By REN LAFORME
of Poynter Institute for Media Studies
It’s official, pending President Donald Trump’s signature: For the first time in U.S. history, public broadcasting is losing its federal funding.
Just past Midnight July 18, the House joined the Senate in approving Trump’s request to rescind $1.07 billion in funds for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). It barely passed, 216–213, with almost all Republicans in favor.
The decision wipes out years of support for National Public Radio, the Public Broadcasting Service, and the 1,400-plus local stations that rely on CPB grants.
As Poynter reporter Angela Fu wrote, this marks a “striking deference” by Congress to the president’s will.
The impact will be felt far beyond “All Things Considered.” In Alaska, some stations receive more than 90% of their funding from CPB. In Native communities, internet access is limited, and local public radio fills the gap.
“The loss of nearly 20% of our budget will force us to make impossible choices,” one station director said in a statement, warning of cuts to emergency alerts and lifesaving public safety coverage.
NPR CEO Katherine Maher put it bluntly: “Defunding this is a real risk to the public safety of the country.”
As Poynter’s senior media writer Tom Jones wrote, this is a “dark day for journalism, the free press and, perhaps most importantly, everyday Americans who are going to feel the effects. It wouldn’t be a death knell for PBS and NPR. But it would still do some serious damage.”
Congressman Eric Sorensen (D-17th District — including Peoria, Bloomington-Normal, the Quad Cities and Rockford) said, “Cutting this funding could force some stations to reduce services — or shut down entirely. I strongly opposed these cuts because I believe every American deserves access to non-commercial, community-driven public media.”
Jones added, “While many on the Right are arguing that public media has a liberal bias, it appears that most Americans support public broadcasting. In a Harris poll conducted in July, two-thirds of Americans (66%) said they support federal funding for public radio. That includes 58% of Republicans and 77% of Democrats.”
Sorensen defended public media’s value. “Public broadcasting is one of the few places where Americans can turn for trusted news, quality education and programming that puts communities first,” he continued. “It provides free access to fact-based news, children’s programming, cultural shows, educational content, and emergency updates. Local NPR and PBS stations are especially important in rural and underserved areas, where they may be one of the only reliable sources of information and connection.”
Sorensen voted against the clawback. U.S. Reps. Darin LaHood (R-16th), Mary Miller (R-15th) and Mike Bost (R-12th) all voted for eliminating the funding.
Jones noted the irony that “it’s not national news coverage being threatened most. It’s local stories, kids programming, weather alerts and wildfire updates. One senator called the cuts ‘particularly cruel’.”
There’s more to come. With this first rescission package now a win, Trump is expected to propose additional cuts. If successful, the defunding of public broadcasting won’t just gut newsrooms. It will reshape the information infrastructure.
As The Washington Post’s Amber Phillips put it, “Press freedom is freedom. Experts say this type of interference is a big step toward the government controlling the flow of information and, in an authoritarian state, much of the rest of society.”