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Searching for pennies: With the cut in federal funding public broadcasters are looking to cope
Searching for pennies: With the cut in federal funding public broadcasters are looking to cope

The Independent

time4 days ago

  • Politics
  • The Independent

Searching for pennies: With the cut in federal funding public broadcasters are looking to cope

Lauren Adams, general manager for KUCB public radio in Unalaska, Alaska, didn't have much time to reflect on Congress, 4,000 miles away, stripping federal funding for public media this week. She's been too busy working. Sirens blared in the Aleutian Islands community Wednesday warning of a potential tsunami, with a voice over public loudspeakers urging the community's 4,100 residents to seek higher ground immediately and tune into the radio — to Adams' station. At the same time in Washington, the Senate was voting on a measure that would eliminate nearly $1.1 billion that had already been appropriated for NPR and PBS — a process that didn't end until early Thursday morning. The House is expected to complete the process in time for President Donald Trump to sign it before a Friday deadline. Trump had called for the cuts, saying public media's news programming was biased against him and fellow Republicans, and threatened GOP members of Congress with primary challenges if they didn't fall in line. Adams, her news director, a reporter and an intern kept broadcasting and updating KUCB's social media feed until the danger passed. Then she made time for one more task — texting U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski and urging her to vote against the bill. Murkowski was one of two Republican senators, along with Susan Collins of Maine, to publicly dissent. 'I thought that it was such a telling story of why her constituents have a different relationship to public radio than maybe some other regions of the United States,' Adams said. Hard decisions ahead for stations across the country The federal money is appropriated to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which distributes it to NPR and PBS. Roughly 70% of the money goes directly to the 330 PBS and 246 NPR stations across the country, although that's only a shorthand way to describe its potential impact. The cuts are expected to weigh most heavily on smaller public media outlets away from big cities, and it's likely some won't survive. Katherine Maher, NPR's president and CEO, estimated as many as 80 NPR stations may face closure in the next year. Some stations are already fielding offers from commercial entities to buy their broadcast licenses, she said. 'Many of our stations which provide access to free unique local programming and emergency alerts will now be forced to make hard decisions in the weeks and months ahead,' said Paula Kerger, PBS president and CEO. 'There is nothing more American than PBS. Despite today's setback, we are determined to keep fighting to preserve the essential services we provide to the American public.' The measure will cost PBS and NPR stations in Mississippi roughly $2 million, about 15% of the budget, said Royal Aills, executive director of Mississippi Public Broadcasting. Already, Mississippi Public Broadcasting has decided to eliminate a streaming channel that airs children's programming like 'Caillou' and 'Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood' to the state's youngsters 24 hours a day, said Taiwo Gaynor, the system's chief content officer. 'This is important for families, to have access to content that they don't have to pay for,' Gaynor said. 'That is a sad thought, to think that we ... might not be able to provide that for a generation of children.' Maine's public media system is looking at a hit of $2.5 million, or about 12% of its budget, for the next fiscal year, said Rick Schneider, president and chief executive officer of Maine Public. He said he's not ready to identify specific cuts, but the system is preparing to reinvent itself to make certain it continues serving the state's residents. Maine's rural residents rely heavily on public media for weather updates and disaster alerts, said Molly Curren Rowles, executive director of ACLU of Maine. Rowles said public media was a 'lifeline' to her growing up off the grid. Bracing for trouble at stations that take pride in music discovery NPR's Maher fears what the cuts might mean for the system's journalism, not just in rural areas where local news can be hard to come by, but in telling the rest of the country what is going on there. Less funding will also mean less support for popular television and radio programming, although it's too soon to tell which programs will be affected. NPR stations also use millions of dollars in federal money to pay music licensing fees. Now many will have to renegotiate these deals, which could mean less music, or a more limited variety of music, on outlets where music discovery is a big part of their identity. For example, Maher estimates that some 96% of all classical music broadcast in the United States is on NPR stations. 'That is essentially taking an entire art form out of public access,' she said. The affair transcends violins and piccolos. NPR received support Thursday from the heavy metal band Gwar, whose lead singer Blothar the Berserker posted a call on social media for fans to pay attention to what is going on with public media. Already, public media is seeing an increase in donations from reader and viewers to support its mission, and stations are actively sounding the alarm. In a plea to listeners on its website Thursday, Philadelphia's WXPN radio pointed to its legacy in helping people discover new music. 'The most important thing you can do is support WXPN and the public media system in a way that is meaningful to you,' the station urged on its website. But donations aren't going to fill the hole left by the loss in federal funding, Maher said. The public media leaders have already turned to lobbying Congress to restore some of the funding through the appropriations process for next year's budget. They don't know how much time they have; Maher said it would be inordinately costly, and perhaps prohibitive, to reopen a radio station that is forced to close. Public media isn't getting any help from states, either. At least five states have reduced their own outlays for public media this year, either for budget or political reasons. Gov. Ron DeSantis, for example, vetoed nearly $6 million that Florida lawmakers had set aside for public broadcasters the day before the state's budget took effect on July 1. 'Done in Florida,' DeSantis responded on social media to a Trump post calling public broadcasting a 'monstrosity' that should be defunded. Meanwhile, back in Alaska ... Back in Alaska, KMXT public radio station's general manager, Jared Griffin, called the Senate vote a 'devastating gut punch.' He estimated that the cuts would amount to 22% of KMXT's budget. Griffin said the station's board has already agreed on a plan to furlough staff members one day a month, and he's taking a 50% pay cut. The station covers Kodiak Island, home to one of the nation's largest U.S. Coast Guard bases. 'We have to dip into our savings while we figure out what KMXT is going to look like over the next six months, Griffin said. 'At least for the next year we'll be fine but we're probably going to have to look at leasing space in our building to other organizations to help fill that gap.' Unalaska resident Nikki Whittern said KUCB plays a vital role in the community during emergencies like the tsunami warning. 'They broadcast everything, and they make sure that everybody knows and everybody's safe,' said Whittern, a bartender. She spoke while preparing to open the Norwegian Rat Saloon — known to local fishermen simply as 'the Rat' — on Thursday morning. ___ Bauder reported from New York. AP correspondents Sophie Bates in Jackson, Mississippi; Kate Payne in Tallahassee, Florida; Jonathan Poet in Philadelphia; Isabella Volmert in Lansing, Michigan; and Patrick Whittle in Portland, Maine, contributed to this report.

Searching for pennies: With the cut in federal funding public broadcasters are looking to cope
Searching for pennies: With the cut in federal funding public broadcasters are looking to cope

Washington Post

time4 days ago

  • Politics
  • Washington Post

Searching for pennies: With the cut in federal funding public broadcasters are looking to cope

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Lauren Adams, general manager for KUCB public radio in Unalaska, Alaska, didn't have much time to reflect on Congress, 4,000 miles away, stripping federal funding for public media this week. She's been too busy working. Sirens blared in the Aleutian Islands community Wednesday warning of a potential tsunami , with a voice over public loudspeakers urging the community's 4,100 residents to seek higher ground immediately and tune into the radio — to Adams' station. At the same time in Washington, the Senate was voting on a measure that would eliminate nearly $1.1 billion that had already been appropriated for NPR and PBS — a process that didn't end until early Thursday morning. The House is expected to complete the process in time for President Donald Trump to sign it before a Friday deadline. Trump had called for the cuts, saying public media's news programming was biased against him and fellow Republicans, and threatened GOP members of Congress with primary challenges if they didn't fall in line. Adams, her news director, a reporter and an intern kept broadcasting and updating KUCB's social media feed until the danger passed. Then she made time for one more task — texting U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski and urging her to vote against the bill. Murkowski was one of two Republican senators, along with Susan Collins of Maine, to publicly dissent. 'I thought that it was such a telling story of why her constituents have a different relationship to public radio than maybe some other regions of the United States,' Adams said. The federal money is appropriated to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which distributes it to NPR and PBS. Roughly 70% of the money goes directly to the 330 PBS and 246 NPR stations across the country, although that's only a shorthand way to describe its potential impact. The cuts are expected to weigh most heavily on smaller public media outlets away from big cities, and it's likely some won't survive. Katherine Maher, NPR's president and CEO, estimated as many as 80 NPR stations may face closure in the next year. Some stations are already fielding offers from commercial entities to buy their broadcast licenses, she said. 'Many of our stations which provide access to free unique local programming and emergency alerts will now be forced to make hard decisions in the weeks and months ahead,' said Paula Kerger, PBS president and CEO. 'There is nothing more American than PBS. Despite today's setback, we are determined to keep fighting to preserve the essential services we provide to the American public.' The measure will cost PBS and NPR stations in Mississippi roughly $2 million, about 15% of the budget, said Royal Aills, executive director of Mississippi Public Broadcasting. Already, Mississippi Public Broadcasting has decided to eliminate a streaming channel that airs children's programming like 'Caillou' and 'Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood' to the state's youngsters 24 hours a day, said Taiwo Gaynor, the system's chief content officer. 'This is important for families, to have access to content that they don't have to pay for,' Gaynor said. 'That is a sad thought, to think that we ... might not be able to provide that for a generation of children.' Maine's public media system is looking at a hit of $2.5 million, or about 12% of its budget, for the next fiscal year, said Rick Schneider, president and chief executive officer of Maine Public. He said he's not ready to identify specific cuts, but the system is preparing to reinvent itself to make certain it continues serving the state's residents. Maine's rural residents rely heavily on public media for weather updates and disaster alerts, said Molly Curren Rowles, executive director of ACLU of Maine. Rowles said public media was a 'lifeline' to her growing up off the grid. NPR's Maher fears what the cuts might mean for the system's journalism, not just in rural areas where local news can be hard to come by, but in telling the rest of the country what is going on there. Less funding will also mean less support for popular television and radio programming, although it's too soon to tell which programs will be affected. NPR stations also use millions of dollars in federal money to pay music licensing fees. Now many will have to renegotiate these deals , which could mean less music, or a more limited variety of music, on outlets where music discovery is a big part of their identity. For example, Maher estimates that some 96% of all classical music broadcast in the United States is on NPR stations. 'That is essentially taking an entire art form out of public access,' she said. The affair transcends violins and piccolos. NPR received support Thursday from the heavy metal band Gwar, whose lead singer Blothar the Berserker posted a call on social media for fans to pay attention to what is going on with public media. Already, public media is seeing an increase in donations from reader and viewers to support its mission, and stations are actively sounding the alarm. In a plea to listeners on its website Thursday, Philadelphia's WXPN radio pointed to its legacy in helping people discover new music. 'The most important thing you can do is support WXPN and the public media system in a way that is meaningful to you,' the station urged on its website. But donations aren't going to fill the hole left by the loss in federal funding, Maher said. The public media leaders have already turned to lobbying Congress to restore some of the funding through the appropriations process for next year's budget. They don't know how much time they have; Maher said it would be inordinately costly, and perhaps prohibitive, to reopen a radio station that is forced to close. Public media isn't getting any help from states, either. At least five states have reduced their own outlays for public media this year, either for budget or political reasons. Gov. Ron DeSantis, for example, vetoed nearly $6 million that Florida lawmakers had set aside for public broadcasters the day before the state's budget took effect on July 1. 'Done in Florida,' DeSantis responded on social media to a Trump post calling public broadcasting a 'monstrosity' that should be defunded. Back in Alaska, KMXT public radio station's general manager, Jared Griffin, called the Senate vote a 'devastating gut punch.' He estimated that the cuts would amount to 22% of KMXT's budget. Griffin said the station's board has already agreed on a plan to furlough staff members one day a month, and he's taking a 50% pay cut. The station covers Kodiak Island, home to one of the nation's largest U.S. Coast Guard bases. 'We have to dip into our savings while we figure out what KMXT is going to look like over the next six months, Griffin said. 'At least for the next year we'll be fine but we're probably going to have to look at leasing space in our building to other organizations to help fill that gap.' Unalaska resident Nikki Whittern said KUCB plays a vital role in the community during emergencies like the tsunami warning. 'They broadcast everything, and they make sure that everybody knows and everybody's safe,' said Whittern, a bartender. She spoke while preparing to open the Norwegian Rat Saloon — known to local fishermen simply as 'the Rat' — on Thursday morning. ___ Bauder reported from New York. AP correspondents Sophie Bates in Jackson, Mississippi; Kate Payne in Tallahassee, Florida; Jonathan Poet in Philadelphia; Isabella Volmert in Lansing, Michigan; and Patrick Whittle in Portland, Maine, contributed to this report.

Searching for pennies: With the cut in federal funding public broadcasters are looking to cope
Searching for pennies: With the cut in federal funding public broadcasters are looking to cope

Associated Press

time4 days ago

  • Politics
  • Associated Press

Searching for pennies: With the cut in federal funding public broadcasters are looking to cope

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Lauren Adams, general manager for KUCB public radio in Unalaska, Alaska, didn't have much time to reflect on Congress, 4,000 miles away, stripping federal funding for public media this week. She's been too busy working. Sirens blared in the Aleutian Islands community Wednesday warning of a potential tsunami, with a voice over public loudspeakers urging the community's 4,100 residents to seek higher ground immediately and tune into the radio — to Adams' station. At the same time in Washington, the Senate was voting on a measure that would eliminate nearly $1.1 billion that had already been appropriated for NPR and PBS — a process that didn't end until early Thursday morning. The House is expected to complete the process in time for President Donald Trump to sign it before a Friday deadline. Trump had called for the cuts, saying public media's news programming was biased against him and fellow Republicans, and threatened GOP members of Congress with primary challenges if they didn't fall in line. Adams, her news director, a reporter and an intern kept broadcasting and updating KUCB's social media feed until the danger passed. Then she made time for one more task — texting U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski and urging her to vote against the bill. Murkowski was one of two Republican senators, along with Susan Collins of Maine, to publicly dissent. 'I thought that it was such a telling story of why her constituents have a different relationship to public radio than maybe some other regions of the United States,' Adams said. Hard decisions ahead for stations across the country The federal money is appropriated to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which distributes it to NPR and PBS. Roughly 70% of the money goes directly to the 330 PBS and 246 NPR stations across the country, although that's only a shorthand way to describe its potential impact. The cuts are expected to weigh most heavily on smaller public media outlets away from big cities, and it's likely some won't survive. Katherine Maher, NPR's president and CEO, estimated as many as 80 NPR stations may face closure in the next year. Some stations are already fielding offers from commercial entities to buy their broadcast licenses, she said. 'Many of our stations which provide access to free unique local programming and emergency alerts will now be forced to make hard decisions in the weeks and months ahead,' said Paula Kerger, PBS president and CEO. 'There is nothing more American than PBS. Despite today's setback, we are determined to keep fighting to preserve the essential services we provide to the American public.' The measure will cost PBS and NPR stations in Mississippi roughly $2 million, about 15% of the budget, said Royal Aills, executive director of Mississippi Public Broadcasting. Already, Mississippi Public Broadcasting has decided to eliminate a streaming channel that airs children's programming like 'Caillou' and 'Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood' to the state's youngsters 24 hours a day, said Taiwo Gaynor, the system's chief content officer. 'This is important for families, to have access to content that they don't have to pay for,' Gaynor said. 'That is a sad thought, to think that we ... might not be able to provide that for a generation of children.' Maine's public media system is looking at a hit of $2.5 million, or about 12% of its budget, for the next fiscal year, said Rick Schneider, president and chief executive officer of Maine Public. He said he's not ready to identify specific cuts, but the system is preparing to reinvent itself to make certain it continues serving the state's residents. Maine's rural residents rely heavily on public media for weather updates and disaster alerts, said Molly Curren Rowles, executive director of ACLU of Maine. Rowles said public media was a 'lifeline' to her growing up off the grid. Bracing for trouble at stations that take pride in music discovery NPR's Maher fears what the cuts might mean for the system's journalism, not just in rural areas where local news can be hard to come by, but in telling the rest of the country what is going on there. Less funding will also mean less support for popular television and radio programming, although it's too soon to tell which programs will be affected. NPR stations also use millions of dollars in federal money to pay music licensing fees. Now many will have to renegotiate these deals, which could mean less music, or a more limited variety of music, on outlets where music discovery is a big part of their identity. For example, Maher estimates that some 96% of all classical music broadcast in the United States is on NPR stations. 'That is essentially taking an entire art form out of public access,' she said. The affair transcends violins and piccolos. NPR received support Thursday from the heavy metal band Gwar, whose lead singer Blothar the Berserker posted a call on social media for fans to pay attention to what is going on with public media. Already, public media is seeing an increase in donations from reader and viewers to support its mission, and stations are actively sounding the alarm. In a plea to listeners on its website Thursday, Philadelphia's WXPN radio pointed to its legacy in helping people discover new music. 'The most important thing you can do is support WXPN and the public media system in a way that is meaningful to you,' the station urged on its website. But donations aren't going to fill the hole left by the loss in federal funding, Maher said. The public media leaders have already turned to lobbying Congress to restore some of the funding through the appropriations process for next year's budget. They don't know how much time they have; Maher said it would be inordinately costly, and perhaps prohibitive, to reopen a radio station that is forced to close. Public media isn't getting any help from states, either. At least five states have reduced their own outlays for public media this year, either for budget or political reasons. Gov. Ron DeSantis, for example, vetoed nearly $6 million that Florida lawmakers had set aside for public broadcasters the day before the state's budget took effect on July 1. 'Done in Florida,' DeSantis responded on social media to a Trump post calling public broadcasting a 'monstrosity' that should be defunded. Meanwhile, back in Alaska ... Back in Alaska, KMXT public radio station's general manager, Jared Griffin, called the Senate vote a 'devastating gut punch.' He estimated that the cuts would amount to 22% of KMXT's budget. Griffin said the station's board has already agreed on a plan to furlough staff members one day a month, and he's taking a 50% pay cut. The station covers Kodiak Island, home to one of the nation's largest U.S. Coast Guard bases. 'We have to dip into our savings while we figure out what KMXT is going to look like over the next six months, Griffin said. 'At least for the next year we'll be fine but we're probably going to have to look at leasing space in our building to other organizations to help fill that gap.' Unalaska resident Nikki Whittern said KUCB plays a vital role in the community during emergencies like the tsunami warning. 'They broadcast everything, and they make sure that everybody knows and everybody's safe,' said Whittern, a bartender. She spoke while preparing to open the Norwegian Rat Saloon — known to local fishermen simply as 'the Rat' — on Thursday morning. ___ Bauder reported from New York. AP correspondents Sophie Bates in Jackson, Mississippi; Kate Payne in Tallahassee, Florida; Jonathan Poet in Philadelphia; Isabella Volmert in Lansing, Michigan; and Patrick Whittle in Portland, Maine, contributed to this report.

Tsunami warning downgraded to advisory after 7.3 earthquake rocks Alaska coast
Tsunami warning downgraded to advisory after 7.3 earthquake rocks Alaska coast

Yahoo

time4 days ago

  • Climate
  • Yahoo

Tsunami warning downgraded to advisory after 7.3 earthquake rocks Alaska coast

The Brief The tsunami warning was downgraded to an advisory after a 7.3 earthquake in Alaska. The warning covered a 700-mile area including Kodiak. King Cove officials urged residents to seek higher ground as a precaution. ANCHORAGE, Alaska - The National Weather Service has downgraded a tsunami warning to an advisory along parts of Alaska's sparsely populated southern coast after a 7.3 magnitude earthquake on Wednesday. The backstory The earthquake struck at 12:37 p.m. local time south of Sand Point, a community of about 600 people on Popof Island, in the Aleutian chain, according to the Alaska Earthquake Center. The first waves were projected to land there, but the state's emergency management division said an hour after the quake that it had received no reports of damage. The quake was felt as far away as Anchorage, almost 600 miles (966 km) to the northeast. The National Tsunami Warning Center issued a warning for an area stretching from about 40 miles (64.4 km) southwest of Homer to Unimak Pass, a distance of about 700 miles (1,126 kilometers). Among the larger communities in the area is Kodiak, with a population of about 5,200. The warning was downgraded to an advisory about an hour later, and canceled just before 2:45 p.m. In Unalaska, a fishing community of about 4,100, officials urged people in possible inundation zones to move at least 50 feet above sea level or 1 mile (1.6 km) inland. In King Cove, which has about 870 residents on the south side of the Alaska Peninsula, officials sent an alert calling on those in the coastal area to move to higher ground. The National Weather Service said in posts on social media that there was no tsunami threat for other U.S. and Canadian Pacific coasts in North America, including Washington, Oregon and California. What they're saying ."We have seen other earthquakes in the area that have not generated significant tsunami waves, but we're treating it seriously and going through our procedures, making sure communities are notified so they can activate their evacuation procedures," division spokesperson Jeremy Zidek said. There was some damage — in the form of broken bottles — at the Alaska Commercial general store in town. Manager Vickey McDonald said about half of the store's alcohol aisle had crashed and shattered. "I've got liquid smoke and barbecue sauce and pickles ... broken on the floor," McDonald said. "It smells horrendous in here." Dig deeper Alaska's southern coast is earthquake-prone, and Wednesday's was the fifth in roughly the same area since 2020 exceeding magnitude 7, state seismologist Michael West said. "Something's moving in this area," he said. "I would not call this an isolated earthquake. It appears to be part of a larger sequence spanning the last several years." That has the attention of seismologists, he said. "This area has been and remains capable of larger earthquakes and earthquakes capable of significant tsunami damage," he said. The Source The Associated Press contributed to this report. The information in this story comes from the U.S. Tsunami Warning Center, which issued the alert following the 7.3 magnitude earthquake. This story was reported from Los Angeles.

7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Shakes Alaska's Aleutian Islands; Tsunami Warning Expired
7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Shakes Alaska's Aleutian Islands; Tsunami Warning Expired

Yahoo

time4 days ago

  • Climate
  • Yahoo

7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Shakes Alaska's Aleutian Islands; Tsunami Warning Expired

A magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck Wednesday afternoon just south of the northern Aleutian Islands in Alaska. The epicenter was roughly 600 miles southwest of Anchorage, Alaska. A tsunami warning was in effect for less than an hour, but has since expired with little signs of damage. A small 0.2-foot tsunami was recorded at Sand Point, Alaska, but no other observations of a tsunami were made. The first waves were projected to land near Popof Island in the Aleutian chain, but the state's emergency management division said an hour after the quake that it had received no reports of damage. 'We have seen other earthquakes in the area that have not generated significant tsunami waves, but we're treating it seriously and going through our procedures, making sure communities are notified so they can activate their evacuation procedures,' spokesman Jeremy Zidek said. Officials in the community of King Cove, which has about 870 residents and is on the south side of the Alaska Peninsula, sent an alert calling on those in the coastal area to move to higher ground. In Unalaska, a fishing community of about 4,100, officials also urged people to move at least 50 feet above sea level, 1 mile inland. Sirens could be heard on Kodiak Island. Damage from the earthquake is not expected, according to the USGS. The probability of aftershocks within the next week is greater than 90% for a magnitude 5 earthquake or stronger. Tsunami alerts have not been issued elsewhere in the United States or elsewhere in the Pacific. The Aleutian Islands are known to be an earthquake hotspot due to their location at the boundary between the Pacific tectonic plate and North America Plate. Several 8.0 magnitude earthquakes have shaken the region since 1900. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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