This wholly unique drinking game made possible by a grant from the Milwaukee Brewing Company, and by PBS Tropers Like You. Thank you.
- Take a shot any time your local station uses the network feed during any break between programs, except when it does so on a regular basis.
- Have a whole bottle when your local station runs a pledge drive.
- Two bottles whenever it runs pledge programming on New Year's Day.
- Have yourself a cup of cheer whenever your local station preempts its regular daytime programming for Christmas-themed programming on Christmas Day.
- Take two shots every time PBS NewsHour mentions Washington Week or PBS NewsHour Weekend at the end of the Friday edition, and double if both are mentioned.
- Finish your drink if PBS NewsHour runs a special program during primetime.
- Toast at the start of each episode of a Ken Burns documentary, and finish your drink at the conclusion of the finale or any one-shot doc of his.
- Down the whole bottle if PBS reruns a program from before 2009, and two if it originally aired in the '80s. If the program was originally shown in the '60s or '70s, it's a full six-pack. For obvious reasons, this does not apply to children's programming.
- Drink a full bottle if a movie studio sponsors the program you're watching (easiest way to tell is if a TV spot for a motion picture is shown during the funding credits). Most commonly applies to PBS NewsHour and Masterpiece.
- Drink a full bottle if a video game company sponsors the program you're watching. This can be found in Ghostwriter.
- Drink a full bottle if a program is funded by Viewers Like You, but not the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. There's a good chance you'll be right soused by the time you get to late night between 1973 and 1991, when CPB only sponsored a select few programs due to pressure from the Nixon and Reagan administrations.
- Two bottles if a program is funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, but not Viewers Like You.
- If neither of the above are funding the program, down a six-pack.
- Take a shot whenever a Rick Steves special is shown during a pledge drive.
- Drink a whole bottle if Suze Orman puts in an appearance during a pledge drive.
- Take a sip for every My Music special your local station shows during a pledge drive, and two for every concert. Upgrade to two shots if the concert comes from before 2000.
- Take a shot every time the 1971 logo appears in any context except to close a program (there's a special rule for that directly below).
- If a pre-2009 PBS logo is preserved when your local station shows a program from 2009 or earlier, down the whole bottle. If it's older than 1998, it's a full six-pack.
- If the show you're watching gets interrupted by the Emergency Alert System, take a drink.
- Down the bottle if it's an alert (for example: Tornado Warning, Severe Thunderstorm Warning, Child Abduction Emergency) and not a test. (Then, if required, stop drinking and take appropriate emergency precautions, obviously.)
- Take a drink for every self-help motivational show. If it's not aired late at night, down your bottle.
- If PBS Kids shows are aired during a pledge drive, down a full six-pack.
- If your station encounters technical difficulties, down the bottle.
- Take a drink every time a documentary uses a Hiroshima as a Unit of Measure-type comparison.
- Take a drink if the program you are watching was created for a British network.
- Whole bottle (and pace yourself) if it's Doctor Who
- Take a drink if the program you are watching was created for a Canadian network. (For PBS Kids shows, this only counts if the show is co-produced with a Canadian network.)
- Down the bottle if its The Red Green Show.
- Take a drink if a narrator has a British accent.
- Take a shot if Antiques Roadshow is airing.
- Drink half a bottle if you reluctantly donated to your PBS member station.
- Take a big sip if you chose to receive or have received some merch after donating.
- Take another drink if PBS shows Masterpiece.
- Drink (approximately) one quarter of a bottle if you donated during a pledge drive.
- Take three shots if you fear that PBS personalities will track you down if you don't donate. Anything to drink the fear away, I guess.
- Drink about three quarters of a bottle if the program you are watching was produced and/or distributed by American Public Television.
- If your station airs a very old PBS Kids show from 2009 or earlier, down the whole bottle. In the very rare chance it's older than 1999, down a whole six-pack. If its Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, pour a 40 out (preferably outside to avoid ruining your carpet) in memory of Fred Rogers.
- Take a swig of fine champagne (or Miller High Life, soda or seltzer water if you don't have any) if The Lawrence Welk Show is airing, then blow some bubbles afterwards for a fully immersive experience.
