Local Public Media Stations Face Greater Financial Burdens Due to the Closure of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting

WASHINGTON, D.C. – August 4, 2025 – Kate Riley, President and CEO of America’s Public Television Stations, made the following statement on the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) winding down its operation.

“America’s Public Television Stations are deeply troubled by the current situation that has made it necessary for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to begin winding down its operations. As we have warned all along, the impact of the elimination of essential and necessary public media funding for local stations, through CPB, is real and imminent.

“These rescissions of funds have already begun to dramatically impact the vital services that local stations provide to communities across our country. And now it will further affect local stations through the closure of CPB. Among the support that the organization provides local stations:

  • CPB provides direct grants to local public media stations.
     
  • CPB provides cost-effective collective negotiation and payment of music licensing fees.
     
  • CPB provides support for the public media interconnection system that connects all local stations and is essential for the transmission of emergency alerts and warnings over public broadcasting infrastructure. 

“Local stations will now have to pay for these costs out of their individual station budgets, which have already taken a dramatic hit from the elimination of federal funding. In many cases, the transfer of these newly unfunded costs will simply be too high for local stations to bear.

“Last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee missed an opportunity to extend a desperately needed lifeline to local public media stations that are already cutting essential services and staff and, in some cases, planning for their closure as a result of the rescissions of public media funding last month.

“Without the restoration of some level of support for local stations and the essential support they received through CPB, the program and staff termination and reduction announcements we have already seen from local stations will continue and communities will be left without access to indispensable services from lifesaving public safety communications to proven effective educational resources and locally created content that connects and reflects communities throughout this country.

“We extend our deep gratitude to CPB President and CEO Patricia Harrison and the over 100 CPB employees who are shining examples of unwavering and honorable public service to our country. For nearly 60 years, CPB has been exceptional stewards of the federal investment in public media, tirelessly working to strengthen and expand our system to serve the American people.

“We remain hopeful that as the appropriations process moves forward Members of Congress will reflect the clear will of the American people and restore essential federal funding for local stations’ ability to help keep Americans safe, to educate America’s children and to celebrate and preserve the stories, people and culture of hometowns across this country.”

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About APTS
America’s Public Television Stations (APTS) is a nonprofit membership organization ensuring a strong and financially sound public television system and helping member stations provide essential public services in education, public safety and community connections to their local areas and the American people. For more information, visit www.apts.org.

Contact: 
Stacey Karp
202-654-4222
skarp@apts.org