PBS To Cut Budget By 21% Following Loss Of Federal Funding

PBS plans to cut its budget by 21% as public media faces the loss of $1.1 billion in federal funding over the next two fiscal years.

Paula Kerger , president and CEO of PBS, informed station general managers on Wednesday of the planned cuts. The overall pool of station dues will be reduced by $35 million, she said. Local outlets are grappling with their own budget holes given the loss of federal support.

As Congress considered legislation to rescind the $1.1 billion in funding already allocated to stations, NPR and PBS, Kerger warned of severe cuts.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, set up by Congress in the 1960s to distribute federal funding grants, announced that it would be shutting down by the end of the year. The New York Times first reported on the PBS cuts.

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