Ken Stern Response, Chief Executive Officer, NPR, to Bush Administration’s Proposed Public Broadcasting Cuts in FY 2009 Budget

February 4, 2008, Washington, D.C. – Today, the Administration released its Fiscal Year 2009 budget to Congress, recommending substantial funding cuts for public broadcasting. The scope and depth of the cuts are significantly deeper than in past years, totaling nearly a 60 percent reduction in funding.

Ken Stern, Chief Executive Officer, NPR, made the following statement in response to the news:

Article continues below...

“Just days ago, a national Pew survey cited public radio and NPR as the only growing broadcast news source for Americans seeking to learn about the presidential race. Now, the drastic proposed cuts threaten to diminish this kind of information, context and community that we provide more than 30 million citizens weekly. Communities across the country rely on public radio as one of their most valuable local assets, and this value has been recognized for years with bipartisan endorsement of continued funding. The last time funding was challenged, more than 2 million Americans who count on public broadcasting contacted their members of Congress and made their voices heard. We welcome their renewed support as we respond to this challenge.”

The recommendations include:

*a $200 million rescission from the $400 million already appropriated by Congress for FY 2009 for the Corporation of Public Broadcasting (CPB)

*a $220 million rescission from the $420 million already appropriated by Congress for FY 2010

*no advance appropriation for FY 2011

*no additional funding in FY 2009 for public radio and public television digital conversion or upgrades to the Public Radio Satellite System

Source: NPR