After years of GOP efforts to end government grants for public radio, the White House seeks to halt some of that federal funding as part of a larger analysis from the Office of Management and Budget tied to recent Executive Orders from President Trump.
OMB Acting Director Matthew J. Vaeth issued a memorandum instructing federal agencies to temporarily pause all activities related to the obligation or disbursement of federal financial assistance. This directive aims to allow the administration to review these programs for alignment with President Trump’s executive orders and policy priorities.
Vaeth wrote, “The use of Federal resources to advance Marxist equity, transgenderism, and green new deal social engineering policies is a waste of taxpayer dollars that does not improve the day-to-day lives of those we serve.”
US District Judge Loren AliKhan issued an administrative stay, initiated due to a lawsuit filed by several nonprofits receiving federal funds. That stay will remain in effect until a court hearing on Monday.
This action has raised concerns among numerous sectors, including public broadcasting. In a statement to Radio Ink, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting said, “CPB is reviewing the memorandum issued by the White House Office of Management and Budget placing a temporary pause on disbursement of federal grant funds.”
“Two federal grant programs administered by CPB are impacted: the Next Generation Warning System grant funded through the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Ready to Learn grant funded through the Department of Education. We are in contact with both agencies, and we are waiting to hear further information on how the White House budget office’s order will affect these grant programs. As soon as we have this information, we will share it with our grantees.”
Any move to take away federal dollars from public radio would line up with the Heritage Foundation’s “Mandate for Leadership,” commonly known as Project 2025, which called for a conservative president to prioritize defunding public broadcasters.
The policy document labels public radio a misuse of taxpayer dollars for allegedly excluding conservative perspectives. Project 2025 says the 47th president is to refuse to sign any appropriations bill containing CPB funding and leveraging the “bully pulpit” to overcome public broadcasting lobbying efforts. The document also proposes the FCC strip NPR affiliates of their Noncommercial Educational status, which allows them to operate on lower-frequency signals and exempts them from licensing fees.
Despite publicly distancing himself from Project 2025 on the campaign trail, numerous appointees named by President Donald Trump following the election – including OMB Director Russell Vought and FCC Chairman Brendan Carr – were direct contributors to the document.
Per the OMB, agencies must submit detailed information on affected programs to the OMB by February 10. During this review period, the pause includes the issuance of new awards, disbursement of funds under existing awards, and other related activities.
This I agree with. The Christian broadcast empire Educational Media Foundation (EMF) has aptly demonstrated that if the people want it, the people will fund it. With its brands on book, film, and music publishing, plus concert promotions, NASCAR sponsorships, and a radio footprint in most (if not all) major and medium markets, they prove non-profit is not equal to no profit.
Maybe EMF could host a training conference and the powers at NPR and PBS could attend to learn ways to work within the budget their audience agrees on.
Keep in mind that EMF has no local studios, no local programming, and no local staffing. Is that the model radio should follow?