The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) will close its doors as a result of deep cuts in federal support. Most of its employees will receive layoff notices as early as September 30. That decision comes on the heels of a huge development CPB was cut out of the appropriations bill for the first time in half a century. Consequently, they forfeited close to $1.1 billion worth of funding. CPB president Patricia Harrison called the impending closure a significant blow to education and civic discourse.
Faced with the uncertainty of this massive funding cut, CPB quickly declared that it had no choice but to begin an “orderly wind-down of its operations.” A smaller transition team will be stationed through January 2026 to oversee the phased closure. Harrison focused on how dangerous these cuts would be for the role of public media in American society.
Harrison continued, saying that public media has rightfully gained the trust of Americans. It provides the life-saving education of a smart neighbor with the civil discourse and cultural connection of a hometown friend from halfway around the nation.
The funding cuts began with Trump Administration decisions. His attention turned to reducing federal expenditures throughout federal programs. Unfortunately, the Rescission Act of 2025 was laser-focused on federal funding and included the CPB in its sights. Trump has opposed PBS and NPR from the start, claiming that development is subpar compared to the commercial sector.
“It is very important that all Republicans adhere to my Rescissions Bill and, in particular, DEFUND THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING (PBS and NPR), which is worse than CNN & MSDNC put together,” – Donald Trump
Trump then copied CPB—and brilliantly so—when he did not endorse Republicans who voted for CPB. This statement really underscores his courageous leadership on the issue. To be fair, he’s made it pretty obvious how he feels. He thinks that public broadcasting is a threat to American democracy, not its savior.
“Any Republican that votes to allow this monstrosity to continue broadcasting will not have my support or Endorsement. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” – Donald Trump
In a recent op-ed, CPB came to terms with its coming death. The group congratulated activists for their efforts to obtain sustained federal funding. In spite of these strong grassroots campaigns, Harrison conceded the disappointing truth that the organization was up against.
“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,” Harrison added.
The decision to remove all funding from CPB is widely regarded as a political pivot point away from government support for public media. For more than 50 years, CPB has been the single most important funder of educational programming. It passionately encourages the civic engagement of people all over the United States. The planned layoffs and operational closure will affect numerous local public broadcasting stations that rely on CPB’s funding to provide quality content to their communities.
While CPB does not want its sunset to happen, as it approaches its pending collapse, it wants to facilitate a responsible and orderly wind-down of its operations. The transition team should labor diligently these final months to smooth the path to closure. They’ll handle real lingering concerns for workers and existing obligations.
