“Today’s news will make it that much harder to serve these audiences,” said Greg Petrowich, WFYI’s president and CEO.
INDIANAPOLIS — Local public broadcasting stations are responding to plans to shut down the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
The group that funds NPR and PBS stations across the country announced plans to close after Congress slashed more than a billion dollars in funding.
Greg Petrowich, WFYI’s president and CEO, sent 13News a statement saying, in part, “The American People have benefited immensely from their work and commitment to funding public media stations, including 17 right here in Indiana.”
It went on to say, “Today’s news will make it that much harder to serve these audiences.”
CPB said it will help local stations plan for smaller budgets.
“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,” said Patricia Harrison, CPB’s president and CEO.
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CPB said it informed employees Friday that most staff positions will end with the fiscal year on Sept. 30. It said a small transition team will stay in place until January to finish any remaining work — including, it said, “ensuring continuity for music rights and royalties that remain essential to the public media system.”
“Public media has been one of the most trusted institutions in American life, providing educational opportunity, emergency alerts, civil discourse, and cultural connection to every corner of the country,” Harrison said. “We are deeply grateful to our partners across the system for their resilience, leadership, and unwavering dedication to serving the American people.”
It’s not clear how many people in total will be laid off.