WASHINGTON – Victoria Schaefer was thunderstruck when her 9-year-old daughter asked her what “pedophile” means.
“That’s just insane,” the Orlando, Fla., woman said. “I don’t want to coddle her and protect her from everything but at the same time I don’t think I should have to explain some of the stuff she either hears or sees on TV at the age of nine.” Schaefer believes she ought to be able to choose and pay only for the cable or satellite TV channels she wants rather than buying the bundled packages currently offered.
It’s an idea overwhelmingly favored by Americans, according to a recent AP-Ipsos poll, which found that more than three in four prefer the so-called a la carte option.
Many simply want to eliminate racy or violent programming from the home entertainment parlor. Sixty-six percent of those polled say there’s too much sex on television. About the same number – 68 percent – say there’s too much violence on TV, with 81 percent of women feeling that way.
Pick-and-pay pricing is also a wallet issue as cable bills gouge out a larger piece of the monthly family budget.
Among those favoring an a la carte system, more than four in 10 believe that it would lower bills, though more than a quarter believe it would actually raise overall prices.
Many welcome the idea of buying TV service from a cable or satellite competitor. Sixty-five percent of all those polled say they would be interested in getting it from phone companies, which are now delving into the TV business but aren’t offering a la carte in the United States yet.
Associated Press Writer Will Lester contributed to this report.
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