Austin public radio faces federal funding hole
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President Trump's order to halt federal support for NPR and PBS could blow a hole in the budgets of public radio stations throughout the country — including Austin's KUT and KUTX.
Why it matters: Local public radio stations, already facing fundraising challenges in a turbulent economy, are often cherished storytelling institutions and community hubs.
Catch up quick: The order calls the two biggest public broadcasters in the U.S. "biased" and directs the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to "cease direct funding" for them.
- The CPB, which allocates about $535 million in federal funding annually to NPR and PBS, filed a lawsuit against Trump and several administration officials Monday for attempting to fire three members of its board.
The latest: PBS president and CEO Paula Kerger called the order "blatantly unlawful" and the corporation wrote in a statement Friday that "CPB is not a federal executive agency subject to the President's authority."
Zoom in: The order could cost KUT and KUTX about $1.2 million, Debbie Hiott, general manager of the stations, notified supporters Friday.
- The stations get a community service grant from the CPB that accounts for about 6% (or about $925,000) of their budget — plus the CPB pays for some of the stations' other services, such as music rights licensing and public radio's satellite system, Hiott wrote.
- Delivering news, storytelling and music programming, the two radio stations have a dedicated following in Austin.
What they're saying: "What does this mean?" Hiott wrote to supporters about Trump's order. "In short, we don't fully know."
- "The CPB, NPR and PBS legal teams are working to learn more, especially as it relates to local funding for stations."
The bottom line: What to do about federal spending on public broadcasting is an issue that could test congressional Republicans in power in Washington.
- PBS and NPR had for decades enjoyed bipartisan support from lawmakers responsible for approving their government funds, per Axios' Sara Fischer and Natalie Daher.