The timing of Bill Moyer's How Do We Stop the Violence? conjures up an unpleasant irony. At the same moment that Moyer's fine documentary focusses on media violence, conservatives in congress are threatening to abolish institutions that offer alternatives to violent media programming. Both PBS and the National Endowment for the Arts are said to be unworthy of government funding. Yet each supports creative cultural programming that tends to be less violent and sensational than commercial media. In answer to the question "How do we stop the violence?", one might reasonably respond, "By cultivating non-violent sensibilities." Violence has proven itself to be valuable in terms of box office receipts and video game sales. PBS and the National Endowment for the Arts have important roles to play in providing programming that is judged to be valuable in principle. It has been suggested that no consensus exists concerning which art and which principles federal taxes should support. Nevertheless, if it can be agreed upon that violence in the media is a problem, it makes little sense to hack off a cultural limb that isn't holding a smoking gun.

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