On Thursday night, President Trump signed an executive order (EO) titled “Ending Taxpayer Subsidization of Biased Media.” The order instructs the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) to prohibit both direct and indirect federal funding to National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS).
From the NPR statement:
We will vigorously defend our right to provide essential news, information and life-saving services to the American public.
We will challenge this Executive Order using all means available.
Public media's overall congressional appropriation is unchanged—at least for now. How any federal funds are reallocated after removing NPR and PBS is undefined but will have a significant impact. The national-to-local partnership is the hallmark of NPR and provides much of the content you know and love. Everything we provide to the American public is at risk.
What this means for WGLT
WGLT has received its fiscal year 2025 community service grant (CSG) from CPB. We used the CSG to pay for NPR programming like Morning Edition and All Things Considered. The EO impacts our fiscal year 2026 operations beginning in July and potentially eliminates $175,000 from our budget.
It is too soon to say how much a delay or cuts in funding and/or changes to CSGs prohibiting those grants from paying for NPR programming will impact the NPR Network and/or eliminate programming and staffing. We will work closely with NPR, CPB, and PBS to better understand the funding mechanics once new federal grant rules are issued.
Our number one priority will be protecting and retaining the WGLT staff and continuing our commitment to local news and programming. We know how much this community counts on us, and we remained committed to providing the highest quality local journalism.
How you can help
Many in our audience just renewed or increased their financial support for WGLT during our Spring Fund Drive, and we are so grateful. If you haven’t yet done so, please consider making that gift today or as soon as you can. You can also pledge your support today for later in the year. That helps us plan during the budget process and better understand the true picture of a potential CPB funding change or gap.
While our immediate attention has turned to the EO, we are also monitoring CPB funding via rescission, budget reconciliation, and advanced appropriations. This is a busy time in Congress, and the NPR legislative team is working tirelessly to advocate for the Network.
If you have already contacted your legislators via Protect My Public Media, thank you! If you haven’t yet, please keep the pressure on to let our leaders know how much you value public media funding.
Next steps
We’ve been navigating tough times the past few months, and that theme will continue. Our team is in steady communication with university and NPR leadership. We are planning for the worst and working for the best.
We are stronger as a station and Network with you by our side. Thank you for your past, present, and future support.
Melissa Libert, Assistant General Manager & Development Director
R.C. McBride, Executive Director & NPR Board of Directors
