Jerold M. Starr, executive director of Citizens for Independent Public Broadcasting, takes an in-depth look at the Public Broadcasting Service in a series of article for TomPaine.com. In part three, Starr writes, "It is times like these that Americans need a truly independent public broadcasting service. In fact, PBS was launched in 1967 for the express purpose of compensating for the 'limitations' of advertiser-driven media and balancing the voices of those in power with those of 'groups not normally heard.' Tragically, while PBS stands in for this ideal, in practice it falls well short."