Trump signs executive order directing federal funding cuts to PBS, NPR

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President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order aiming to slash public subsidies to PBS and NPR as he alleged “bias” in the broadcasters’ reporting.

The order instructs the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and other federal agencies “to cease Federal funding for NPR and PBS” and further requires that that they work to root out indirect sources of public financing for the news organizations. The White House, in a social media posting announcing the signing, said the outlets “receive millions from taxpayers to spread radical, woke propaganda disguised as ‘news.'”

It’s the latest move by Trump and his administration to utilize federal powers to control or hamstring institutions whose actions or viewpoints he disagrees with.

Since taking office, Trump has ousted leaders, placed staff on administrative leave and cut off hundreds of millions of dollars in funding to artists, libraries, museums, theaters and others, through takeovers of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Trump has also pushed to withhold federal research and education funds from universities and punish law firms unless they agreed to eliminate diversity programs and other measures Trump has found objectionable.

The broadcasters get roughly half a billion dollars in public money through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and have been preparing for the possibility of stiff cuts since Trump’s election, as Republicans have long complained about them.

Paula Kerger, PBS’ CEO and president, said in a statement last month that the Trump administration’s effort to rescind funding for public media would “disrupt the essential service PBS and local member stations provide to the American people.”

“There’s nothing more American than PBS, and our work is only possible because of the bipartisan support we have always received from Congress,” Kerger said. “This public-private partnership allows us to help prepare millions of children for success in school and in life and also supports enriching and inspiring programs of the highest quality.”

In Indiana, the Legislature last week passed a $46 billion budget that eliminated appropriations for Indiana Public Broadcasting.

In its quest to cut $2 billion from the next biennial budget, lawmakers introduced a slew of last-minute spending cuts—including $7.35 million earmarked for public broadcasting. The nonprofit distributes those state appropriations to 17 radio and television stations that are affiliates of PBS and NPR.

While the state-level cuts were expected to have varying effects—those dollars represent upwards of 30% of some smaller stations’ budgets, but less for larger stations—the federal cuts add another layer of complication.

At Indianapolis-based WFYI Public Media, which includes television and radio operations and ranks as the largest public station in Indiana, state support in the fiscal year that ends June 30 is nearly 5% of the station’s annual operating budget. Federal funding, though, represents 11%.

And the cuts are expected hit harder at rural stations. Across the country, CPB grants represent about 17% of an average rural station’s revenue. For almost half of those stations, CPB grants make up at least a quarter of their revenue.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting sued Trump earlier this week over his move to fire three members of its five-person board, contending that the president was exceeding his authority and that the move would deprive the board of a quorum needed to conduct business.

Just two weeks ago, the White House said it would be asking Congress to rescind funding for the CPB as part of a $9.1 billion package of cuts. That package, however, which budget director Russell Vought said would likely be the first of several, has not yet been sent to Capitol Hill.

The move against PBS and NPR comes as his administration has been working to dismantle the U.S. Agency for Global Media, including Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, which were designed to model independent news gathering globally in societies that restrict the press. Those efforts have faced pushback from federal courts, who have ruled in some cases that the Trump administration may have overstepped its authority in holding back funds appropriated to the outlets by Congress.