Aspen, Colorado —
PBS CEO Paula Karger recently reflected on what she described as an “unusual” year for the organization after federal funding was withdrawn by President Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans. During her appearance at the Aspen Institute’s Festival of Ideas, Karger referred to the past year as “the year of letters.” She noted that the first letter arrived in January 2025 from Brendan Kerr, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), investigating PBS due to its partnerships. Then, in March 2025, Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican Congresswoman, subpoenaed her and NPR’s CEO Katherine Maher to testify at a committee hearing titled “Anti-American Radio.” Karger remarked, “Of all the things that happened last year, that was the most unpleasant one.”
She also mentioned receiving a letter from Trump concerning his executive order to withhold funding from PBS and NPR. Reflecting on that moment, Karger stated, “The most solemn moment of this year, maybe even of my life, was signing the lawsuit against the president.” She conveyed a deep sense of gravity, admitting she never imagined she would take such action against a sitting president.
The impact of losing funding was immediate, disrupting PBS’s new children’s show “Phoebe and Jay” and halting an initiative to include American Sign Language in children’s programming. Karger explained, “Our stations relied on that money. Eighty percent of federal funding doesn’t actually come to me or NPR; it goes directly to the stations.” She also highlighted that about “50 percent” of budgets for PBS affiliate stations, like those in Cookeville, Tennessee, depend on federal funds. “We laid off 100 people, so we had a very significant downsizing,” she added.
In July 2025, Republicans on Capitol Hill voted to cut funding for NPR and PBS, a long-sought goal for many in the party. Karger mentioned reaching out to renowned documentarian Ken Burns for assistance in swaying a crucial Senate vote after the House passed the budget-cutting bill. She described the effort: “We’re trying to protect creative talent, so we’re hesitant to involve someone like him. But in the end, I felt desperately close to success.” Unfortunately, despite optimism, they lost by just one vote.
Despite the turmoil, Karger spoke about the “good part” of setting up a fundraising initiative called the Bridge Fund, which aims to secure at least two years of funding. She proudly announced that the public broadcaster has attracted “one million new members” since funding ceased last July, most of whom now contribute monthly. “This hasn’t solved our problems, but we’re still here… It’s up to all of us to work together to ensure this is something worth preserving,” she concluded.
