Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Personal Rant: If you are going to criticize the NEA, at least get it right...

As reported by Americans for the Arts:

"NEA Grant to Sundance Festival Falsely ReportedFebruary 12, 2007—An “Action Alert” issued by the American Family Association falsely reports that the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) gave grants to the recently concluded Sundance Film Festival to support the showing of the films Hounddog and Zoo. The organization has urged its members to write and e-mail their members of Congress in protest.

To set the record straight: The NEA did not provide support for the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. The NEA did not fund the two films. The NEA had no connection whatsoever to the films. Regarding the NEA, the action alert is all wrong. The NEA did fund the summer educational workshop last year at the Sundance Institute, which trains people working on careers in film, including directing, screenwriting, and producing. In the past, the NEA has sometimes been criticized for programs it doesn’t fund. This instance is another such example."

Granted--the National Endowment for the Arts has funded controversal things in the past. Whatever your feeling are on these types of instances, I think we can all agree that if you slam the NEA, at least have your facts right.

As late as 11:21PM EST on February 13, 2007, the homepage of the American Family Association still maintains the falsely reported information. If you feel so inclined, you can contact the American Family Association at (662) 844-5036 or via their website.

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