Latest news with #WESA
CBS News
a day ago
- Business
- CBS News
Pittsburgh Community Broadcasting sees historic spike in donations following federal funding cuts
It appears that meeting the funding gap left by the government's recent spending cuts is getting closer to reality for Pittsburgh Community Broadcasting, which operates 90.5 WESA and 91.3 WYEP. The company needed the community to respond. "Sometimes, it takes a crisis to get people up off the couch," president and CEO Terry O'Reilly said. And it appears those people did, and then some. "It was everything from folks donating $5 or $10 to five-figure gifts," O'Reilly said. The total came in over $500,000 from July 18 to July 25. "It was amazing to us," O'Reilly said. It all started just hours after Congress gave final approval to the spending cuts. By 6 p.m. on July 18, the numbers were deemed historic. "We had had the single most successful day of fundraising in the company's 50-plus-year history," O'Reilly said. Federal funding accounted for about 9% of WESA and WYEP's annual budget. "We're lucky that we don't depend on it quite that much," O'Reilly said. "The vast majority of our revenue comes from local individuals and institutions." Still, the stations are set to lose about $700,000 in federal funding. "The most encouraging thing to us was the extraordinary number of people who had never given to us before," O'Reilly said. O'Reilly says it's a big deal. "It buys us some time to be able to invest in being more independent than we've ever been before," he said. O'Reilly says part of that means also growing WESA's newsroom. It's important after what he calls an extraordinary statement from those who listen. "What was pretty clear at the end of that first day was that Pittsburgh felt very strongly about the things that we do," O'Reilly said. Meanwhile, the CEO of WQED, Jason Jedlinski, says it saw its gift number triple last week. He says they are grateful for that, but still cautions that things like PBS's local-to-national infrastructure, children's programming, and even music licenses are in jeopardy as a result of the federal cuts.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Former Pennsylvania Auditor General rules out run for Congress
(WHTM) — Former Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale says he will not run for Congress in 2026 after a poll suggested he would run a primary race against Rep. Summer Lee (D) in Pennsylvania's 12th District. In a statement published by WESA and shared by DePasquale on X, the twice-elected former state auditor general said, 'I want to be clear: I'm not running for Congress, at least in 2026.' Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now DePasquale also ruled out any type of political campaign next year, saying, 'Running for office in 2026 is not on my to-do list.' Once a state representative living in York County, DePasquale mounted a campaign for Congress in 2020 against Rep. Scott Perry (R) in Pennsylvania's 10th District, losing by nearly 26,000 votes. DePasquale was also the Democratic Party's candidate for Attorney General in 2024 and lost to Dave Sunday (R) by more than 317,000 votes in a year where Republicans swept five statewide races. Lee, a former state representative, was elected to Congress in 2022 and held off primary challenger Bhavini Patel, a member of Edgewood Borough Council, in 2024. A member of the left-leaning group of lawmakers known as the 'Squad,' Lee was re-elected to Congress last year with 56% support. Two Democrats, Turtle Creek Borough Mayor Adam Forgie and Patel, have already filed to run against Lee in the 2026 primary. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
Technical.ly
2 days ago
- Business
- Technical.ly
Map: Where PA's $90B AI and energy money is going — and what doesn't match up
Some of the headline-grabbing investments announced at this month's Energy and Innovation Summit in Pittsburgh don't match what companies have actually pledged. National energy and tech CEOs joined Sen. Dave McCormick and other elected officials at Carnegie Mellon University on July 15 to announce more than $90 billion for various data center and energy generation projects. While many executives at the summit credited the Trump administration for paving the way for these investments, reporting from WESA found that several of the Pennsylvania-based projects were already underway before the second Trump administration began in January. A deeper dive into the full list of investments released by McCormick's office reveals that some of those figures do not align with the pledges companies actually made in their own announcements, either. For example, the release from McCormick's office says Constellation Energy will spend $2.4 billion to increase power generation at the Limerick nuclear power plant, but the company would not confirm that amount. McCormick's office did not respond to request for comment. That's just one of the discrepancies that found. Keep reading for a breakdown of the pledges made at the summit and where those investments currently stand.
CBS News
17-07-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
West Virginia Public Broadcasting executive director contemplates future after Senate passes funding cut
The executive director of West Virginia Public Broadcasting is contemplating the organization's future after the Senate passed President Trump's request to rescind funding to public radio and television stations. The Senate on Thursday voted 51-48 to approve a package that would cut $9 billion in foreign aid and public broadcasting funding. "I did actually follow it throughout the evening," West Virginia Public Broadcasting executive director Eddie Isom said. The package includes $1.1 billion in cuts to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. "The first thing I thought was 'what now?'" Isom said. West Virginia Public Broadcasting gets about $1.6 million in federal funding a year. "I don't think that we can make that up from our viewers and listeners," Isom said. Isom said it's a tough dilemma. "We're gonna take a hard look at our budget and see if there's anything that we can cut," Isom said. "We have about a couple months to kind of regroup and try to get some kind of a plan in place," he added. West Virginia Public Broadcasting transmits all over West Virginia with a series of transmitters. "We're one of the few stations that reaches into the rural areas," Isom said. This package could also impact stations like Pittsburgh NPR affiliate WESA. Its CEO said it could lose about 9% of its funding, about $700,000. "I challenge anybody to show me anything that looks similar to PBS and NPR," Isom said. Both WESA and WQED say they will continue without federal money. "We are firmly committed to remaining a strong and independent source for news and music in we have been for more than 50 years," Terry O'Reilly, the president and CEO of Pittsburgh Community Broadcasting, told KDKA-TV in a statement. "The majority of our financial support comes from local individuals and institutions who value what we do: they're the audience we serve every day." West Virginia Public Broadcasting will try the same, saying it will also ask listeners and viewers to donate. "We don't just air shows, we do things that matter here," Isom said. "It's part of the community, it's part of preserving Appalachia culture and heritage," he added. The bill has to go back down to the House from the Senate, since the version of the package was revised. If that's approved there, it will then go to the president's desk.
Technical.ly
30-05-2025
- Business
- Technical.ly
Pittsburgh weekly roundup: Shapiro proposes $50M for innovation; Can the electric grid handle the heat?; A pause on student visas
This week in Pittsburgh, developers at PyCon give their take on AI software, an update on the Nippon-US Steel merger and more. • Governor Josh Shapiro visited Pittsburgh on Tuesday to announce his proposed budget would create a new $50 million PA Innovation program. It would include a one-time $30 million initiative to spur life sciences job growth and $20 million to provide annual funding to support large-scale innovation. [PA DCED] • Just one year of federal funding in Pennsylvania generates $5.2 billion in economic activity. Federal cuts to the National Science Foundation and National Institutes of Health are estimated to cause a $259 million loss for Allegheny County. [ • With scorching temperatures forecasted for the mid-Atlantic this summer and an increasing demand to power data centers for AI, Pennsylvania's grid operator said it will have an adequate supply of electricity, but that may fall short in an 'extreme planning scenario.' [WESA] • The Trump administration revoked $210 million in EDA Tech Hubs funding from six regions, including Philly. New funding rounds will open this summer with a national security focus. Pittsburgh has previously applied but wasn't selected. [ • The US Department of State's recent pause on international student visa interviews could affect thousands of students who attend Pittsburgh universities each year. The University of Pittsburgh and other local schools say it's too early to tell what the impact will be. [AP News/Pittsburgh Biz Times] • Pittsburgh workers' rights were in the spotlight this week. Union reps and local advocates spoke in strong support of a bill to expand paid sick leave at a City Council hearing Wednesday. Meanwhile, nurses at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital announced plans to unionize. [WESA] 🗓️ On the Calendar • Join Pittsburgh's chapter of Pitch and Run on May 31 in the Strip District. Run (or walk) at this weekly meetup while connecting with other builders in the local ecosystem. [ Details here ] • Are you passionate about clean technology? Don't miss the Clean Tech Symposium at Chatham University's Eden Hall Campus on June 2. [ Attend ] • Learn about one of the most game-changing features coming to C++26 (reflection) with Pittsburgh C++ Meetup Group on June 4 in the Strip District. [ More info ] • What does the Pittsburgh of tomorrow look like? Share your thoughts and hear from local leaders, like the Democratic nominee for Mayor Corey O'Conner, at a June 4 event hosted by Pittsburgh Tomorrow. [ Register ] • The Pittsburgh Technology Council and PA CareerLink are teaming up to help displaced government workers find new jobs in PA. A virtual hiring event is happening June 5. [ Sign up ]
