'Edutainment'.

Statistics inform us that by the time an American child is nine years of age, he or she has witnessed over 8,000 real or simulated homicides or acts of violence on American television.

Responsibility for programme content has been subjugated in favour of profit. But what does it profit a man to gain the whole world if he loses his soul? However, there are exceptions.

Some years ago, a television programme was introduced to the American public to which the critics gave little chance if any of success. The show, Touched by an Angel, despite having an unprecedented spiritual message, consistently climbed in the all-important ratings to establish itself as one of the television-viewing public's favourites.

In one of the early episodes, I portrayed a small-town hw enforcement officer who had a son with big problems. These problems ultimately led my son's character to attempt to take his own life. This fictitious episode mirrored a situation in my life that resulted in my nephew, Shaka Franklin, taking his life some years earlier. He was 16 years of age. Obviously, that episode was one that touched me very closely and deeply. However, it also acted as a healing agent for the many thousands of young people who are confronted with what seems to be overwhelming social problems.

After a career which has spanned over 30 years in the entertainment industry as a writer, producer, director and actor, I can state with total conviction that by developing programmes for television and producing films that encourage spirituality and emphasis on positive characters, we can have a profound effect on the thinking processes and the mental development of our children. In an ideal world, a parent or guardian would have the responsibility of determining what television programming, radio and film, and now on-line communication and/or entertainment, a child is exposed to. However, in today's world, movies and television often become our babysitters.

Some years ago, I was invited by a Paulist priest, Father Bud Kaiser, to visit Ethiopia, Somalia and several other refugee sites in East Africa. After observing firsthand the unimaginable suffering and death brought on by the war in those regions, we returned to the United States to provide Congressional testimony in Washington, D.C., our nation's capital. We were able to help increase the appropriation to those countries and thereby help in some small way to lessen the suffering of their unfortunate inhabitants.

The Legion of Good Will, while having appreciable technical resources, numerous radio and television stations and its own studios, is still in dire need of support--financial and creative. The popular perception of many about our major entertainment talents is that they are people who are only concerned with themselves. In truth, there are a great number of luminaries in the entertainment industry who, once they become aware of the Legion's incredible track record and its undeniable success throughout South America, will become as passionate and committed to the Legion's work as I have.

I propose to develop a series of projects with the Legion that will provide television programming, film and music, that is in keeping with the spiritual foundation upon which the Legion rests. My recent trip to Brazil afforded me the opportunity to see directly a most incredible, well-run, effective operation. I have every confidence that, by utilizing the existing resources at hand and enlisting the aid of others in the international community, a positive "edutainment" conscientiousness can be developed.

I am proud to be a small part of that conscientiousness. The problems confronting our children in the United States, South America and Europe are in fact global problems. The Legion of Good Will, by utilizing the more positive individuals and elements of the entertainment industry, can be a global force for positive change. What more appropriate time than now to welcome that conscientiousness, as we prepare to greet the millennium.