PBS Chief Addresses Trump's Lingering Effect at TCA Event

For four years, Donald Trump's proposed spending budget attempted to slash resources for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which provides funding to PBS. But even though Trump is now out of the White House, the broadcaster is staying vigilant. At the summer press tour for the Television Critics Association on Wednesday, which shifted from in-person to all-virtual following the latest spike in Covid-19 cases, PBS president and CEO Paula Kerger answered a question on if the company is feeling relaxed now that the government and the Biden administration aren't threatening to pull funding. "I think always in the back of my mind, I worry about government funding," Kerger said, adding, "I never make the assumption that this isn't something that we need to continually work at, to make our case." Kerger explained that government funding goes principally to PBS stations and that the intent of public broadcasting was always to ensure that there are public TV stations in communities across the country that wouldn't be limited by local economics. Baratunde Thurston’s New Series Shows the Diversity of Outdoor Spaces and Those Who Enjoy Them "I would argue that is even more the case now than it was when public broadcasting was created," Kerger said, noting the importance of small stations to their communities and pointing out one example in Cookeville, TN, that gets 50% of its funding from the government. Though Kerger said things are currently "reasonably in good shape," the PBS CEO added, "All of us together, I think the onus is on us to make sure that we are very clear on the services that we provide, whether it is during this Covid period where we have stepped in to provide classroom material both through broadband as well as broadcast." "There are so many communities in this country where there's a significant number of people that rely on broadcast," Kerger said. "And so we have really tried to pay attention to ways that we can serve and continue to be there for communities in ways that they most need us." It's not about Big Bird At a TCA event in 2019, Kerger also addressed the threat of PBS possibly losing federal resources, saying, "It’s disappointing when the administration recommends zero funding." At the time, federal funding represented around 15% of the annual revenue in the PBS system, and the CEO acknowledged that the issue wasn't about "Big Bird being unemployed." Instead, it's more about "local stations playing an outsize role in health and vitality of local communities." During the TCA event Wednesday, Kerger also addressed if PBS would have streaming-only content in the future. Currently, PBS has streaming available on a variety of channels, including PBS Passport, a relationship with Amazon for Masterpiece and relationships with a variety of streamers. And it appears that will remain an essential part of the broadcaster's future. "In terms of what's available on those platforms, yes, we're always looking—because we have the ability to have more content sitting there—to bring in yet more programming that people love and enjoy," Kerger said. "And in fact, because of the work with Amazon, we're able to offer that up also through Passport for our stations' members."

TCA Press Tour

PBS Chief Addresses Trump's Lingering Effect at Virtual TCA Event

Despite the government not threatening to pull funds, PBS isn't staying idle

Bill Bradley

About

Subscriptions

Events

Publications

WORK SMARTER - LEARN, GROW AND BE INSPIRED.

Subscribe today!

Bill Bradley