Three Visionaries docs dropped for violating APT rules Originally published in Current, March 11, 2002 American Public Television, distributor of The Visionaries, said it has withdrawn three episodes from the series' seventh (2000) season because the producer violated APT's funding and underwriting guidelines. The episodes were "funded by the subject organizations and appropriate funding credits were not displayed on the programs," APT said in a statement released just before Current's deadline last week. An APT spokeswoman did not know the subjects of the three episodes. APT and presenting station WYBE, Philadelphia, "are conducting a thorough investigation of the remainder of the seventh and eighth seasons," the syndicator said. Current revealed Feb. 25 that the nonprofit organizations profiled in the series typically raise money for the production of the episodes and sometimes end up paying for them directly. [Earlier article.] The underwriting credits obscured the link between the funders and the episodes they paid to produce. In one case, Exxon was not disclosed as funder of an episode about Save the Tiger Fund, a pet charity of the oil company.

	To Current's home page
	Earlier news: How The Visionaries is funded.
	Outside link: The series website.

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