Moral Outreach Society
Protecting American Family Values Since 1989
Because Decency Matters
Why we exist. Why we returned. Why it matters.
The Moral Outreach Society was founded in the spring of 1989 by Gerald P. Whitmore, a concerned citizen, father, and community leader who had grown increasingly alarmed by the direction of children's entertainment in America. What began as a letter-writing campaign from a kitchen table in Easton, Pennsylvania became, within three years, one of the most diligent watchdog organizations in the mid-Atlantic region.
We were never a large organization. We did not seek celebrity. We sought results. And for a time, we achieved them.
Our work was simple: we watched. We documented. We wrote letters. We made phone calls. We attended public access board meetings that no one else bothered to attend. We were, by most accounts, a nuisance. We considered that a compliment.
"A community that does not protect its children from harmful media has failed in its most fundamental duty. We have not failed. We have not forgotten. We have simply been waiting."
We watch what is being produced and distributed to American children without apology or interruption.
Every concern is catalogued. Every instance of questionable content is recorded and preserved for the record.
We bring our findings to parents, community leaders, and anyone else willing to listen. The truth does not require permission.
Gerald P. Whitmore establishes the Moral Outreach Society in Easton, PA. Initial focus: public access television and its lack of oversight.
MOS researchers flag a new public access program — Crackodile & Friends — as warranting close observation. Documentation begins immediately.
MOS issues its landmark correspondence to parents of enrolled Crackids Fan Club members. Over 200 letters distributed across the Lehigh Valley.
For reasons that remain a matter of internal record, the Moral Outreach Society suspends its public operations. No further statement was issued at the time.
The program has resurfaced. So have we. The Moral Outreach Society resumes operations effective immediately. The work continues.
We will not pretend that our return requires elaborate explanation. The situation explains itself.
Materials associated with Crackodile & Friends have re-entered circulation. A website has appeared. Merchandise is being sold. Children are, once again, being targeted by a program that we spent the better part of three years documenting for its troubling content and suspicious associations.
We did not disband. We did not concede. We stepped back, and we waited, and now the waiting is over.
The Moral Outreach Society exists because decency does not defend itself. Someone must do the defending. That someone is us. That someone has always been us.
We are grateful for your attention. We ask only that you pay it.
Gerald P. Whitmore
Director of Community Standards · Moral Outreach Society