PBS needs to run American-made fiction programming, writer says

Where's the quality American dramas and comedies on PBS? That's what writer David Pierotti is wondering in the latest Independent online mag of indie production. He admits there is indeed fiction on PBS, but "it all comes with an accent. Every show references 'queues,' 'lorries,' 'bobbies,' 'bangers,' 'blokes" and 'bollocks.'" Why, he asks, "must the public station of the United States of America rely upon Britain’s hand-me-downs like some destitute street urchin?"

He also has a few suggestions, including PBS creating, say, a Law & Order: Pittsburgh. "Why can’t a community entertain its audience while supporting, encouraging and facilitating the development of local talent?"

Pierotti said he's not asking for a "dumbing down" or "injection of crassness" into PBS, "but rather an expansion of its identity. Because let's face it, the current programming lacks daring or originality."