Trump Executive Order To Impact 28 FL TV, Radio Stations

FLORIDA — National Public Radio and PBS television stations in Florida will no longer receive federal funding under an executive order signed late Thursday by President Donald Trump to stop what he called “biased and partisan news coverage.”

Florida has 28 stations affiliated with NPR and PBS.

“Right now, WEDU and PBS are under the most serious threat in our history,” Paul Grove, president and CEO of WEDU, said in a video shared to social media ahead of the funding cuts.

He added, “This federal funding amounts to just $1.60 per citizen per year. That’s less than a cup of coffee right now. Eliminating all federal funding could end the National Public Broadcasting service and will permanently damage WEDU’s local services to the community. The federal funding that WEDU receives is used to deliver life-saving emergency alerts, trusted educational programming for kids and families, and noncommercial programming that improves people’s lives every day.”

NPR stations in Florida, according to the NPR station finder map, include:

• WFIT, Melbourne
• WFSQ, Tallahassee
• WFSU, Tallahassee
• WGCU, Fort Myers
• WJCT, Jacksonville
• WKGC, Panama City
• WLRN, Miami
• WMFE, Orlando
• WMFV, Cedar Creek
• WMNF, Tampa
• WQCO, Okeechobee
• WQCP, Fort Pierce
• WQCS, Fort Pierce
• WSMR, Sarasota
• WUCF, Orlando
• WUFT, Gainesville
• WUSF, Tampa
• WUWF, Pensacola

PBS members stations in Florida include:

• Jax PBS, Jacksonville
• WEDU, Tampa
• WFSU, Tallahassee
• WGCU, Fort Myers
• WLRN, Miami
• WPBT, Miami
• WSRE, Pensacola
• WUCF, Orlando
• WUFT, Gainesville
• WXEL, Boynton Beach

“Public Media Giving Days are happening May 1st and 2nd — and at a time when the future of public media feels uncertain, your support helps keep the music playing,” WSMR in Sarasota wrote in a social media post. “You already know how much WSMR enriches your life — from the soothing sounds of Bach over breakfast to the moving passion of a Mahler symphony during your evening drive. Now imagine the power your story could have in inspiring someone else to fall in love with classical music, just like you did. These two days are a chance to celebrate what classical public radio brings to your world — and to help others discover why it's so worth supporting. Donate today to ensure our story is still being written.”

The executive order instructs the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and other federal agencies “to cease Federal funding for NPR and PBS” and further requires that they work to root out indirect sources of public financing for the news organizations.

"Government funding of news media in this environment is not only outdated and unnecessary but corrosive to the appearance of journalistic independence," the executive order says.

The White House, in a social media posting announcing the signing, said the outlets “receive millions from taxpayers to spread radical, woke propaganda disguised as 'news.'”

The broadcasters get roughly half a billion dollars in public money through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and have been preparing for the possibility of stiff cuts since Trump's election, as Republicans have long complained about them.

Paula Kerger, PBS’ CEO and president, said in a statement last month that the Trump administration’s effort to rescind funding for public media would “disrupt the essential service PBS and local member stations provide to the American people.”

“There’s nothing more American than PBS, and our work is only possible because of the bipartisan support we have always received from Congress,” she said. “This public-private partnership allows us to help prepare millions of children for success in school and in life and also supports enriching and inspiring programs of the highest quality.”

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting sued Trump earlier this week over his move to fire three members of its five-person board, contending that the president was exceeding his authority and that the move would deprive the board of a quorum needed to conduct business.

Just two weeks ago, the White House said it would be asking Congress to rescind funding for the CPB as part of a $9.1 billion package of cuts. That package, however, which budget director Russell Vought said would likely be the first of several, has not yet been sent to Capitol Hill.

The move against PBS and NPR comes as his administration has been working to dismantle the U.S. Agency for Global Media, including Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, which were designed to model independent news gathering globally in societies that restrict the press.

Those efforts have faced pushback from federal courts, who have ruled in some cases that the Trump administration may have overstepped its authority in holding back funds appropriated to the outlets by Congress.

The Associated Press contributed reporting.