US Public Broadcasting Shuts Down After Congress Cuts All Federal Funding

The privately run, nonprofit corporation said the decision followed Congress' rescission of all federal support and came after what it described as sustained political attacks that made it impossible for CPB to continue operating as intended under the Public Broadcasting Act.

"For more than half a century, CPB existed to ensure that all Americans -- regardless of geography, income, or background -- had access to trusted news, educational programming, and local storytelling," said Patricia Harrison, President and Chief Executive Officer of CPB. She said that when the Administration and Congress rescinded federal funding, the board faced a "profound responsibility."

"CPB's final act would be to protect the integrity of the public media system and the democratic values by dissolving, rather than allowing the organisation to remain defunded and vulnerable to additional attacks," Harrison said.

Ruby Calvert, Chair of CPB's Board of Directors, said the loss of funding left the board with no practical option to continue the organisation or support the public media system that depends on it. "What has happened to public media is devastating," Calvert said.

"After nearly six decades of innovative, educational public television and radio service, Congress eliminated all funding for CPB, leaving the Board with no way to continue the organisation or support the public media system that depends on it," she said.

Calvert added that she believed public media would endure and that a future Congress would address its role because it is "critical to our children's education, our history, culture and democracy."

First authorised by Congress under the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, CPB played a central role in building and sustaining a nationwide public media system of more than 1,500 locally owned and operated public radio and television stations. Through its stewardship, CPB said, public media became a trusted civic resource across the country.

The organisation supported educational programming that helped generations of children learn and grow, provided emergency alerts during natural disasters and crises, and backed journalism aimed at uncovering issues affecting daily life, connecting communities, and strengthening civic participation.

CPB's board said that, without the resources to fulfil its congressionally mandated responsibilities, maintaining the corporation as a nonfunctional entity would not serve the public interest or advance the goals of public media.

It warned that a dormant and defunded CPB could become vulnerable to future political manipulation or misuse.

Such a scenario, the board said, could threaten the independence of public media and the trust audiences place in it, while also exposing staff and board members to legal risk from bad-faith actors.

As part of its orderly closure, CPB said it will complete the responsible distribution of all remaining funds in accordance with Congress' intent. The organisation will also continue to support the American Archive of Public Broadcasting to digitise and preserve historic content.

CPB said its own archives, dating back to the organisation's founding in 1967, will be preserved in partnership with the University of Maryland and made accessible to the public.

"Public media remains essential to a healthy democracy," Harrison said. "Our hope is that future leaders and generations will recognise its value, defend its independence, and continue the work of ensuring that trustworthy, educational, and community-centred media remains accessible to all Americans."

The decision drew sharp criticism from Democratic lawmakers. Senator Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts said the dissolution marked "a grave loss for the American public," arguing that CPB helped ensure access to trusted news, quality children's programming, local storytelling, and vital emergency information across the country.

Markey said the dissolution was the result of what he described as a reckless effort to dismantle public broadcasting and control media content.

"This fight is not over," he said, adding that he would continue to oppose efforts to shut down dissent, threaten journalists and undermine free speech.

Public broadcasting in the United States operates through a mix of federal support, viewer and listener donations, and philanthropic funding.

While national networks and local stations are expected to continue operating independently, the closure of CPB removes the central entity created to distribute federal funds while shielding public media from political pressure.

CPB was established in 1967 as a firewall between government and editorial decision-making. Its dissolution marks a significant structural shift for US public media, even as local stations and producers seek to sustain services through alternative sources of support.

- IANS