Opinion

Trump’s Budget Seeks to Slash Public Broadcasting

Trump’s Budget Seeks to Slash Public Broadcasting
President Donald Trump (L) speaks beside Secretary of Defense James Mattis (R) during a meeting with members of his cabinet in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington on March 13, 2017. This was the first official meeting of Trump's cabinet. Michael Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images
Jack Phillips
Jack Phillips
Breaking News Reporter
|Updated:

For decades, Republicans have attempted to cut federal funding for NPR and PBS, or have tried to defund them entirely, with little success.

But in the latest attempt, President Donald Trump’s budget seeks to defund the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CFB), which was founded in 1967 and receives $445 million in federal funds. It only marginally supports NPR and PBS, and a majority of the funds goes to smaller, individual stations. 

Both Republicans and Democrats have turned defunding the CFB into political theater even though it doesn’t contribute much to NPR or PBS, which both depend much more heavily on corporate sponsors and other forms of funding.

The GOP has long accused NPR, and to a lesser extent PBS, of having a left-leaning, or “liberal,” bias. For them, it’s also become a rallying cry against big government’s spending on wasteful programs.

Democrats and left-leaning media outlets have used Republicans’ efforts against them, describing them as heartless for trying to “fire Big Bird.”

Defunding NPR and PBS became a focal point during the 2012 election when then-Republican candidate Mitt Romney said during a debate: “I’m going to the stop the subsidy to PBS. I’m going to stop other things. I like PBS. I love Big Bird.” Romney’s comments became a trending hashtag on Twitter, with people coming out in defense of “Sesame Street.”

In this Nov. 24, 2008 file photo, Muppets Fozzie Bear, left, a Whatnot, center, and Kermit the Frog make a television appearance in New York. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
In this Nov. 24, 2008 file photo, Muppets Fozzie Bear, left, a Whatnot, center, and Kermit the Frog make a television appearance in New York. AP Photo/Richard Drew
Jack Phillips
Jack Phillips
Breaking News Reporter
Jack Phillips is a breaking news reporter who covers a range of topics, including politics, U.S., and health news. A father of two, Jack grew up in California's Central Valley. Follow him on X: https://twitter.com/jackphillips5
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