Editorial: It’s a sad day in the neighborhood

Friday, Feb. 28, 2003 | 9:21 a.m.

For more than three decades Fred Rogers was the caring, gentle neighbor for millions of children who watched his show on public television. But Rogers, who was 74, died of cancer on Thursday. "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood," unlike most other children's shows, eschewed special effects and gimmicks to make it more hip. For that matter, a show from the 1990s didn't look much different than one aired 20 years earlier. But it was Rogers' insistence on maintaining standards of decency that made the show so endearing and comforting for children.

Rogers' values also stood out because of the coarsening of television programming -- and in society in general. The dismal trend has become so widespread that programs the entire family can watch are the exception, not the norm. Even the networks' 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. time slot, once known as the "family hour," today is loaded with shows containing sexual references and vulgarities.

Still, it's not as if television is barren of shows that teach children right from wrong, how to believe in themselves and how to respect others. You can see the effect that Rogers' pioneering work has had on children's television, especially regarding a number of quality shows offered by PBS and the Disney Channel.

While Rogers has passed away, we hope that PBS stations continue to air reruns of his show -- just as they did after he retired in 2000 -- and that other children's shows won't fear emulating the kindheartedness that makes his show so timeless.