Foundations commit $36.5M for public media

A group of foundations is committing $36.5 million to public media after the rescission of CPB’s federal funding. 

The organizations are The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Pivotal, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the Schmidt Family Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, according to a Tuesday news release from the Knight Foundation. 

Public Media Co. will manage the Public Media Bridge Fund, a new effort to help at-risk stations that is expected to receive $26.5 million of the commitments, according to the release. 

The MacArthur Foundation is committing another $10 million for “direct support to public media stations, programs, and organizations” in addition to its support for the fund, the release said. 

“Stations serving rural, small to mid-market and Native communities as well as documentary ecosystems are disproportionately impacted by the funding cuts and need intentional support,” ​​said MacArthur President John Palfrey in the release. “These stations are more than just broadcasters — they are critical sources of information and connection.”

PMC is trying to raise $100 million over the next two years from national sources for the Public Media Bridge Fund, CEO Tim Isgitt told Current. 

The goal is to support stations most at risk of going dark, Isgitt said, but the exact qualifications and application process are still being determined. That process is expected to be finished in late September. 

Using 2023 data, PMC found 115 local public media organizations that received at least 30% of their revenue from CPB and are thus at risk of going dark this fall, Isgitt said. He added that they are mostly in rural and underserved areas.

Former PMC executive Erik Langner will return as executive director of the Public Media Bridge Fund, Isgitt said. Langner is CEO of the Information Equity Initiative and previously held president and managing director roles at PMC. 

The at-risk stations will receive grants, low-interest loans and advisory services from PMC to help get them on a path to sustainability.

“If we’re just keeping the lights on for one more year, what are we really accomplishing there?” Isgitt said. 

The idea will be to help stations find ways to reduce expenditures and increase revenue, Isgitt said.

“We all have a lot of work to do to figure out the sustainable future at a system level,” Isgitt said. “This support from philanthropy gives us a little bit of runway to do that.”

CPB is winding down its operations after Congress approved the White House’s proposal to claw back CPB’s forward-funded $535 million annual appropriations for fiscal years 2026 and 2027.  

“Local public media stations are trusted community anchors that connect people to vital news, culture and civic life,” said Knight Foundation CEO Maribel Pérez Wadsworth in the release. “This is an urgent moment that calls for bold action. We are proud to stand with our fellow foundations and urge others to join us in securing the future of public media.”