01/09/2026
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting officially closed its doors this week after 58 years of service -- with a final act of patriotism on behalf of the American people. The CPB's Board of Directors voted Monday to dissolve the organization entirely rather than allow it to become a propaganda mouthpiece for the Trump administration. As CPB wrote in its final statement, the board feared that "dormant and defunded CPB could have become vulnerable to future political manipulation or misuse, threatening the independence of public media and the trust audiences place in it." The decision came after Republicans in Congress, at Trump's direction, rescinded over $1.1 billion in federal funding last summer -- the first time in nearly six decades that Congress had refused to fund the organization.
While Trump succeeded in stripping CPB of all federal funding, he could not unilaterally eliminate the congressionally mandated entity itself -- meaning CPB could have continued to exist in a dormant state. However, there was genuine concern that Trump would resurrect the organization to peddle far-right indoctrination and conspiracy theories disguised as educational programming, perverting CPB's educational mission into a state-sponsored misinformation apparatus. As CPB President and CEO Patricia Harrison explained: "CPB's final act would be to protect the integrity of the public media system and the democratic values by dissolving, rather than allowing the organization to remain defunded and vulnerable to additional attacks."
The board recognized that leaving CPB as an empty shell would have allowed the Trump administration to potentially repurpose it for partisan ends, much as it has done with other media organizations like the U.S. Agency for Global Media. Ruby Calvert, chair of CPB's Board of Directors, called the federal defunding "devastating" but expressed cautious optimism that "a new Congress will address public media's role in our country because it is critical to our children's education, our history, culture and democracy to do so."
For nearly sixty years, the dedicated professionals of CPB championed the democratic ideal that quality educational and cultural programming should be accessible to every American, regardless of zip code or income level. For millions of children, CPB-funded programs weren't just entertainment -- they were trusted friends and teachers. Big Bird taught us our ABCs, Mr. Rogers showed us how to navigate our feelings, and Arthur helped us understand empathy and friendship. These weren't mere cartoons; they were carefully crafted tools providing educational enrichment that helped level the playing field for children whose families couldn't afford preschool or enrichment programs.
Beyond its profound impact on children's programming, CPB served as the vital conduit for federal funding to more than 1,500 locally owned public radio and television stations across America. As an independent, nonprofit corporation established by Congress in 1967, CPB distributed federal dollars to NPR and PBS member stations nationwide, supporting not just programming but also emergency alert systems and the infrastructure that kept communities connected and informed. It funded documentaries that preserved our history, supported local stations that covered stories no commercial outlet would touch, and provided a space for civil discourse in an increasingly fractured media landscape.
CPB was essential infrastructure for civil society and democracy itself -- ensuring that citizens had access to reliable information, diverse perspectives, and the kind of thoughtful programming that strengthens communities and civic engagement. CPB represented something rare and precious: a public trust dedicated not to profit margins or ratings wars, but to informing, educating, and enriching the lives of all Americans. Our country is immeasurably poorer without CPB.
This vital public infrastructure was dismantled not due to failure, but due to right-wing extremism. Republicans in Congress rescinded $1.1 billion in federal funding following demands by Trump, who called NPR and PBS "THE RADICAL LEFT 'MONSTERS' THAT SO BADLY HURT OUR COUNTRY!" This happened despite polls showing 66% of Americans support federal funding for public radio -- including 58% of Republicans -- yet the institution that served communities for nearly six decades was eliminated by a largely party-line vote.
What makes this loss particularly tragic is that it reveals a fundamental inability to see the value in things that serve the common good -- investments in our collective future that are worthwhile even though their value cannot be measured in dollars and cents. Trump and his allies in Congress have shown they cannot recognize that educated children, informed citizens, and connected communities matter even when no one can profit from them directly. We lose more than an organization; we lose a commitment to the idea that an informed citizenry matters, that children deserve quality educational content regardless of their parents' means, and that some things -- truth, beauty, learning -- are worth protecting even when they don't write checks to politicians.
The silence left in CPB's wake will echo loudest in rural communities, in tribal lands, and in small towns where public broadcasting was often the only source of in-depth news and cultural programming. These stations were the most dependent on federal support through CPB -- while large urban PBS and NPR stations can sustain themselves through local donors and corporate sponsors, small stations have no such donor base to draw upon. Many of these vital community links will now be lost due to the Republicans' funding cuts. Most heartbreaking of all, future generations of children will be deprived of the kind, educational companionship that CPB nurtured for decades.
While a few iconic shows like Sesame Street have secured alternative funding through commercial partnerships, their survival is the exception, not the rule. The loss of CPB threatens the next generation of educational programming created for children's developmental needs rather than commercial profit.
Without CPB's support, there will be little infrastructure to develop the next "Sesame Street" or "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" -- programs painstakingly researched to serve educational purposes that the market won't fund because they're not profitable enough. Future generations of children, especially those in rural and low-income communities, will be left with whatever content commercial networks deem profitable: fast-paced, toy-driven programming designed to sell products rather than build critical thinking skills or nurture young citizens.
Now it's up to each of us to help public media survive during these difficult times. If public broadcasting has enriched your life or your family's lives -- if you grew up with Sesame Street, relied on NPR for your morning commute, or found solace in a PBS documentary -- now is the time to give back. Please consider making a donation today to your local NPR and PBS stations. Every contribution, no matter the size, helps ensure that quality, non-commercial programming continues to serve communities across America.
Finally, please join us in thanking the CPB staff below -- share your memories and gratitude for those who dedicated their careers to keeping public media alive and accessible for every American. As CPB itself said in its farewell: "To everyone who continues to believe in the power of local storytelling, fact-based journalism, and lifelong learning -- thank you."
To give back as a 'Viewer Like You' - you can donate here:
- Find your local NPR station at https://www.npr.org/stations
- Locate your PBS affiliate at https://www.pbs.org/stations/
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For a selection of powerful books for tweens and teens about the experience of girls living under real-life authoritarian regimes without the freedom of the press, visit our blog post "The Fragility of Freedom: Mighty Girl Books About Life Under Authoritarianism" at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=32426
For children's books about trailblazing female journalists, we recommend “She Persisted: Nellie Bly” for ages 6 to 9 (https://www.amightygirl.com/she-persisted-nellie-bly), "Nellie Bly and Investigative Journalism for Kids" for 8 and up (https://www.amightygirl.com/nellie-bly-investigative), and "Ida M. Tarbell: The Woman Who Challenged Big Business -- And Won" for ages 12 and up (https://www.amightygirl.com/ida-m-tarbell)
For fictional stories starring Mighty Girl reporters, check out "Hilde Cracks the Case: Hero Dog!" for ages 6 to 8 (https://www.amightygirl.com/hero-dog), "The Newspaper Club" for ages 8 to 12 (https://www.amightygirl.com/the-newspaper-club), and "Revenge of the Red Club" for ages 10 to 13 (https://www.amightygirl.com/revenge-of-the-red-club)
For adults interested in learning more about pioneering women in journalism, we recommend "Sensational: The Hidden History of America's 'Girl Stunt Reporters' (https://www.amightygirl.com/sensational) and "You Don't Belong Here: How Three Women Rewrote the Story of War" (https://www.amightygirl.com/you-don-t-belong-here)
To read CBP's final statement, visit https://cpb.org/pressroom/corporation-public-broadcasting-board-votes-dissolve-organization-act-responsible
To read about the CBP board's decision to dissolve, visit https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2026/01/05/corporation-for-public-broadcasting-pbs-npr-dissolve
