We’re approaching the one-year anniversary of the congressional vote to defund public media. We also just wrapped WGLT’s first fiscal year in more than 50 years without federal funding. So how did it go and where do we go from here?
Fiscal year 2026 highlights
- Individual giving: Longtime donors increased their support. Hundreds of new donors rallied for us and joined our dedicated village of supporters. Friends gave once, monthly and/or a combination of multiple gifts.
- Corporate support: Like donors, our longtime underwriters were a steady source of important revenue, and we welcomed new underwriters who helped to fill the void left by defunding. A record-setting Radio Faces with NPR’s Steve Inskeep and special guest NPR CEO Katherine Maher also boosted revenue.
- Foundation support: WGLT secured its largest-ever newsroom investments thanks to awards from the Driehaus Foundation and Field Foundation.
Other wins
While we navigated defunding and revenue challenges, many other critical initiatives were also happening that will shape the station’s future.
- At the national level, Executive Director R.C. McBride continued providing leadership on the NPR board advocating for the network and small stations like WGLT at board meetings and committee meetings. Assistant GM Melissa Libert attended the NPR strategic planning meeting in early June continuing that advocacy within the network and spent time with our elected representatives on Capitol Hill in hopes of prioritizing funding for rural radio stations and the next-gen warning system.
- At the state level, R.C. and Melissa, in coordination with Illinois Public Broadcasting Council and Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, secured the passage of and subsequent governor’s signing of HB4420 which extends press protections to professional journalists at state-licensed public media entities. We owe many thanks to state Sen. Koehler and state Rep. Chung for their steadfast support as we worked diligently to get this bill passed the last two years as the landscape grows more precarious for public media’s independence.
- The station is also the proud recipient of capital funds from Sen. Koehler which we’re hoping to allocate toward a generator for our building. As we experience more extreme weather, we need to bolster the station’s infrastructure so we can broadcast before, during and after an emergency.
Thankfully WGLT made it through the first year of defunding without a single staff layoff, though we did have to leave some positions vacant. Many other stations and NPR were not so fortunate. We’ve also been able to maintain our robust paid student internship program thanks to some generous seed gifts from donors leading to the establishment of a new WGLT intern fund at the ISU Foundation.
What’s next
WGLT saw strong and steady revenue throughout the year. But we have a lot of work to do to make up for an annual loss of $175,000. And while we’re cautiously optimistic, we don’t yet know if last year was a complete outlier or if the defunding moment will turn into a movement and become our new normal.
We’re in the midst of celebrating our 60th anniversary and thinking a lot about the future of the station. And your continued investment is critical to the station’s momentum and future success. Filling an annual gap of $175,000 means we can’t have even one lackluster fund drive or pause efforts to cut costs and diversify revenue streams.
Staffing continues to be a long-term challenge and we’re planning to replace one journalist position this year thanks to funding from the Field Foundation. We’re still down two full-time positions from spring 2025, and how we proceed with hiring is dependent upon maintaining this year’s successful financial results.
We hope we’ve earned your continued investment. If it’s been a minute since your last gift and you’re ready to renew your support, now is a great time to do so. WGLT, in coordination with NPR, will be revisiting all our defunding anniversary donors during our ongoing campaign the next few months. It’s a moment to say thank you and reflect on last year and how far we’ve come with your support.
This moment is also a reminder that a free press doesn’t just happen. It’s protected by people like you. Thank you.
