How Northeast Ohio’s public media stations are reacting to proposed federal funding cuts

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Every year, Ohio‘s public media outlets receive more than $13.3 million in federal funding. That money, distributed by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, helps keep trusted journalism, educational children’s programming and community-focused music on the air.

For most stations, that funding represents 6% to 11% of their annual budgets. But for others — like PBS Western Reserve, which reaches 4.9 million viewers across Northeast Ohio and Western Pennsylvania — it’s a lifeline.

Now, with President Trump’s executive order targeting national public media networks NPR and PBS along with the administration’s plan to ask Congress to rescind $1.1 billion in federal funding for the CPB, three Northeast Ohio public media outlets find themselves wondering what it could all mean for the future.

• Chart: Federal Funding Received by Each Public Media Outlet in Ohio

“I’m hoping for the best and completely preparing for the worst,” said Tommy Bruno, general manager at WAPS-FM, a public media radio outlet branded as The Summit FM with stations in Akron, Youngstown and Athens.

The Summit FM spins records, not headlines. But Bruno worries the station, like many others across Ohio, could get caught in the crossfire of Trump’s beef with NPR and PBS. In his executive order issued on May 1, the president directed the CPB board to cease direct funding to NPR and PBS, writing that, “Neither entity presents a fair, accurate, or unbiased portrayal of current events to taxpaying citizens.”

It’s an accusation that Kevin Martin, president and CEO of Ideastream Public Media, the largest public media organization in Ohio, has heard before.

“Every administration has issues with the press, but I think certainly this particular administration has issues with the press or any mass communication that may be counter to his message,” he said. “We’re trying to be objective and fair.”

Legally speaking, the order may not have teeth. CPB officials have already said they plan to ignore it.

“CPB is not a federal executive agency subject to the President’s authority,” Patricia Harrison, president and CEO of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, said in a statement. “Congress directly authorized and funded CPB to be a private nonprofit corporation wholly independent of the federal government.”

A coordinated plan to defund

The executive order is one part of what appears to be a systematic effort by Republicans to undermine public media. In March, conservative firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia led congressional hearings accusing NPR and PBS of liberal bias. Trump also tried to fire three of CPB’s five board members, which would’ve left it one short of a quorum.

Weeks later, the Department of Education pulled the plug on Ready to Learn, a grant that’s helped fund PBS favorites like “Sesame Street” and newer shows such as “Molly of Denali.” Combined, these actions were meant to sway public opinion against public media and disrupt its operations.

Still, the executive order came as a surprise to Natalie Pillsbury, president and CEO of PBS Western Reserve.

“Only because we had been preparing for something different,” she said.

That “something different” is the administration’s plan, unveiled in April, to claw back nearly all of CPB’s previously approved federal funding for the next two fiscal years. If passed by Congress, stations could lose money they’ve already built into their budgets for 2026-27. These cuts would have the most impact not on PBS nor NPR — at least not directly — but on local public media stations. More than 70% of CPB’s federal funding goes straight to local stations, helping them to stay on the air and serve their communities.

PBS Western Reserve

PBS Western Reserve’s two television stations, WNEO Channel 45 in Youngstown and WEAO Channel 49 in Akron, cover the largest broadcast footprint among Ohio‘s eight public TV stations. The company receives about $1.1 million in federal grants, making up 22% of its annual budget, much higher than the national average.

“The potential loss of that would be extremely challenging for our organization,” Pillsbury said.

Founded in 1973 and headquartered in Kent, the company employs 24 people. It airs PBS programming like “PBS NewsHour” and “Washington Week” but doesn’t have its own news team. Instead, it focuses on locally produced content on the arts, education, history and community affairs. Recent examples include “More Childhood, Please,” a kids’ show produced in partnership with Akron Children’s Hospital, and “By Nature’s Design,” a documentary on Ohio‘s wetlands.

“The plan is for this docuseries to continue and cover other ecosystems,” Pillsbury said. “But the loss of federal funding would put work like this at risk.”

None of its local programming, she added, could be described as biased or unfair, as Trump has accused PBS of being.

“We highly value accuracy, fairness and integrity in the content we create,” Pillsbury said. “Our primary goal is to be honest, authentic and share the stories of our community as they are.”

PBS Western Reserve also provides free educational resources, including math and science lessons for students of all ages and professional development for teachers. Losing the CPB grant would put all of it in jeopardy.

“We give out books, we give out school supplies,” Pillsbury said. “A cut this large would require us to make some pretty tough decisions.”

While losing nearly a quarter of its revenue would be a major blow, she’s hopeful the organization could make it up. Potential strategies include pursuing private grants, increasing donor appeals and leasing space on its broadcast towers. She’s also relying on viewers, well, like you.

“It’s vitally important that folks call their legislators and let them know how much they value public media,” Pillsbury added.

Ideastream Public Media

Ideastream Public Media serves 3.6 million people across 22 counties through PBS member station WVIZ Ch. 25, NPR affiliate WKSU 89.7 FM, and classical and jazz radio stations WCLV 90.3 and JazzNEO. It receives about $2.6 million in federal funding, or about 9% of its annual budget.

“I think we could certainly fill that revenue hole. That, to me, is the easy part of the equation,” Martin said. “The harder part is that if PBS and NPR go away, then there’s a big question about national content: How do we acquire it, how do we produce it and how do we make it available to the 3.6 million people in Northeast Ohio?”

Ideastream isn’t facing the kind of existential threat that smaller stations in rural communities might be. With an endowment of nearly $60 million and a diversified portfolio in which each service “stands on its own,” Martin said the company is built to last.

Still, they’re not taking anything for granted.

“Our fiscal year starts Oct. 1,” Martin said. “We’ll be looking at different scenarios in our budget process and contingency planning.”

But he emphasized that the organization’s focus remains on the work itself. Ideastream’s 160 employees include 32 headquartered in Columbus, covering the statehouse, governor’s office and Ohio Supreme Court.

“One of the biggest mistakes we can make is to become sufficiently distracted that we stop delivering the services that our mission calls for,” he said.

The Summit FM

The Summit FM receives about $122,000 in federal money. The independent music station isn’t a target of Trump’s executive order. It could, however, lose that money as part of the rescission package. On paper, the figure might look small, but for a station with an annual budget of $1.3 million and just seven full-time employees, it’s huge.

“It’s going to cut deep,” Bruno said. “I’d have to do an immediate restructuring of operations and services, and potentially a reduction in staff.”

The loss would most directly affect the station’s ability to license the music it plays. Its adult album alternative format includes everything from The Black Keys and Rolling Stones to Gary Clark Jr., Bob Marley and emerging local talent.

Between songs, listeners hear messages promoting mental health, wellness and addiction recovery, connecting its audience with community resources. The station’s Music Alive Program also provides hundreds of musical instruments to local schools. It’s all part of The Summit’s core mission.

“We believe in the healing power of music,” he said. “So, we’re unique, and without the CPB, I don’t know where we’ll be.”

Looking ahead

The executive order may not be more than political theater, and the rescission plan is still uncertain. But Northeast Ohio‘s public media outlets aren’t waiting to see how things play out. They’re preparing budgets, weighing cuts and rallying supporters.

For station leaders, the moment is about more than budgets. It’s a reminder that public media provides something uniquely valuable — independent journalism, free educational resources, cultural and children’s programming that’s accessible to everyone — all for just $1.50 per year for the average taxpayer.

Said Pillsbury, the CEO at PBS Western Reserve: “People rely on us.”