Peggy Charren | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Peggy Sundelle Walzer (1928-03-09)March 9, 1928 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | January 22, 2015(2015-01-22) (aged 86) Dedham, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Connecticut College (BA) |
| Known for | Founder ofAction for Children's Television[1] |
| Spouse | Stanley Charren |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards | Presidential Medal of Freedom (1995) |
Peggy Sundelle Charren (néeWalzer; March 9, 1928 – January 22, 2015) was an American activist best known as the founder ofAction for Children's Television (ACT), a national child advocacy organization. The organization was founded in an effort to encourage program diversity and eliminate commercial abuses in children's television programming.[1][2][3][4] In 1995, she was awarded thePresidential Medal of Freedom.[5]
Charren was bornPeggy Walzer to aJewish family on March 9, 1928, the daughter of Ruth (née Rosenthal) and Maxwell Walzer.[6] Her grandparents were immigrants from Russia.[6] In 1949, Charren graduated fromConnecticut College and then took a job as director of the film department at stationWPIX-TV inNew York City.[6] She then served as director of the Creative Arts Council ofNewton, Massachusetts, and founded a company that organized children's book fairs, Quality Book Fair; and owned and operated a gallery specializing in graphic art, Art Prints.[6]
In 1968, concerned over the poor selection of children's educational programming and child-targeted commercials, in 1968 she founded Action for Children's Television (ACT), a nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing quality diversity in television choices for children.[6] As the Communications Act of 1934 required that television stations were required to serve the public interest in exchange for using broadcast spectrum, she lobbied and pressured the industry to promote educational television programs.[6] In 1990, the U.S. Congress passed theChildren's Television Act which required that every television station provide educational programming for children.[6] Though she continued to work on the issue, Charren disbanded ACT in 1992, announcing that it had met the objectives she had set out to accomplish.[7] In 1996, the rules were further tightened to require three hours of children's programming per week.[6]
Although denounced as an advocate forcensorship by her critics, including animation writersSteve Gerber andMark Evanier, Charren has insisted she is an outspoken critic ofcensorship, and has cited her stance against theAmerican Family Association's campaigns to ban various programs. She sat on the Board of Trustees of public broadcasterWGBH inBoston, Massachusetts. In 1983, Charren became an associate of theWomen's Institute for Freedom of the Press (WIFP).[8] WIFP is an American nonprofit publishing organization. The organization works to increase communication between women and connect the public with forms of women-based media.
In 1989, theNational Academy of Television Arts and Sciences awarded her its Trustees' Award. Her work with ACT culminated in the passage of theChildren's Television Act of 1990, and she received aPeabody Award in 1991.[9] In 1995, she was awarded thePresidential Medal of Freedom.[5]
In 1951, she married Stanley Charren, an engineer; they had two daughters.[6] The couple lived inCambridge, Massachusetts.[6] She died on January 22, 2015. In her later years, she hadvascular dementia.[10][11]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
