Why It Was So Important That the Emmys Honored the Corporation for Public Broadcasting This Year

My first reporting job out of college was for the TV industry trade publication Electronic Media, which sent me to Washington, D.C., to cover the Federal Communications Commission, Congress and public media. It was a heady time handling that beat, right after the passage of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, which deregulated media ownership and set the stage for the outsize growth of today’s media behemoths.

During that short stint in D.C., I learned a lot about the value of public media — and predicted even back then that hometown pubcasters would become more important to the communities they served as consolidation took local commercial TV and radio stations and made them part of large, faceless national chains.

On that job, I learned about the intricate inner workings of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which helped fund the operations of local public TV and radio stations — which in turn paid dues to PBS and NPR (among other program suppliers) for the right to carry their shows. CPB also played a vital role in providing funding for documentaries, science and nature fare, children’s shows and other programs.

“Sesame Street,” “Mister Roger’s Neighborhood,” “Nova,” “Frontline” — the list goes on of critical programming that probably wouldn’t exist without the help of CPB.

But from the beginning, public broadcasting was in the crosshairs of right-wing politicians who chafed at the idea of the government supporting socially relevant and often educational fare. They criticized it as “liberal” or “left-leaning,” as if stories that displayed empathy, exposed injustice or just taught kids how to read were partisan. Famously in 1969, as the Nixon administration tried to zero out government support of public broadcasting, “Mister” Fred Rogers saved the day and secured funding simply by demonstrating the power of the medium. “I feel that if we in public television can only make it clear that feelings are mentionable and manageable, we will have done a great service for mental health,” he said, giving just one example of what he was trying to do with his show on PBS.

Not all conservatives were foes of public broadcasting. There was a grand tradition of bipartisan support for government funding, and plenty of Republicans were just as protective of their local PBS stations as Democrats were. Pols of all stripes knew how popular PBS and NPR were, and ultimately didn’t want to face the wrath of angry constituents wondering where Big Bird went. And in many of the rural areas that were frequently represented by congressional Republicans, the public radio and TV stations were lifelines — often the only broadcasters able to share important emergency information.

Until recently, it felt like there was enough support to protect public broadcasting from these ongoing political threats. But these are different times, and the cult of personality around President Trump has taken away any backbone that the Republican supporters of public media once had. The Republican Congress in July approved Trump’s rescission package, eliminating $1.1 billion in crucial funding for public broadcasting that had been approved for the next two years. Without that money, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is set to shut down. And the fate of hundreds of TV and radio stations is up in the air.

It’s heartbreaking, and I’m glad the Television Academy is highlighting the tragic situation by honoring CPB with its Governors Award. The Academy presented the special Emmy to CPB president and CEO Patricia de Stacy Harrison (a Republican, by the way!), who has led the organization since 2005, this past weekend.

So far, attempts to restore CPB’s funding have been unsuccessful, and I’m not sure it will ever happen under this administration. A diminished public broadcasting service is right in line with what the Trump administration is trying to do when it whitewashes history in museums, supports the banning of books, sues media companies into silence and other despicable moves. Despots prefer to keep their constituents in the dark, and defunding PBS/NPR is one way to eliminate vital sources of information and the truth. I’m hoping we’ll eventually see a revived CPB helping fund the stories we all need to hear, and I’m heartened to see the TV Academy agrees.

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I asked Harrison to give us an update on where things stand with the CPB, via a few questions over email. Here were her responses:

What happens next to the organization? How will public broadcasters be funded without the CPB?

Without federal funding CPB must wind down our operations. Without CPB, the public media system faces a profound challenge. The public media funding model was designed as a three-legged stool, with federal funding distributed by CPB, leveraged many times over by state and other grants, and viewer and listener contributions. Public media stations are going to have to rely on more contributions, from both the public and from foundations and corporate underwriting.

In recent months, we have seen an outpouring of support for public media. It’s a testament to what the American people feel about public media. But it won’t be enough. Many local stations
– especially in rural and underserved areas – depend on CPB funding to stay on the air. The loss of federal support will likely mean fewer educational resources for children, less local news coverage, and diminished access to emergency alerts and community services. And it’s not just about programming; it’s about infrastructure and public trust.

Is there a way the CPB could still exist without Congressional funding?

CPB was created by Congress to be the steward of federal funding for public broadcasting, ensuring that taxpayer dollars are invested wisely to strengthen public media’s service to all Americans. Without the congressional appropriation, CPB cannot fulfill the mission Congress assigned to us. We are already seeing the impact of rescinded funds: layoffs at local stations, cuts to programming, and communities left scrambling to fill the gap in less than three months.

What are your plans to keep the CPB alive, or work to restore funding?

Our first responsibility is to honor our commitments and wind down in a way that minimizes harm from the rescission. To do that, we need time and resources—because cutting off public media in just three months, after nearly 60 years of federal support, is a recipe for disaster, particularly for rural and high-risk stations.

Throughout this transition, CPB’s Board and management remain committed to our stewardship mission. We continue to work with Congress on ways to mitigate the damage and to support the stations and communities most at risk.

What do you think are the misunderstandings people might have about the CPB?

In the sea of alphabet soup that we use for public media – PBS, CPB, NPR, APTS, plus the station call letters – there is great confusion.

CPB is unique. We are the public portion of public media’s public-private partnership and are totally funded through the federal appropriation. We do not produce or distribute content. Instead, Congress created CPB to distribute federal dollars, keep public media strong, accountable, and free from political influence. With congressional funding, we support both radio and television stations, directing over 70 percent of our appropriation straight to local stations. We also fund independent filmmakers so audiences have access to different stories that may be seen or heard elsewhere. CPB’s support extends to every corner of the country—urban, rural, tribal, and everywhere in between. In many communities, public media stations are the only free source of trusted news, educational children’s programming, and local and national cultural content.

What are some of the things you’re most proud of implementing during your multi-decade run overseeing the CPB?

I’m proud of many things, but especially CPB’s commitment to help stations move from outreach to the communities they serve to full partnerships between local stations responding to local needs.
And I’m proud of American Graduate, a CPB public media initiative launched in 2011 to help solve the nation’s high school dropout crisis and keep our youth on the path to a high school diploma. CPB, working with public media stations in high dropout communities, contributed to the rising graduation rate from 2011 to 2020, as stations developed more than 700 public and private sector partnerships. The initiative evolved into American Graduate: Jobs Explained, which uses social media videos to help young people prepare for high-demand jobs and careers.

CPB also responded swiftly to the rise of news deserts by creating and funding local and regional public media journalism collaborations. Within news and information, I’m especially proud of CPB’s efforts to support newsgatherers and producers in delivering the highest standards of fact-based reporting. From editorial and ethics seminars for editors and journalists and support for local newsrooms to national initiatives like the Frontline Transparency Project, CPB funding has helped ensure that journalists have the tools, resources, and best-practices they need to provide fair, accurate, balanced, objective and transparent journalism that serves the American public.

What does it mean to you for the CPB to be recognized by the Emmys? How important is it to remind people of the CPB’s work?

It was an extraordinary honor for CPB to receive the Television Academy’s Governors Award. This recognition affirmed the enduring value of public media and the role CPB has played in supporting groundbreaking documentary filmmaking, iconic educational programming, and local journalism and cultural programming that reflect the American experience.

It is a moment to remind audiences that CPB isn’t a producer or distributor—it is the steward of the federal investment in public broadcasting. For 58 years, CPB provided stations with resources to innovate digitally, and connect with new audiences. We also supported filmmakers and content creators, who work with scientists, doctors, educators, historians, journalists, and researchers to provide Americans with the highest standard of programming that educates, informs, and inspires. And we safeguarded editorial independence, ensuring public media remains free of political influence while staying accurate, fair, and balanced.

At a time of growing information gaps, this award underscores the essential role public media plays in providing fact-based content that helps neighbors and communities stay informed and connected to one another.