In an editorial today, the Birmingham News is asking Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley and legislative leaders to “get to the root cause” of the “continuing upheaval” at Alabama Public Television.
“APT and its educational and informative programming are too important to the state not to warrant an investigation into what is going on with the commission that oversees it,” the editorial board wrote Monday.
The sudden termination on June 12 of APT Executive Director Allan Pizzato and his deputy, Pauline Howland, by the Alabama Educational Television Commission threw the state network into chaos. Within days, nine members of two fundraising boards resigned in protest; the station’s longtime chief operating officer, Charles Grantham, also just resigned, effective Aug. 31. Pizzato has also filed suit against the commission, which comes before a judge today (Aug. 6) in Birmingham.