Trump’s Plan To Defund Public Broadcasting Could Imperil Rural News Access

Rural public broadcasting stations depend heavily on federal funds, which could be slashed following a new executive order from the president.

The NPR building in Washington, DC
Charles Dharapak/AP

The Trump administration’s war on PBS and NPR could have an outsized impact on rural communities’ access to basic information about local events, from severe storms to high school football games, lawmakers, public media advocates and researchers say.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order late Thursday ordering the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to stop funding PBS and NPR, claiming the broadcasters have “fueled partisanship and left-wing propaganda with taxpayer dollars” in their news coverage.

“Unlike in 1967, when the CPB was established, today the media landscape is filled with abundant, diverse, and innovative news options,” Trump wrote.