(The Center Square) – After the loss of federal funding, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting announced Friday that it will have to begin winding down its operations after nearly 60 years.
The funding cuts were a part of last month’s passage of the rescissions package and a Senate appropriations bill, which didn’t include funding for the CPB.
The broadcasting organization said that it has informed a “majority” of its staff that those positions “will conclude” at the end of the fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30, with a small transition team that will remain until January 2026 to oversee a “responsible and orderly closeout of operations.”
Patricia Harrison, CPB president and CEO, took a jab at Congress for cutting funding, saying “millions of Americans” fought to keep the funding.
“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 Harrison. “CPB remains committed to fulfilling its fiduciary responsibilities and supporting our partners through this transition with transparency and care.”
The CPB supports more than 1,500 “locally managed and operated public television and radio stations nationwide.” National Public Radio and Public Broadcasting Services are included in that funding.
CPB is a private, nonprofit corporation authorized by Congress in 1967. Prior to the funding cuts, Republicans scrutinized CPB, accusing it of political bias and propaganda production.
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., who introduced the No Propaganda Act, argued that the federal government shouldn’t fund media.
“In 2025 alone, Congress will send the Corporation for Public Broadcasting $535M. The CPB is a government-backed nonprofit that issues taxpayer-funded grants to NPR, PBS, and their affiliates,” Kennedy posted on X in June. “By 2027, the CPB expects the federal government to send it nearly $600M. One would think that receiving billions of dollars from taxpayers would motivate NPR and PBS to publish fair reporting that the American people can use. Instead, these organizations are using taxpayer money to advance their own political agendas.”
Despite many Republicans’ criticism of CPB, NPR and PBS, Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, had concerns about defunding the organization, citing its support for local programming and emergency communications.
“There are, however, more targeted approaches to addressing that bias than rescinding all funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting,” Collins argued.
In addition, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, also had concerns with the funding cuts, noting the need for rural stations and emergency broadcasting services, citing a recent natural disaster. Murkowski and Collins were the only Republicans to vote against the funding cuts.
