Grant supports public media stations to expand audience-informed reporting in rural communities across the country.
Washington, D.C. (December 4, 2025) — The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) today announced $4.4 million in grants to establish Rural News and Information Services in eight states. The funding supports public media organizations focused on expanding reporting in rural America. The initiative will strengthen coverage of local issues, elevate community voices, and produce audience-informed content that reflects the diverse experiences of rural life across the United States.
The Rural News and Information Services bring together public television and radio stations serving rural and small-town audiences, including:
PBS Wisconsin and Wisconsin Public Radio are launching “Rural Voices,” to amplify rural concerns and potential solutions through accessible, far-reaching content. “Rural Voices” will use a town hall listening session approach to sourcing and reporting on issues that impact those in Wisconsin’s rural communities. The project will leverage existing bureaus in closest proximity to the most rural areas of the state.
Ideastream Public Media (Cleveland, Ohio) will expand The Ohio Newsroom collaborative by adding a dedicated Appalachian Reporter to cover five counties in Southeast Ohio that currently have limited local news coverage. This reporter’s work will be shared with partner public radio stations across the state along with non-profit and commercial news organizations in the region. The Ohio Newsroom will also create a Community Collaborations Editor role to support community involvement through listening sessions and surveys to better understand information and news needs, habits and hopes.
KUAR-FM (Little Rock, Arkansas) will partner with KUAF-FM (Fayetteville) and KASU-FM (Jonesboro) to develop the Arkansas News Collaborative. With a regional newsroom approach focused first on rural communities across Arkansas, the collaborative will emphasize economic development, quality of life and issues affecting rural residents. The reporting team will spotlight areas like Osceola (population 6,491) on the banks of the Mississippi, where $3.5 billion in state-of-the-art steel plants are being built; rural Northwest Arkansas where Walmart’s growth has reshaped land values and local economies; and rural Craighead County.
High Plains Public Radio (Kansas) is launching the High Plains Civic News and Information Network which will generate multi-platform audience-first reporting by coordinating with and leveraging local contributors in an 89-county region within the five states of Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado and Nebraska where the overall population density is just 9.2 persons per square mile.
West Virginia Public Broadcasting will expand its award-winning Inside Appalachia Folkways program—a regional journalism initiative that equips local residents – many without prior journalism experience – to report deeply from within their own communities. In partnership with WEKU in Eastern Kentucky, the program combines training, mentorship, and editorial collaboration to serve emerging news deserts across West Virginia and Central Appalachia, amplifying authentic voices and preserving the region’s cultural traditions alongside vital local reporting.
Nashville PBS (Tennessee) seeks to reach new rural audiences through its legacy program Tennessee Crossroads and its digital-first series, Jaunts. The effort will center on identifying and collaborating with rural influencers who can share stories of hope, heroes, and helpers. This initiative will be supported by a three-part research effort focused on 72 rural counties across Tennessee. The project envisions Rural Tennessee social media influencers providing on the ground reporting and serving as community liaisons to help public media’s understanding of the regions they serve.
WCMU Public Media (Mount Pleasant, Michigan) will add a reporter focused on rural life and agriculture, covering 35 of the state’s most rural counties. The reporter will conduct quarterly office hours in local community spaces to inform the rural news and information. This additional reporter will also contribute coverage to the CPB-funded Harvest Public Media journalism collaboration covering issues related to food systems, the environment, and rural life.
Iowa Public Television will expand its longstanding agriculture and rural affairs program Market to Market by establishing reporting bureaus with Alabama Public Television covering the southern U.S. region and Idaho Public Television covering the western U.S. region. The national public television program will also develop a Rural Advisory Group with geographically diverse members to inform content decisions. Market to Market will also seek new audiences through digital first content and social media partnerships.
This initiative reflects CPB’s ongoing commitment to local journalism that informs and connects audiences, especially in areas that are often underserved by media.
“Public media is rooted in community,” said Kathy Merritt, COO of CPB. “These Rural News and Information Services build on that legacy by empowering stations to report on the stories, people, and innovations shaping rural life — ensuring that these communities continue to be seen, heard, and understood.”
This announcement comes as CPB enters the wind-down of its operations following Congress’ rescission of all CPB funding. Despite this unprecedented action, which resulted in the loss of seventy percent of its staff, CPB continues to fulfill its responsibilities as the steward of federal funds and is working diligently to provide essential resources to the public media system in its time of greatest need.
About CPB
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is a private, nonprofit corporation created by Congress in 1967. It has helped support the operations of more than 1,500 locally managed and operated public television and radio stations nationwide. CPB is the largest single source of funding for public radio, television, and related online and mobile services. With the rescission of federal funds for FY 2026 and FY 2027, CPB is in the process of winding down operations. For more information, visit www.cpb.org and follow us on Facebook or LinkedIn.