WORTH NOTING ON TV
* FRIDAY
The Great Health Care Debate (PBS, 9-10 p.m.): This special rejoins the two thoughtful media analysts who teamed up in the 1992 PBS series ``Listening to America.'' This time they try to sort out the blizzard of messages - pro, con, and undecided - generated by the health care debate.
TV host and commentator Bill Moyers, and Kathleen Hall Jamieson, dean of the Annenberg School of Communications at the University of Pennsylvania, consider the many spins that contending groups put on this hotly controversial yet somewhat amorphous topic. They examine the roles of radio talk-show hosts, advertising agencies, lobbyists, and other forces in molding public perception of Congress's faltering legislative efforts.
Moyers and Jamieson also tap the knowledge of specialists like pollster Robert Teeter and Peter Hart, Ellen Miller of the Center for Responsive Politics, and Charles Lewis, head of the Center for Public Integrity. Together they try to determine whether the media consider themselves accountable for what they say, how accurate health-care reporting is, whether journalistic watchdog groups have any impact, and the effect of campaign contributions.
* SATURDAY
The ABC Family Movie (ABC, 8-10 p.m.): This weekly series - ABC's entry into the family-fare genre this season - offers a range of shows, from original productions to old and new Disney material. The first original film, ``Summertime Switch,'' tells the story of two boys each named Fred Egan who are on two buses.
The rich and spoiled Frederick Egan III is supposed to be bound for a fancy summer camp but ends up in an outdoor detention camp for delinquents - where the street-smart Fast Freddie is supposed to go. The latter finds himself in rich Fred's summer camp.
If the plot twist reminds you a lot of Mark Twain's ``Prince and the Pauper,'' well, let's not be too picky. The programming effort is a commendable one, and this edition also presents stars from current and former TV series in several roles.
Please check local listings for these programs.
