Whittles Channel One:
What Is It?

Twelve thousand public and private schools in 45 states receive Whittle Communications' daily news show, including Henry Ford High School in Detroit, Michigan. Every school day, 8.1 million kids see the 12-minute newscast and then 2 minutes of commercials (soda, candy, etc.). Whittle Communications reportedly earns $600,000 a day selling commercial time.

The project is 3 years old. Whittle Communications gives each school that carries the program up to $50,000 in VCR, TV sets, etc.

Roberta J. Herter, the teacher at Henry Ford High School who coordinated the students' contributions to this issue, wrote to us that "the only time an entire class rivets its attention on the tube is when the news gives way to irresistible ads. Talking stops and for thirty to ninety seconds, kids are taken in by the soda, candy and gym shoe spots that are aimed at them, a captive audience." She quickly adds... "You can see the teaching potential there."