President Trump said Tuesday he “would love” to end federal funding for outlets such as NPR and PBS, calling it “very unfair.”
“It’s been very biased by the whole group, I mean, the whole group of them. And frankly, there’s plenty of – look at all the media you have right now. There’s plenty of coverage.”
He said he would be “honored” to see the funding for NPR and PBS end.
“We’re well covered. Look at all the people that we have here today,” Mr. Trump said of the media assembled at the White House. “We’re well covered, and we don’t need [funding for NPR and PBS], and it’s a waste of money.”
Leaders of PBS and NPR are set to testify Wednesday before the House DOGE subcommittee on federal support for public broadcasting networks.
PBS, which stands for the Public Broadcasting Service, and NPR, which is National Public Radio, are funded by a $535 million appropriation by Congress through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The outlets and their respective local stations also receive donations.
Patricia Harrison, president and CEO of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, thanked Congress last week for extending its funding through fiscal 2027 as part of a spending deal to keep the government open.
“We appreciate the bipartisan support from Congress on behalf of the more than 1,500 local public media stations across the nation,” she said at the time. “Public media in the United States is a highly efficient public-private partnership that delivers a strong return on the taxpayers’ investment. For every public dollar provided, stations raise nearly seven dollars from donors, underscoring their value to the communities they serve.”
She said CPB “will continue to prioritize educational content and resources for families, provide essential local reporting and public safety information, and pursue technology advancements that enhance public media’s connection with audiences across multiple platforms.”
