Oh, You'll Get Over It

 I've Heard This Before

But for me, some things will never settle. They are not meant to settle. In a way, it's like grief. There will always be feelings for something that is such a significant part of my life. So many things never would have happened if I hadn't responded to that call for volunteering at my local public radio station. That opportunity turned into a whole new direction for me, and  meaningful career of public service. I got to work with some really incredible people, and serve a remarkable audience.

But this isn't all about me. It is about the American people. The mission of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) is to ensure universal access to content and services that educate, inform, promote civil discourse, and foster curiosity, with a particular focus on creative risk-taking and addressing the needs of unserved and underserved audiences. CPB stewards federal funding to support more than 1,500 local public media stations nationwide, enabling them to provide essential news, educational programming, and emergency information to all Americans. 

The President and his party doesn't see any value in this because it doesn't serve his agenda. In fact, he resents anything that might seem critical to him. He wants total control over messaging. Therefore, CPB, and Public Media must be eliminated.

About a week ago CPB's Patricia Harrison announced The Corporation for Public Broadcasting would be ending operations in a matter of weeks. And you know what is remarkable? The professionalism demonstrated by this letter under extremely difficult circumstances.

Patricia's letter is below.

August 1, 2025

WASHINGTON, D.C. (August 1, 2025) – The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) announced today that it will begin an orderly wind-down of its operations following the passage of a federal rescissions package and the release of the Senate Appropriations Committee’s FY 2026 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-H) appropriations bill, which excludes funding for CPB for the first time in more than five decades.

For nearly 60 years, CPB has carried out its Congressional mission to build and sustain a trusted public media system that informs, educates, and serves communities across the country. Through partnerships with local stations and producers, CPB has supported educational content, locally relevant journalism, emergency communications, cultural programming, and essential services for Americans in every community.

“Despite the extraordinary efforts of millions of Americans who called, wrote, and petitioned Congress to preserve federal funding for CPB, we now face the difficult reality of closing our operations,” said CPB President and CEO Patricia Harrison. “CPB remains committed to fulfilling its fiduciary responsibilities and supporting our partners through this transition with transparency and care.”

CPB informed its employees today that the majority of staff positions will conclude with the close of the fiscal year on September 30, 2025. A small transition team will remain through January 2026 to ensure a responsible and orderly closeout of operations. This team will focus on compliance, final distributions, and resolution of long-term financial obligations, including ensuring continuity for music rights and royalties that remain essential to the public media system.

“Public media has been one of the most trusted institutions in American life, providing educational opportunity, emergency alerts, civil discourse, and cultural connection to every corner of the country,” Harrison said. “We are deeply grateful to our partners across the system for their resilience, leadership, and unwavering dedication to serving the American people.”

CPB’s Board of Directors and management are working closely to address the legal, financial, and operational requirements of the closure. CPB will provide regular updates and guidance to stations and producers navigating the profound challenges ahead.

Public Broadcasting's Future

Uncertainty

The future of public broadcasting is in doubt. Trump wants to zero out current funding. He can do that by asking Congress for a recission. 

This not about saving federal dollars. CPB's federal appropriation is modest: roughly one one-hundredth of a percent (0.01%) of the federal budget. CPB is distinct from NPR and PBS and does not produce programming or own, operate, or manage any public media stations. -opb.org. 

This is about retribution. "President Trump is looking to go after PBS and NPR to settle political scores and muzzle the free press, while undermining foreign assistance programs that push back on China's malign influence, save lives, and address other bipartisan priorities," (-Sen. Schumer) Foreign aid is part of this order for recission by Trump.

Will he get his way?

 I remember observing focus groups for Audience 88 and Audience 98. One of the questions asked about the importance of public radio. What would you do if public radio were to disappear? We were asking our audience why they found public radio important in a crowded media environment. It is now up to Congress to decide if Trump can pull all funding for NPR and PBS. It's called a recission of funding. Most Republicans say they support this idea. If public media is important to you, speak up now! You will get talking points back, but it is sheer numbers that will impress Congress.

And what did we discover about our listeners? They considered themselves to be citizens of the world. They appreciated how we were able to put stories a broader context, and they understood the interconnectedness of our shared experience.  

Contact Congress

U.S. House of Representatives:
* Telephone:  202-225-3121
* Website:  http://www.house.gov/ 

U.S. Senate:
* Telephone:  202-224-3121
* Website:  http://www.senate.gov/

Find your member of Congress and contact him or her:
Contact your Representative
Contact your Senator

Strange Times

What are we going to do about it?

 

I’m a-goin’ back out ’fore the rain starts a-fallin’

I’ll walk to the depths of the deepest black forest

Where the people are many and their hands are all empty

Where the pellets of poison are flooding their waters

Where the home in the valley meets the damp dirty prison

Where the executioner’s face is always well hidden

Where hunger is ugly, where souls are forgotten

Where black is the color, where none is the number

And I’ll tell it and think it and speak it and breathe it

And reflect it from the mountain so all souls can see it

Then I’ll stand on the ocean until I start sinkin’

But I’ll know my song well before I start singin’ 

-Bob Dylan Hard Rain...

We've been here before

Someone told me at the beginning of the pandemic that these are really strange and perilous times. She was right, and it has gotten much worse. We were asked during the election if we were better off in 2024 than we were in 2020. Decidedly, yes!

Getting Even

"Trump has moved aggressively to fulfill his promise of “retribution” in the first 100 days of his second term by taking action against over 100 people and institutions, according to an NPR review. He has used the government to target political opponents, news organizations, law firms, universities and more. Some of the harshest actions he has taken against people he has targeted include ordering multiple Justice Department investigations."
" Trump is also effectively telling investigators what he believes the outcomes of the investigations should be, NPR’s Tom Dreisbach says. The Trump administration uses over 10 agencies in various ways to get payback. Secret Service protection has been pulled for President Biden’s children, media companies that Trump dislikes, including NPR, face FCC investigations, and universities face investigation from the Department of Education unless they agree to sweeping government demands."

We are living in dark times.

Giving up is not an option. Starting by gathering with like minded people is a beginning. The mutual support makes us stronger. Speaking out is important. Taking action, even in small ways is the beginning of a ground swell. 

The attacks on the dignity of individuals, on whole communities, goes beyond the attempts to silence contrary voices, voices that uphold the facts.

You understand what's going on here, right? Blatant racism! A callous disregard for the health and well being of fellow Americans based on their skin color and economic situation. The mere fact I am bringing this up, the fact that the previous administration was willing to step in and alleviate the plight of groups of people is deemed racism. Do you understand how warped their reasoning has become? Are you willing to stand with the facts, to stand in favor of justice, and treating people with dignity? 

Trump shut down environmental clean-up programs

 In Lowndes County, Alabama, funding was granted to end human waste backing into Alabama homes. A situation that went unchecked for years. Lowndes County is majority black. The State of Alabama was unwilling to do anything about the unhealthy situation. The Biden administration stepped in to alleviate situation. It was a $26 million federal program to help residents of Lowndes County, Alabama, who have dealt with inadequate sewage systems for decades.

 "The Biden administration investigated and allocated nearly $26 million to rebuild Lowndes County’s water infrastructure, with the Department of Justice declaring the majority-Black area was suffering from “environmental racism.”   

"But earlier this month, President Donald Trump issued an executive order to kill the deal, calling it “illegal DEI.”

Five things we can do

The UN suggests five things we can do to stand against injustice and hatred.

1. Show your support for diverse ethnic groups in your community by attending, promoting or helping fund events run by local organizations and houses of worship that bring people together: festivals, film series, guest lectures, language classes and celebrations. Bring your children.

2. If you see something in news reports or on social media that reflects prejudice, write a letter to the editor or leave a comment to let others know that intolerant remarks are unkind and uncalled for.

3. Prejudice and hate are not innate. They are learned behaviors — and they can be unlearned. Children absorb biases from the adults around them, and from the media, books and their peers. So set a good example. The process of countering negatives with positives begins at an early age. Talking about differences does not increase prejudice in children.

4. When the public stands in solidarity with immigrants and marginalized groups, bullies lose their power. If you see someone being harassed or physically attacked, it is important to help if you can do so safely. Make your presence as a witness known. Make eye contact with the person being attacked and ask if they want support. Don't escalate the situation.

5, It's more important than ever that we all remain in solidarity with one another. Human rights are a collective promise made by all countries of the world, including those in distress. Children from all ethnic backgrounds — especially children who have been uprooted by violence, war and poverty — need our support, wherever they are. Every child deserves to be treated with humanity, and to grow up in a safe and healthy environment.

Don't forget to laugh.

It’s just easier to laugh than to cry. If I cry, I’ll cry alone. But if you laugh, we can do it together. I guess no one knows how strong they can be until it’s their turn to deal with tragedy.
- Yusra Mardini,“Butterfly: From Refugee to Olympian, My Story of Rescue, Hope and Triumph”

 

Working Together in Public Radio: Does it matter?

This blog is not written to imply that radio broadcasting is the end all and be all of public media. There are too many platforms creating opportunities to reach the audience to think that one platform is better than the other. Instead it is meant to demonstrate how best to use the broadcast platform based on personal experience and the collective experiences of others. No matter the platform, best practices for that particular platform will help us reach our full potential to reach and engage the public media audience.

Yeah, it does! 

A few decades back when I was taking courses in Mass Communications and radio programming basics we spent a lot of time talking about increasing time spent listening and reducing barriers to listening. The models we worked on were commercial formats.

The question of stationality came up in a couple of job interviews. How would you change the culture here to make us one station? The question came up in a different way recently when I was asked to examine the weaknesses in a particular station's weekday schedule. Their weekdays are filled with a hodgepodge of programs provided by independent producers primarily concerned with their content rather than appealing consistently to an audience. The end result is long stretches of audience data that barely registered above zero.

Why look for examples of success among commercial broadcasters? The thinking was, the best way to attract and keep an audience was consistency of format and super serving the target audience. We discussed music formats and news formats and using rotations and solid forward promotion strategies to keep listeners listening. We also looked at consistency. Inevitably, people will tune away. Once they tuned back in, the successful station delivered the programming the core audience expected to hear.

Eliminating barriers to listeners is the same thing as eliminating seams. It is not be possible to eliminate them all. Some are easier to eliminate than others and, I am not advocating blandness and the safety of banality. But.. Public Radio is filled with examples of seams and barriers. A few examples include...

• Opening and closing themes.
• Billboards.
• Hellos and long goodbyes.
• Self-encased hour long programs
• Announcers who say "I'll be back," "All of you out there."
• Announcers who think in terms of "my show."
• Checkerboard schedules that promote churn.

The Best of Intentions

At my first public radio station we used to run feature news stories during our music programming. The intent was to highlight news content as a sort of cross promotion during the music programming stream. It didn't work. The music imperatives hated the interruptions and tuned out. The news imperatives never tuned in. We were creating huge seams in our programming suppressing time spent listening and audience loyalty. At my second station something similar was happening. We programmed all sorts of modules during music programming. These things had introductory music and closing themes with goodbyes from the host. There were gardening modules, star gazing modules, ecological modules, business modules and more. Instead of being intriguing bits of informative programming, the audience thought of them as interruptions. They tuned out. We created huge seams because we thought the public radio listener wanted this kind of information. We should have asked first.

Not for Lack of Effort

There have been attempts at creating midday and weekend streams that have a consistent appeal with the public radio tent poles...Morning Edition and All Things Considered.  To date, the attempts have been less than successful. Think about what's happened to Weekend America, Talk of the Nation, Performance Today and Modal Music. Meanwhile, we're looking for the next Car Talk and Wait, Wait! The later two worked because they appealed to the same audience that values All Things Considered and Morning Edition. They also work because listeners can tune-in at any point in the program and understand what is going on...just like ATC and ME.

To find out what's working, look at where the core audience gravitates. Look at which programs draw that audience on a consistent basis. Unfortunately for the stations with poor results, there's even longer stretches of no core audience. Without substantial core appeal, the ability to raise funds from listeners is almost nil.

Finding programming that fits well together is only a part of the programming game. So is forward promotion. A focused promotional effort on what to expect in the next ten to 20 minutes promotes time spent listening and can help bridge the natural gaps between programs. Forward promotion, vertical and horizontal promotion are a station's most effective on-air promotional tools. Promotions can also give stations a sense of unity and purpose.

There's loads of research on effective programming strategies for public radio. Some good places to start include the Radio Research Consortium, Public Radio Program Directors Association, Walrus Research, Audience Research Analysis and Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

I've been asked and, at times, castigated, "Why do research? This is public broadcasting. We can do anything...and they will come." Those days are long gone. With new platforms drawing away audience, the stakes are too high not to be paying attention to what your audience wants. If you want to do your own thing, start a podcast. If you want an audience, just be sure you know what you're doing, and how to listen then engage.

Covering Issues and Ideas

Transcending Geography

This article is not about local vs national coverage. It is about getting the most out of what stations can offer locally. Thinking about coverage from the perspective of the listener will help guide the focus of your content. It is an argument I made for years in music programming. It is an argument that often fell on deaf ears. That is, until we found ourselves creating barriers between our programming and the audience we were hoping to serve. Change came about slowly, but I like to think at WNPR we learned our lesson. It bears repeating.

Users of public media transcend local. Research I was a part of at Connecticut Public Broadcasting demonstrated clearly the world perspective public radio listeners have. This worldly view is not just a phenomenon in Connecticut. Broader research conducted for the public radio system through The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), The Public Radio Program Directors Association (PRPD) and others demonstrated the preference of public media users to look at issues from a broader perspective. The Sense of Place Study clearly pointed out that local coverage for the sake of being local was not an effective use of the media's resources.

Covering Issues

At WNPR we decided in 2006 when looking at format change to look at the issues and ideas that defined where we live rather than geography. Part of reason was pragmatic. Connecticut is governed by over 160 town governments. The attitude in Connecticut is that the issues in Hamden have no relationship to the issues in Waterbury. Or, that's in Hartford...not here. The thinking in the system at the time was to center coverage on a region like Chicago, New York or the Twin Cities. Connecticut did not have a regional center. Focusing on one area would make WNPR local and irrelevant to much of the state.. We decided to look at issues and ideas from a much broader perspective.

Others are taking this approach. WAMU recently announced they would realign their news coverage to key issues rather than geography. The key areas of their coverage will be Transportation and Development, Education and Inequality, Race and Ethnicity, Power and Influence, and Arts and Culture.

WUWM in Milwaukee is also covering news from an issues perspective. The news drop down  menu on  their website reveals coverage in the Environment, Economy & Business, Politics & Government, Education, Health & Science, World, Arts & Culture, and Project Milwaukee. Station Manager Dave Edwards mentioned that this approach is working out well for his station.

A Lucrative Decision

The decision at WNPR to focus on issues and ideas proved beneficial to the audience and the station. Increases in audience and loyalty followed. The launch of Where We Live by a very talented staff highlighted and enhanced coverage engaging the stations audience, Opportunities to develop partnerships in the community followed and so do did funding opportunities.

A Collaborative Effort

CPB announced in February a collaboration they are funding for regional coverage among several stations in New England. The geographic coverage will focus on issues and ideas. According to a release from Vermont Public Radio, "The New England News Collaborative (NENC) will produce multimedia coverage focusing on the region's energy usage, climate, transportation infrastructure, and its people and immigration issues. This robust partnership will produce dynamic reporting projects for on-air broadcast, digital and web presentations, and a series of public Town Hall-style meetings centered on issues facing New England and its residents."

WNPR will run the collaboration which will depend on the talents of reporters and producers across the New England states. The stations involved in the project are Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network, WBUR,Maine Public Broadcasting Network, New Hampshire Public Radio, Vermont Public Radio, New England Public Radio, Rhode Island Public Radio, and WSHU Public Radio.

Beyond Seed Money

The ability of the stations to keep the project going after the grant runs its course will depend on how willing they are to play nicely with each other. Certainly, the coverage will present opportunities for growth on all platforms. It will be up to the station to use the content to leverage partnerships and funding opportunities and put that revenue back into the partnership. It can work. 

Public Radio Partnerships: Strength in Numbers

If I had just one wish for Public Broadcasting it would be more collaboration and less competition within the system. We would be so much better at serving our audience if we just found ways to work together.

Unified Vision

When I first came to New England, I was working with several stations on a project that looked at better serving our audiences locally and collaborating regionally. The premise of the regional collaboration was to better serve the public radio audience up and down the I-91 corridor with a high quality service meeting the needs of the region. Despite honest efforts, it never came to pass as stations focused on their own issues without drawing on the experience of others.

The collaborative spirit was replaced by competition and distrust. 

There have been some hopeful efforts recently funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Three notable collaborations include stations along Ohio River Valley, A News Initiative in Indiana and Alaskan energy issues. The hope is these collaboratives will motivate others to do the same.

Earlier Efforts

I was involved in previous efforts. Most notably, the Environmental Initiate at WNPR, a collaborative with solid funding that involved several stations in the Northeast. Once the grant ran down, the stations were unable to sustain the regional effort. Shared funding was suggested based on listener hours, but nothing re-lit the collaboration. I also assisted in the Kentucky Public Radio Network collaborative. KPRN is still going strong and involves several of the stations working together in the Ohio River Valley project.

These partnerships are like any intense relationship. They take work and compromise to keep them together. The pay-off is higher caliber content that has a stronger appeal to the public media audience. They also have the advantage of pooled funding and shared costs.

Sesame Street - We've Strayed A Long Way

New episodes of Sesame Street will be aired on HBO first. 

I guess it's good news for the Sesame Street Workshop. They're getting an infusion of revenue to double the new episodes per season. The new episodes will eventually air on Public Television.

The Workshop has been running deficits for a while. It seems voluntary public support wasn't enough to sustain the program.

After the five year deal, will public television still be in the loop? Will HBO still fund Sesame Street or cut it loose?

After reading the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967...it seems we've strayed a long way. Are we headed in the direction of those who can pay will have access to quality programming? What about the rest of us? Has the marketplace decided educational programming for our young only goes to those 'who can afford it?

The Congress hereby finds and declares that —

1. it is in the public interest to encourage the growth and development of public radio and television broadcasting, including the use of such media for instructional, educational, and cultural purposes;
2. it is in the public interest to encourage the growth and development of nonbroadcast telecommunications technologies for the delivery of public telecommunications services;
3. expansion and development of public telecommunications and of diversity of its programming depend on freedom, imagination, and initiative on both local and national levels;
4. the encouragement and support of public telecommunications, while matters of importance for private and local development, are also of appropriate and important concern to the Federal Government;
5. it furthers the general welfare to encourage public telecommunications services which will be responsive to the interests of people both in particular localities and throughout the United States, which will constitute an expression of diversity and excellence, and which will constitute a source of alternative telecommunications services for all the citizens of the Nation;
6. it is in the public interest to encourage the development of programming that involves creative risks and that addresses the needs of unserved and underserved audiences, particularly children and minorities;
7. it is necessary and appropriate for the Federal Government to complement, assist, and support a national policy that will most effectively make public telecommunications services available to all citizens of the United States;
8. public television and radio stations and public telecommunications services constitute valuable local community resources for utilizing electronic media to address national concerns and solve local problems through community programs and outreach programs;
9. it is in the public interest for the Federal Government to ensure that all citizens of the United States have access to public telecommunications services through all appropriate available telecommunications distribution technologies; and
10. a private corporation should be created to facilitate the development of public telecommunications and to afford maximum protection from extraneous interference and control.

KGPR's Small Market Challenge

Community Support Coming Up Short

KGPR (Great Falls Public Radio) is in jeopardy of losing $97 thousand of its funding...all at once. KGPR does not generate enough non-federal support to qualify for CPB's Community Service Grant. According to CPB guidelines, Great Fall Public Radio should be generating $100,000 in community support. They're currently $30,000 short of that threshold.

A Numbers Crunch

Is the Great Falls Market large enough to support a Public Radio Station? According to Census data about 59 thousand people live there. If 10% of the population listened to the station, they would have a weekly cume of 6,000. Of that number maybe 20% would be part of the core audience, or 1200 listeners. KGPR reported to The Great Falls Tribune that they have 450 contributors. That means an estimated 38% of the core audience is contributing. Given the market size, there isn't much headroom. This is a numbers crunch many small market stations face.

ROI for NPR Programming

Great Falls Public Radio pays Montana Public Radio $34,000 to carry NPR and APM programming. I'm not sure of the arrangement between Great Falls and Montana Public Radio, but under an LMA agreement with NPR, Great Falls must carry Montana Public Radio's entire feed. My understanding of these agreements is that Great Falls would not be allowed to cutaway from the feed to carry their own announcements or to fundraise during the feed.  One solution might be to return a portion of the fundraising dollars to Great Falls Public Radio based on the zip codes of the contributors.   That might not alleviate the entire funding issue, but it would contribute to the solution by having contributors to Morning Edition, All Things Considered and A Prairie Home Companion in Great Falls go to support their station.

                                                                                                                        

Station management is holding a series of meetings to get input from listeners about what they should do. 40 showed up at the first meeting on Saturday.

VPT May Face Sanctions

The Daily Journal of Vermont and the Associated Press are reporting that Vermont Public Television (VPT) may be facing sanctions.
(Corporation for Public Broadcasting review recommends sanctions for Vermont Public Television)The sanctions may be imposed because VPT did not follow open meeting rules required by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

A complaint was filed in December. An internal investigation found that "VPT's board of directors properly closed the meetings but violated federal requirements by failing to notify the public that private meetings had been held."

The recommendation of sanctions comes from the office of the inspector general for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. VPT has asked the office to reconsider the sanctions. a final decision should come within 180 days.

CPB Funding Safe at VPT

Vermont Public Radio is reporting Vermont Public Television will be able to keep's its funding from The Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Vermont Public Television (VPT) could have lost $1 million in funding. Funding form the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) for VPT was in question after allegations that the network had violated open meetings rules. An audit found in February the station had not violated the public meeting rules but had inadvertently failed to notify the public of the private meetings. Several news sources in Vermont have been following the controversy including The Daily Journal. According to the report there were 22 meetings in question. 18 should have been posted on VPT's website. Four of the meetings were not held.

The Chair, Pamela MacKenzie and the Vice Chairman Rob Hofmann will remain in their positions. There had been calls for their resignations. 

Contributions to Public Radio and TV intersect

As contributions to public radio continue to increase...the contributions to public television continue to decline.

This trend has everything to do with programming. The reasons for the sad decline in programming can be attributed to the splintering of the marketplace but, public radio is feeling the same pressures. Public TV has done, at least in part, this to itself.

Those of us who have been around the system for a while remember the research put out by Audience Research Analysis called the Stairway to Given.

ARA called it the Stairway to Given
1.      Aware of the services/a user of the service.
2.      The user relies on the service.
3.      The content or service must be personally important.                    

Personal importance and sense of community. This is the idea that the content and                     the services are the ties that bind together people with certain shared values.  

4.      Funding Beliefs – Users must believe their support is crucial. They must understand that funding from other sources is only a piece of the fiscal puzzle. Individual support is the most reliable source of income.  

5.       Household income is a contributing factor in whether someone will give, but that it is not nearly as significant as the other steps of The Stairway to Given. People give because they rely on the service, find it personally important and believe their contributions are truly needed.

It starts with the content. There's a direct correlation between the loyalty of the audience and its willingness to contribute. PTV seems to have lost that along the way. Each time I stumble across another showing of Celtic Woman or another broadcast of the Moody Blues, I've wondered if others have found this to be as far off mission as I do. Do these fundraisers really appeal to the core audience? And, if PTV can't fundraise around core programming, what does that say? The answer always seems to be more fundraising!

There's a really good graphic published in Current.Org that shows this trend. The statistics are provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

NPR's Foreign Coverage Gets Support from CPB. Poynter.

Corporation for Public Broadcasting gives NPR $500,000 for foreign news coverage | Poynter.
For those of us who believe that events throughout the world are connected...that what happens in Jerusalem and Beijing affects what happens here...this is good news.  The grant will help fund coverage in some areas where it is difficult to do so.  The $500,000 grant to NPR supports continued foreign news reporting from some of the world’s most challenging regions in the Middle East, Africa and Asia.


Audience research for public radio supports the idea that listeners come to the service to find international coverage. 


What are the reasons you use this service?

FCC Committee Advises Backing for CPB

The Consumer Advisory Committee of the Federal Communications Commissions says that PBS is providing a valuable and high quality news service to the public. The committee advocates FCC backing for the Public Broadcasting Service according to a report released yesterday by RBR-TVBR.Com. CAC also liked CPB's "public affairs programming, diversity of opinion, public safety alerts, and children’s programming and a wide array of cultural content.”   

RBR-TVBR's Tom Seyler says if the CAC wants to give CPB a boost, it needs to find a way to separate CPB's funding from the political process.


That's the way the system is supposed to work now.

Full Funding for CPB

All Access Group is reporting the budget for CPB is at full funding in the new federal budget. The President's fiscal year 2013 budget includes full funding. CPB is asking congress for $445 million. The funding will be up for debate.


This comes as many states are cutting back.


Current's Mike Janssen reports, pubcasting networks continue to deal with the uncertainties of state funding in economically and politically precarious times, closing offices, facing possible cuts and bracing for the consequences.

State Underfunds Public Broadcasting

Government support of public broadcasting is an issue in places you might not normally think about. Federal funding has been an issue almost since its inception here with the Public Broadcasting act of 1967. The issue of the CPB's Community Service Grant here is political and partisan. Turns out the issues are the same in Estonia.

The researcher cited in the article also points out that commercial media needs to be more accountable for certain aspects of the public interest. Did somebody mention the Fairness Doctrine?

State Underfunds Public Broadcasting, Research Concludes | Politics | News | ERR

WCMU Gets Boost from Dervish

When it comes to fundraising, talking on your connections helps...sometimes in a big way. WCMU's PD, John Sheffler was talking with members of Dervish about their uncertain funding situation. Funds from CPB are being targeted for cuts. Dervish suggested a benefit concert with proceeds going to the station. There's more information in this article from the Midland Daily News...

Monday concert a WCMU fundraiser - Midland Daily News: Story Prep


The connections don't end there. The concert will be broadcast live on the station and the web with the help of others in Midland community.

Budget Cuts For Public Broadcasting In Wisconsin

The Wisconsin State Journal is reporting that Governor Walker is proposing an 8% cut for Public Television and Public Radio in Wisconsin. Because they also receive funding from the UW-Extension, public broadcasting could get a double cut.
"The agency that helps operate public radio and TV, the Educational Communications Board, would lose about 8 percent of its state funding if his proposal is approved. The ECB works in collaboration with groups like UW-Extension, meaning public radio and TV could face more cuts."
Wisconsin is not the only state proposing cuts to public broadcasting. Cuts are on the way in Virginia. Cuts are proposed in Maine. New Jersey is considering cuts.
Stations will need to focus efforts on listener and viewer sensitive income. That is, programming will need to be self-sustaining.

MPBN Funding Set For Public Hearing

MPBN Funding Set For Public Hearing - Portland News Story - WMTW Portland

If you look at the comments at the bottom of this article, you get an idea of what perceptions are like among certain sectors of our society.

Maine Public Broadcasting Network Officials say the $2 million in cuts represents about 20% of their operating budget.

I've experienced those kind of cuts. Local programming goes dark and jobs are lost.

The hearing is scheduled for 2 p.m. at the State House.

Current.org Blog: NPR funding survives in 2011 budget

Current.org Blog: NPR funding survives in 2011 budget; GOP had insis...: "A Republican provision to cut all federal funding to NPR was dropped in Friday's (April 8) late-night deal on the fiscal 2011 budget, accord..."

This is good news...for now.
There's more on the deal in The Daily Caller http://dailycaller.com/2011/04/09/npr-survives-11th-hour-spending-deal/

And in the New York Times  http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/09/us/politics/09fiscal.html?_r=1&pagewanted=1&hp

Public Supports Higher Funding for NPR, PBS

Public Supports Higher Funding for NPR, PBS

A recent CNN poll estimated that many Americans do not understand the extent of funding for public broadcasting. Some believe it is as high as 5% of the federal budget. That would make the amount set aside at $178 billion. The actual amount is closer to $500 million or .00014 percent of the federal budget. A majority of Americans believe public broadcasting should maintain its current level of funding or get more.

For more information about the CNN Poll you can go to the link above and to Politico.com. Both provide links to the CNN poll.