Sign the Petition: Tell PBS to Stop Marketing for Chick-fil-A on Martha Speaks

Public Television Should Not Promote Fast Food to Children

Fast food chain Chick-fil-A has distributed 56 million kids meals in bags co-branded with PBS’s popular Martha Speaks children’s show.

PBS’s agreement with Chick-fil-A allowing it to directly target kids is a bad move. Children shouldn’t be targets of advertising, especially for products that contribute to childhood obesity. To make matters worse, WGBH, the PBS station that produces Martha Speaks, is trying to win a Cynopsis advertising industry award for its campaign.

We’re big fans of public broadcasting. It provides parents and kids with an alternative to commercialized television stations. But PBS can do better than allowing a children's show to be a marketing vehicle for fast food. That's nothing to celebrate.

Our petition calls for PBS and WGBH to take the following two actions:
1. PBS should end its partnership with Chick-fil-A.
2. WGBH should withdraw from the Cynopsis awards.

Let’s keep PBS as a refuge for kids from the commercial networks.

Add Your Name to the Petition Below

We, the undersigned, call on PBS Kids and WGBH to end its partnership with Chick-fil-A. We call on WGBH to withdraw from the Cynopsis Kids Marketing Awards. Advertising unhealthy foods to kids has serious health consequences; it’s nothing to celebrate. We demand that PBS and WGBH stop allowing Chick-fil-A to use the popular kids TV show Martha Speaks to directly target children.

Spread the Word

Learn More

Join Our Social Networks

Optional Member Code


1-25 of 5284 signatures
Number Date Name Location Add a Comment
5284 Thu May 23 16:12:06 EDT 2013 Deborah Bragg Minneapolis, MN
5283 Mon May 20 14:02:49 EDT 2013 Dennis Hartenstine Birdsboro, PA
5282 Thu May 16 16:11:45 EDT 2013 Donis Canisales AZ
5281 Wed May 08 16:45:27 EDT 2013 Jaan Carter Alameda, CA Take action. Stop the madness, now. This Earth is can be healed and rehabilitated if we want it.
5280 Mon May 06 16:55:32 EDT 2013 diane ostrowski island lake, IL
5279 Thu May 02 21:08:59 EDT 2013 sandra miller spokane, WA I weep for the future of our little ones. They won't know what it was like to be free.
5278 Tue Apr 30 17:39:10 EDT 2013 Wesley Lemont Irving, TX
5277 Fri Apr 26 18:07:42 EDT 2013 Ilse Funk Cherry Valley, NY
5276 Fri Apr 26 18:07:15 EDT 2013 Ilse Funk Cherry Valley, NY
5275 Sat Apr 20 12:40:32 EDT 2013 Bruce Hlodnicki Indianapolis, IN
5274 Fri Apr 19 08:07:13 EDT 2013 Brad McDonough Woburn, MA
5273 Tue Apr 16 00:05:14 EDT 2013 Donna Raicevic Lihue, HI
5272 Sun Apr 14 22:51:55 EDT 2013 Carmen Alvarado Burke, VA
5271 Sat Apr 13 17:04:14 EDT 2013 jeff hopkins Lindenhurst, IL
5270 Fri Apr 12 20:04:00 EDT 2013 James Mulcare Clarkston, WA
5269 Fri Apr 12 14:58:07 EDT 2013 Anonymous Dallas, TX my address was 10834 Steppington Drive i your 2151 Adams Street, Haynesville, La Scott Wilkes Post Master entered this information into his computer and kept the information from all the corporation that More....
5268 Thu Apr 11 17:45:24 EDT 2013 Walter Hall Zavalla, TX
5267 Sat Apr 06 00:07:05 EDT 2013 Don Gentry Corpus Christi, TX
5266 Sat Apr 06 00:00:42 EDT 2013 Kimberly Locke Austin, TX
5265 Fri Apr 05 17:57:03 EDT 2013 Sharon Lebon Pittsburgh, PA
5264 Tue Apr 02 14:38:40 EDT 2013 Anonymous CA
5263 Thu Mar 28 18:44:12 EDT 2013 tod biljanic kearns, UT
5262 Tue Mar 26 07:48:02 EDT 2013 Anonymous Leesburg, FL
5261 Wed Mar 20 11:39:41 EDT 2013 Robert Swiatek Buffalo, NY
5260 Mon Mar 18 10:12:33 EDT 2013 Donald Stevenson VA I trust that the intentions of both institutions are honorable. The issue is the need for a boundary between contexts. Chick-fil-A has engaged in wonderful programs around literacy and foreign language More....
Next ->

Copyright © 2013 Public Citizen. All rights reserved. This Web site is shared by Public Citizen Inc. and Public Citizen Foundation.
Learn More about the distinction between these two components of Public Citizen.


Public Citizen, Inc. and Public Citizen Foundation

Together, two separate corporate entities called Public Citizen, Inc. and Public Citizen Foundation, Inc., form Public Citizen. Both entities are part of the same overall organization, and this Web site refers to the two organizations collectively as Public Citizen.

Although the work of the two components overlaps, some activities are done by one component and not the other. The primary distinction is with respect to lobbying activity. Public Citizen, Inc., an IRS § 501(c)(4) entity, lobbies Congress to advance Public Citizen’s mission of protecting public health and safety, advancing government transparency, and urging corporate accountability. Public Citizen Foundation, however, is an IRS § 501(c)(3) organization. Accordingly, its ability to engage in lobbying is limited by federal law, but it may receive donations that are tax-deductible by the contributor. Public Citizen Inc. does most of the lobbying activity discussed on the Public Citizen Web site. Public Citizen Foundation performs most of the litigation and education activities discussed on the Web site.

You may make a contribution to Public Citizen, Inc., Public Citizen Foundation, or both. Contributions to both organizations are used to support our public interest work. However, each Public Citizen component will use only the funds contributed directly to it to carry out the activities it conducts as part of Public Citizen’s mission. Only gifts to the Foundation are tax-deductible. Individuals who want to join Public Citizen should make a contribution to Public Citizen, Inc., which will not be tax deductible.

To become a member of Public Citizen, click here.
To become a member and make an additional tax-deductible donation to Public Citizen Foundation, click here.