After loss of federal funding for local public radio and television stations, MacArthur and five peer foundations are supporting public media with emergency funding.
MacArthur Foundation along with Ford Foundation, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Pivotal, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the Schmidt Family Foundation today announced that they will commit nearly $37 million to provide immediate relief to public media stations at risk of closure following federal funding cuts to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB).
The recent rescission of $1.1 billion in federal funding for CPB will have dire impacts on the United States’ more than 1,500 locally owned public radio and television stations. Some 115 stations—serving 43 million people—are losing more than 30 percent of their budgets, according to the most recent data available. This places them at risk of drastically reducing service or even closing after October 2025 without emergency funding. Rural, Indigenous, and underserved communities are most vulnerable to losing their local stations and with them, access to reliable local news and educational services.
The commitment of $36.5 million includes $26.5 million in support for the Public Media Bridge Fund, a philanthropic effort managed by Public Media Company and developed with seed funding from the Schmidt Family Foundation. The fund aims to secure local public media service across the country and will provide immediate stabilization grants and low-interest loans to the most vulnerable stations—particularly those in communities where public media is the sole source of local information—and offer advisory services to help them reimagine operations and achieve long-term financial sustainability. Funders can learn more about participating in the Public Media Bridge Fund with Public Media Company.
In addition to supporting the fund, MacArthur is committing $10 million in direct support to public media stations, programs, and organizations.
“Millions of people rely on public media for trusted local news, educational programming, and stories that reflect their lives and experiences,” said John Palfrey, President of MacArthur Foundation. “Stations serving rural, small to mid-market, and Native communities as well as documentary ecosystems are disproportionately impacted by the funding cuts and need intentional support. These stations are more than just broadcasters—they are critical sources of information and connection.”
“These stations are more than just broadcasters—they are critical sources of information and connection.”
“Local public media stations are trusted community anchors that connect people to vital news, culture and civic life,” said Maribel Pérez Wadsworth, President and CEO of Knight Foundation. “This is an urgent moment that calls for bold action. We are proud to stand with our fellow foundations and urge others to join us in securing the future of public media.”
Today’s announcement demonstrates the philanthropic sector’s commitment to public media as a durable pillar of civic life. This initiative creates a vital emergency revenue stream, providing public media networks with the stability and time needed to diversify funding sources and develop sustainable business models that will help secure their long-term future.
Today’s announcement demonstrates the philanthropic sector’s commitment to public media as a durable pillar of civic life.
Many of the at-risk stations have already eliminated entire teams or canceled critical programming in anticipation of revenue losses. If the stations close or scale back, millions of Americans will lose access to free, reliable local news, educational content, cultural programming, and emergency alerts. Critical reporting networks at the local, state, and regional level will be severely disrupted.
Darren Walker, President of the Ford Foundation, said, “For more than half a century, the Ford Foundation has been proud to support public media and ensure everyone has access to free, quality news and regional programming, whether they live in rural America, the suburbs, or big cities. We are proud to join this emergency funding effort to get additional resources to public media at this time of great need. We all must continue to support public media and develop new and innovative strategies and funding mechanisms for the long-term sustainability of this critical resource.”
With this announcement, the foundations are issuing a nationwide call to philanthropy to join them in fortifying public media at this critical juncture. Their aim is to ensure that every community has continued access to trusted, independent, local journalism.
