved Kent Haehl out of the CEO’s position and put Ms. C. J. Kettler into his spot in order to create a more family-friendly company. They came...
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From Jim Metrock: In the late 90’s, Channel One News had eight reporters on their staff. This school year the controversial youth marketing company has only three reporters. As American schools continue to remove Channel One News from their daily schedules, and their student audience continues to shrink, there simply isn’t enough money...
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There hasn’t been one for six years, even though Channel One said there was. From Jim Metrock: Since April 2006, Channel One has told the public they had in place an all-teacher Advisory Board helping the company better serve American schools. The ten members were all outstanding teachers from around the country....
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From Jim Metrock: Kiddie marketers can be downright mean. Boo to Ms. C. J. Kettler. Ms. Kettler a well-traveled, self-described “media industry leader” is the current CEO of Channel One. It now looks like she is also a bit of a bully. This may come from the desperate position she finds...
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From Jim Metrock: Who are the advertisers on Channel One News? Parents want to know, educators and school administrators want to know.Taxpayers of course want to know what companies are using taxpayer-funded school time to sell to students. In short the public wants to know. The public has always wanted to know, but...
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