Federal Funding Is Under Threat
Essential Local Services Are At Risk
WHY WSMR IS ESSENTIAL
LOCAL ARTS & CULTURE CONNECTION EDUCATIONAL & ENRICHING CURATED CLASSICAL MUSIC COMMUNITY RESOURCE FOR CLASSICAL MUSIC |
THE FACTS OF FEDERAL FUNDING
For Classical WSMR, the Corporation of Public Broadcasting helps fund the costly music licensing fees necessary to bring you the beautiful and inspiring music you love. Without this support, we would need to divert funds from other programs, which would threaten the variety of content we can offer.
Local public media stations, such as WSMR, are vital community anchors. As a public radio station licensed to the University of South Florida, we are part of a nationwide network of public radio stations reaching communities across the country, providing essential news, information, and cultural programming to 99% of the US population.
Stations leverage each $1 of federal funding to raise nearly $7 from other sources — a tremendous return on the taxpayer investment.
- Represents .01% of the federal budget
- About $1.60 per person annually
WHAT IS CPB
CPB is distinct from NPR and PBS. It is not a broadcaster, producer, or distributor but a private, nonprofit corporation authorized by Congress in the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967 to support other public radio and television entities. Its two primary functions are to serve as a firewall between politics and public broadcasting and to help fund programming, stations, and technology.
Funding for CPB is established two years in advance through the federal annual appropriations process. The advance is intended to insulate funding from political pressures.
CPB’s general appropriation for fiscal year 2025 was $535 million – with the total federal support for public media amounting to about $1.60 per year per person. The CPB is responsible for allocating its funds from the federal budget in any way that fulfills its mission: to ensure universal access, over-the-air and online, to high-quality content and telecommunications services that are commercial-free and free of charge.
Nearly 70% of the total funding is distributed directly to local stations like WSMR so we can decide how best to program for our communities. CPB has had bipartisan support in Congress for more than 50 years.
FAQ
Q: What percentage of your funding comes from taxpayers, and how is that money spent?
A: Federal funding for public broadcasting amounts to about $1.60 per person annually. This critical seed money is maximized locally to provide essential public services, including children’s educational content and community resources, lifesaving public safety services, and content and services that help engage communities and contribute to a stronger, more connected society.
Q: Why should taxpayers continue funding public media?
A: Public Media is a vital resource for rural communities in bandwidth-limited areas, where commercial media is out of reach physically or financially. For about $1.60 per person per year of federal funding, public broadcasting provides every American household with exceptional local services – every day, for free, everywhere they are. We are also a critical resource for communities and an essential public safety partner, helping alert people about emergencies, such as hurricanes, wildfires, and other severe weather.
Q: What would defunding public media mean for consumers?
A: The substantial majority of federal funding for public media goes to local stations. As a result, defunding public media would have a significant negative impact on local stations and the communities that rely on them for essential public services, including local news, public safety alerts, and community connections. The effect would be felt most severely in rural and remote communities where local public media stations are often the last locally operated and locally controlled media sources, putting at risk local emergency alerting and access to free, trusted, local journalism.
Q: How does U.S. public media funding compare to other democratic countries, and what lessons can we learn?
A: The U.S. invests significantly less in public media compared to other democracies. Countries with higher public media funding often see greater societal cohesion, informed citizenry, and cultural preservation.
Q: Which programs or services would be most affected if public media loses government funding?
A: A cut to federal funding is a serious threat to the existence of local public radio stations, which puts all of our programming and services at risk. It would be especially problematic for our rural stations and local emergency content. These are the areas that commercial media often do not attempt to serve, and likely wouldn’t, due to their for-profit model.
Q: How does public media ensure its content remains unbiased and free from government influence?
A: Public media adheres to strict editorial standards and governance structures to ensure independence and fairness and is not swayed by either governmental or commercial pressures. We commit to meeting these standards every day and are constantly looking for any way to improve our ability to do so.
For Concerned Citizens:
- Share with friends and family why WUSF, WSMR, and public media matter to you and your community
- Amplify public media success stories on social media
For Current Supporters:
- Your continued membership is vital—thank you for making our work possible
- Consider increasing your support during this critical time
- Become an ambassador by encouraging others to join you in supporting public media
For Philanthropists and Major Donors:
- Your leadership giving can help bridge potential funding gaps
- Strategic investments in WUSF's journalism, Classical WSMR, education initiatives, and emergency information systems create lasting community impact
- Partner with us to strengthen the infrastructure that keeps our communities informed, engaged, and safe
RESOURCES
The White House is starting the process to eliminate funding for public media
President Trump plans order to cut funding for NPR and PBS
NPR Statement: NPR’s public statement on the 5/1 Executive Order is now available on NPR.org.
Media Inquiries: Please direct any media inquiries about NPR and the Executive Order, and/or related items, to NPR’s Media Relations team.