With federal funding already in flux, Indiana’s public broadcasting stations are facing a funding threat from another angle: the state budget.
The final version of the state budget that lawmakers plan to vote on Thursday eliminates all funding for public broadcasting, all while President Donald Trump has floated plans to end federal funding for public media.
The public wasn’t given a chance to testify on the 11th-hour change, quietly added to the 220-page budget bill just one day before lawmakers plan to vote on it and wrap up the 2025 legislative session.
These public radio and TV stations, like PBS, National Public Radio and their local affiliates, depend on a combination of state and federal dollars, grants and individual donors. Those percentages fluctuate: Central Indiana’s WFYI station, for example, collects 11% of its funding federally and 4% from the state; but stations in rural areas, where there are fewer donors available and where public media may be the only source of news due to broadband issues, often rely on government sources for up to half their budgets.
“This is a lifeline for a lot of people,” said Mark Newman, executive director of Indiana Public Broadcasting. “We’re here as a public service.”
In the previous state budget and past budget proposals this legislative session, Indiana Public Broadcasting received $7.4 million to distribute to the state’s eight television stations and nine radio stations. After last week’s revenue forecast revealed a $2 billion gap lawmakers needed to fill, due in part to federal tariffs that affected the stock market, this line item was one of many that got the axe.
Public media has come under fire by conservatives who believe these outlets are overrun by liberal-leaning biases. These outlets dispute this, saying they represent diverse viewpoints in their coverage. Executives with PBS and NPR have been brought before Congress to testify on this.
Earlier this month, national media outlets reported on a draft memo from the White House asking Congress to rescind the $1.1 billion already approved for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a nonprofit corporation that funds public media stations, over the next two years. Congress would then have 45 days to vote on the request.
In February, Indiana’s own U.S. Sen. Jim Banks proposed a bill to defund National Public Radio, specifically.
“Taxpayers shouldn’t be forced to fund NPR’s liberal propaganda,” Banks said in a statement at the time. “If NPR can’t stay afloat without government funding, that tells you all you need to know about the quality of their news.”
Newman said he hasn’t gotten the sense from state elected officials that they have the same motivation as federal lawmakers. He said IPBS has long had a respectful relationship with them, and that this seems to be a victim of the revenue shortfall ― but the late-stage zeroing out came as a surprise.
“To have learned about this at the 11th hour and, quite honestly, to have not had advanced indication this was going to happen, it hit the wrong way,” he said. “We felt it. It’s going to impact a lot of people.”
It’s unclear yet the precise impact, but if stations don’t find ways to raise money to replace the state funds, programming could be impacted, he said ― anything from financial literacy for seniors to early childhood educational programs.
Contact IndyStar state government and politics reporter Kayla Dwyer at kdwyer@indystar.com or follow her on X@kayla_dwyer17.
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana state budget eliminates funding for public broadcasting