Axios Pittsburgh
July 31, 2025
1 big thing: Our public media takes a hit
Pittsburgh's public TV and radio stations are facing $2.5 million in annual shortfalls due to Republican-led federal cuts.
Why it matters: Public media outlets serve essential community newsgathering and emergency roles, but the Trump administration and others on the right have long accused them of left-leaning bias.
Context: Congress rescinded $1.1 billion in Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) funding for all stations across the nation.
Driving the news: WQED, Pittsburgh's PBS affiliate, laid off 19 employees yesterday, mostly in marketing, membership and production, after cutting five positions in May, TribLive reports.
- WQED President Jason Jedlinski said the move follows the elimination of federal funding and aims to secure WQED's long-term financial stability.
The big picture: For hundreds of stations with available data, CPB grants made up about 10.3% of U.S. public TV stations' overall funding as of fiscal year 2023, and 4.1% for radio stations.
Zoom in: CPB grants provided 13.3% of funding for WQED.
- Two of the region's public radio stations — WYEP and WESA — received 7.5% of their combined funding from CPB grants.
Caveat: Public media stations can also receive other forms of federal grants, plus corporate sponsorships and donations from (ahem) viewers like you.
- WESA and WYEP recently raised over $500,000, but are still short of their $700,000 hole and will seek more funding to cover next year's gap.
What they're saying: WQED has already lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in foundation support over the years, Jedlinski said in a webinar.
- "The documentary budgets, whether for national programs WQED used to create … or Rick Sebak local shows … has declined given other priorities for marketers among other types of media," he said.
The other side: The Trump administration has argued that public media creates content that is overly supportive of Democrats and liberal views and taxpayer dollars shouldn't be used for that.
The latest: Many public TV and radio stations have pressed their pleas for donations, hoping to appeal to viewers and listeners in their time of need.
2. We have more reporters than U.S. average
Allegheny County has more local news reporters than the national average, per a new project from Muck Rack and Rebuild Local News.
Why it matters: Studies show corruption rises in places with fewer journalists. People may turn to social media in these "news deserts," leaving them less informed on everything from local elections to cultural events.
By the numbers: Allegheny County has 9.3 "local journalist equivalents" per 100,000 people, surpassing the national average of 8.2.
- Most Pittsburgh-area counties exceeded the national average — except Beaver County, which matched it exactly. Butler County led the region with 16.6.
- Greene County had one of the state's lowest rates at 0.1.
The big picture: The average number of local journalists in the U.S. has dropped 75% over the past 25 years, per the report.
- Although the region is home to hundreds of journalists, Pittsburgh-area reporters have faced layoffs, cutbacks and newsroom closures alongside the rest of the country — trends exacerbated by the pandemic, changing ownership, and the growing influence of private equity in the industry.
- Industry shifts have led some journalists to unionize while fueling larger regional efforts to fill gaps through collaboration.
How it works: To calculate "local journalist equivalents," the authors adjusted each county's total to account for part-time reporters and those at city outlets who sometimes cover suburban news.
Zoom out: About two-thirds of U.S. counties fall below the national average for local journalists, per the report.
What's next: "The gutting of federal funding for public broadcasters is expected to cause hundreds of local station groups to significantly scale back or shutter across the country," Axios' Sara Fischer reports.
3. The Bridge: New eats in Oakland
Axios Pittsburgh
