In recent weeks, the need for and value of public media funding has become a common topic of conversation. WSKG has put together answers to some frequently asked questions on how public media funding works — and why it’s essential to our service.

Five things to know about public media and federal funding:

• Public media reaches 99% of the U.S. population and serves millions of Americans every day.
• The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) is an independent nonprofit that distributes federal dollars (an average of $1.60 per American annually) to local stations. That money is used to invest in programming and services according to each community’s needs.
• About 20% of WSKG's annual funding comes from the CPB.
• CPB funding allows public media stations to pool resources towards satellite interconnection, emergency alert systems, music licensing and development of educational programs, all of which would be too expensive for stations to do on their own.
• Cuts to federal funding would negatively impact the ability for rural stations, like ours, to serve the people who need it most. Learn more at Protect My Public Media.

WSKG is an NPR and PBS member station, part of a nationwide public media network that serves millions of Americans. This network reaches nearly 99% of the population with free and accessible programs, regardless of population density, income or geographic challenges.

Public media stations are partially funded by the CPB. Each station is locally managed and makes programming and service decisions to address unique community needs and interests. At WSKG, these programs and services include the national shows you enjoy, like Morning Edition and All Things Considered, as well local favorites such as Expressions and Free Range Folk.

Public media’s service also includes things like lifesaving emergency alerts through its management and operation of the Public Radio Satellite System.

The need for and value of federal funding for public media has become a common topic, so we’ve put together these frequently asked questions about how public media funding works, and what impact the absence of that funding may have on public radio and television here and across the country. If you have other questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at bproehl@wskg.org.