Due to a nearly 17 percent cut in state funding, South Dakota Public Broadcasting is eliminating 10.5 full-time positions for the upcoming fiscal year. The pubcaster said in a statement that jobs are being cut from outreach and education, engineering, television, radio and marketing — 15 percent of the total staff will be gone as of June 8.
In addition, it’s reorganizing the education and outreach department into an online-based service, and ending initiatives including Ready to Learn and the overnight and daytime educational TV programming block. “The cuts made to the FY2011 budget required a system-wide analysis,” said Julie Andersen, executive director.
“It’s tough all over in our industry,” SDPB spokesperson Fritz Miller told Current, immediately following a luncheon for departing colleagues on June 2. “We’re absorbing the cuts as best we can and look ahead to brighter days, keeping in mind that the people we serve depend on us.”