By Genevieve Presley
Columnist
Despite losing a significant portion of its federal funding from the Corporation of Public Broadcasting (CPB), Panhandle PBS is hopeful for its future.
“We are so grateful for the outpouring of kindness and how vocal folks have been about what Panhandle PBS means to them and their families,” Julie Grimes, Panhandle PBS general manager, said. “It’s a strong source of inspiration and very encouraging to the whole staff here at the station. With the help of our wonderfully supportive community, we are planning and positioning ourselves for the future.”
The official defunding of PBS began on May 1, 2025, when President Trump signed an executive order directing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) to stop distributing federal funds to public media, according to the White House. According to the Associated Press, President Trump signed the Rescissions Act of 2025 into law on July 24, after Congress approved the measure earlier that month, eliminating $1.1 billion in previously approved funding. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting said Aug. 1 that it would begin shutting down operations, and PBS announced a 21% budget cut along with staff layoffs, according to Politico. CBS News reported that for viewers and listeners, the loss of federal support means local stations, especially in rural areas that relied heavily on CPB grants, face financial uncertainty, while PBS reduces programming and staff to adapt.
According to Panhandle PBS Marketing and PR Manager Stevie Breshears, the station gets about one-third of their funding from the CPB. “So the loss of federal funding is certainly a concerning hurdle,” Breshears said. “While the future will look different, we remain committed to our mission of educating, enlightening, entertaining and empowering the people of the Texas Panhandle, just as we have for the last 36 years. We’re working on a plan to make sure we can continue our work for years to come. Now more than ever, our station belongs to the Panhandle, and I think that’s a really beautiful thing. We have a lot of amazing community support, and we need that now more than we ever have.”
In addition to the staff, PBS viewers said they have also been affected by the defunding. “I felt saddened, angered, disappointed, hopeless and defeated,” Travis Kemp, a mass media major and avid PBS fan, said. “But I also felt that I shouldn’t give up that easily. I knew that I had to continue fighting for PBS, no matter what. It’s too important to our community, the country and the world,” Kemp said.
In addition to writing to his representatives and sharing his views on the proposed PBS defunding, Kemp said that he has tried showing his support for PBS in a number of ways. “Some of the things I’ve done included playing jazzy audio clips from various PBS shows, as well as re-airing original radio specials about “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” and “Sesame Street” and their respective histories with jazz,” Kemp said.
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