The Impact of the Federal Rescission on Public Media

For nearly six decades, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) has served as the steward of the federal appropriation for public media, leading this uniquely American public–private partnership that ensures every American—regardless of income or geography—has access to trusted, noncommercial media. On July 24, 2025, CPB was abruptly defunded resulting in a negative impact on public media stations and the communities they serve 

The Fiscal Year 2025 federal rescissions package eliminated more than $1 billion in public media funding, including CPB’s advance appropriations, which have been approved on a bipartisan basis since 1976. The decision has forced CPB to begin winding down its operations and placed hundreds of local public media stations—radio and television alike—into crisis.

A System in Transition

With no new funding available as of October 1, CPB has been forced to reduce its staff by 70 percent and begin the difficult process of closing out existing grants and contracts. Without additional congressional action, the federal partnership that sustains 1,500 local public media stations will end—along with the universal service guarantee that ensures access for all Americans, including those in rural, remote, and tribal communities.

The elimination of CPB funding does not make public broadcasting more efficient or less dependent on federal support—it makes it unsustainable. Without pooled resources for interconnection, emergency alerting, royalties, and shared infrastructure, individual stations now face costs they cannot bear alone.

The Human Impact

Across the country, the effects are already being felt.

Large Stations: 

• New Jersey PBS – New Jersey’s only public television station has announced it will cease operations in 2026.
• GBH (Boston, MA) – In June 2025, GBH laid off 6% of staff (45 staff members). In July 2025, GBH laid off an additional 13 staff members and paused production for signature series American Experience.
• KQED (San Francisco, CA) – Reduced workforce by 15% (67 positions eliminated/unfilled).
• Cascade Public Media (Seattle, WA) – Reduced workforce by 12% (17 positions eliminated).
• Arizona Public Media – Eliminated six jobs and 11 positions remain unfilled after losing CPB funding that made up about 15% of its revenue.
• WETA (Arlington, VA) – Reduced workforce by 5% (21 positions eliminated/unfilled) and canceled three local TV shows due to rescission of CPB funding.
• Houston Public Media - Eliminated 9 positions to prepare for the loss of CPB funding.
• WTTW (Chicago, IL) – 15-20 staff members have left the station, including some through buyouts, leaving “Chicago Tonight” severely understaffed and “Chicago Stories” producing fewer episodes.
• WNET (New York) – Unspecified layoffs and cuts to programs and services.
• Cincinnati Public Radio (WGUC) – Announced an adjusted weekend schedule due to a revenue loss of $485,000, 6% of its budget following the loss of federal funding through CPB’s CSG. The adjusted schedule will save the station approximately $45,000.
• Wisconsin Public Radio (Madison, WI) – Reduced workforce and canceled production on three national distributed programs due to loss of federal funding.

Mid- and Small-market Stations: 

• WPSU (Penn State) – Announced plans to wind down and cease operations by June 30, 2026.
• Kentucky Educational Television (KET) – Eliminated 36 positions across several departments by laying off 15 employees and cutting 21 vacant positions. The reduction affects 22% of its workforce.
• WKU Public Media (Bowling Green, KY) – Eliminated one third of its staff.
• Prairie Public (North Dakota) – Eliminated 12 staff positions.
• NPR Illinois – Station is weighing cuts to music programming, rural satellite service, and emergency broadcast capabilities.
• IPB News (Indiana Public Broadcasting) – Indiana Public Broadcasting stations will lay off an 8-person statewide reporting team.
• Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR) – Laid off 15 employees and cancelled 4 programs.
• WKAR (East Lansing) – Laid off 9 employees due to rescission of federal funding.
• Twin Cities PBS (St. Paul) – Laid off 25 employees due to rescission of federal funding.
• APMG / Minnesota Public Radio – Laid off 30 employees due to rescission of federal and state funding, representing a 5-8% reduction in staff.
• WFAE (Charlotte) – Eliminated 6 positions due to rescission of federal funding.
• Detroit PBS – Offered buyout options to staff.
• WQED (Pittsburgh) – Announced plans to lay off 19 employees, representing 35% of its staff.
• Lakeshore Public Media (Northwest Indiana) – Announced layoffs and a reorganization of positions to part-time, impacting two-thirds of its employees.
• SDPB (South Dakota Public Broadcasting) – Reduced workforce by 25%, directly affecting its public affairs programming and education services.
• WPBS (Watertown, NY) – Laid off 6 employees due to rescission of federal funding.
• KEET (Eureka, CA) – Facing severe funding gap with risk of service reduction.
• WFIT (Melbourne, FL) – Eliminating 3 staff positions due to rescission of federal and state funding.
• WNIN (Evansville, IN) – Laid off 5 employees and 15 weekend TV shows, following a 35% revenue loss after the rescission of federal funding.
• KIXE (Eureka, CA) – Eliminated 5 positions due to the rescission of federal funding.
• WFUV (New York) – Eliminated 5 positions and restructured director-level jobs in response to the rescission of federal funding.
• Alabama Public Television – Eliminated 11 staff positions in its production, education, events and administration departments, affecting about 13% of staff.
• Classical California – Laid off an unspecified number of staff following the rescission of federal funding, a revenue loss of $1.1 million in support from CPB.
• Vermont Public – Eliminated 15 positions and shifted two full-time jobs to part-time roles due to the rescission of federal funding, representing a 14% staff reduction.
• Ocean State Public Media (Rhode Island PBS + The Public’s Radio) – Offering a voluntary buyout program to staff due to the rescission of federal funding.
• WNIT (South Bend, IN) – Laid off 5 employees and reduced the hours of two additional employees.
• PBS North Carolina – Offering a voluntary buyout program to staff due to the rescission of federal funding.
• Alaska Public Media – Announced that its weekly public affairs show “Alaska Insight” has been put on hold due to rescission of federal funding.
• KRZA (Alamosa, CO) – Announced programming cuts and layoffs with potential to shut down due to rescission of federal funding.
• Mississippi Public Broadcasting – Plans to drop all PBS and NPR programming while continuing limited local content.
• Basin PBS (West Texas) – Facing significant financial challenges after rescission of federal funding, resulting in a 48% revenue loss for the station.
• WPBS (Watertown, NY) – Facing significant financial challenges ($1M, a third of its budget), resulting in a 30% workforce reduction and extensive restructuring.
• KUAC (Fairbanks, Alaska) – Canceled overnight broadcasts and certain PRX-distributed programs to offset a $1.2M revenue loss due to rescission of federal funding.
• Tri-States Public Radio (Macomb, Illinois) – Postponed decisions about programming changes because it qualified for NPR’s dues relief and they have a remaining pool of CPB’s CSG funds to sustain operations. Approximately 17% of TSPR’s revenue came from CPB with its last CSG in the amount of $204,000.
• WLRH (Huntsville, AL) – Canceled NPR membership and programming, reducing their programming pipeline by 30%.
• KMUN (Astoria, Oregon) – Canceled NPR membership and programming, reducing their programming pipeline by 30%.

Tribal Broadcasters

• KZYK (Sinte Gleska University, SD) – Tribal station facing existential threat from rescission of federal funding to CPB.
• KBRW, KYUK, KUCB (Alaska) – At risk of going dark with significant operational uncertainty.
• Radio Bilingüe (California/Texas) – Canceled planned expansion following revenue loss of $300,000 through CPB direct support and loss of NGWS funding.
• KWSO (Warm Springs, OR) – May lose access to Native America Calling and National Native News with a revenue loss of 40%.
• KUNC’s (Greeley, CO) – Announced layoffs in every department, reflecting a reduction in workforce of more than 20% of its 38 total employees.

National Organizations and Independent Producers

• ITVS (Independent Television Service) – Laid off 13 employees and is experiencing a program pipeline disruption due to rescission of federal funding.
• Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) - Eliminated close to 100 positions over the last several months.
• National Multicultural Alliance – Unspecified layoffs and is experiencing program pipeline disruptions due to rescission of federal funding.

Across the system, station closures and deep service reductions are eroding decades of public media expertise. As stations like New Jersey PBS and WPSU in Pennsylvania shutter or scale back, communities are losing trusted local news, educational programming, and the talent that sustains them.

What’s at Stake

Public media serves communities commercial markets often overlook. It provides free educational resources for families, in-depth journalism that connects citizens to the issues that matter to their everyday lives, and emergency alerts that protect local communities. The rescission of CPB funding dismantles the very structure that ensures these services reach every household in America.

The Administration’s FY 2026 budget recognized this challenge, proposing $30 million in closeout funding to allow CPB to responsibly settle contracts and protect federal investments already made in public broadcasting infrastructure. Without this transitional support, CPB faces an involuntary and disorderly shutdown—an outcome that jeopardizes not only the institutions but the public trust they have earned over generations.

A Legacy Worth Preserving

Public media has always reflected the best of what government and communities can achieve together: trusted information, educational opportunity, and civic connection. The rescission places that shared achievement at risk, but the values that created it remain.

Even as CPB winds down, stations, producers, and local partners across the country continue to serve their audiences with dedication and care. Their work demonstrates what public media has always stood for—a belief that access to educational resources, public safety information, and local culture should not depend on where you live or how much you can afford.