Getting Community Media to Work: Should the Government Fund Public Media?
An article this week in the Kansas City Star reminded readers that government funding for public broadcasting outlets is not a sure thing. The loss of public funding can impact locally-produced shows and programming quality. For community radio stations like KKFI 90.1 FM in Kansas City that receive no government funding for their daily operating budget this is a small consolation. The good news is that KKFI is sustaining its 70 local programs through donations from listeners, but it's not easy.
Most Kansas City area public and community media outlets like KKFI, KCUR-FM 89.3 and KCPT-TV get the overwhelming majority of the funding from non-government sources, but still "small government" advocates like Kansas Governor Sam Brownback argue for killing all government funding of public media. They point out that federal support for public media creates "state TV," which allow these media outlets to influence viewing audience with slanted (read: liberal) opinion.
In one of the most dramatic moves to shut down state funding for public media Governor Chris Christie compared "New Jersey’s network of public broadcasters, NJN, with 'state run-media of the Soviet Union,'" and then announced efforts to sell all of New Jersey’s public media outlets, as reported by Freepress.net's Josh Stearn and Mike Soha in "On the Chopping Block: State Budget Battles and the Future of Public Media." (PDF - full report)
How far are these state legislators willing to go to limit investigative reporting, civic dialog and educational programming? Are they willing to kill "state run-media" outlets like that of municipal government outlets KCCG-TV2 (Kansas City, Missouri) and LSTV (Lee's Summit, Missouri)? Not likely since they are city TV stations.
Garden City, Kansas station KANZ 91.1 FM, one of 20 High Plains Public Radio (HPPR) stations, provides unique music -- "Western Swing and Other Things" -- and public affairs -- "Prairie Ramblings" -- focused on the culture of southwest Kansas. The station’s loss of government funding amounts to about 15% of its operating budget and jeopardizes that it’s ability to continue local programming.
"On the Chopping Block" reported what funding cuts mean for vital local programming in Pennsylvania at radio station WITF, which "produces SmartTalk, the state’s only current affairs program. Although still on the air, SmartTalk has reduced its locally produced episodes from 30 to less than a dozen, and cut longtime host Craig Cohen."
The Kansas City Star article points out that Kansas legislators are looking to cut vital funding for High Plains Public Radio. The article revealed that Kansas state funding comprises 11-16% of funding for the 20 HPPR stations. This small radio station network is located in a largely rural area in southwest Kansas with pockets of a young, majority low-income Latino population. The National Public Radio affiliate broadcasts many syndicated shows, but also produces vital local public affairs and music shows.
HPPR operates these FM stations with a listening range serving western Kansas, eastern Colorado, and the Oklahoma and Texas panhandles. The KANZ program schedule lacks any Spanish-language or Latino programming, which might indicate they have decided to ignore the large Latino population. However, KZGC in Colby, Kansas, one of the other HPPR FM stations is listed as a Spanish-language format.
While KKFI devotes 10 hours per week to Spanish-language programming by and for the large KC Latino community, the station does not receive a significant amount of listener-supported donations or business underwriting from that community. Does that mean KKFI should elect not to devote programming to that audience? No, but it means that station could improve this connection by developing stronger partnerships with area Latino civic organizations and businesses, or seek grants from private foundations or public sources to continue this crucial local programming.
Some community and public media is so unique and vital to a local area or culture that it warrants consideration for government funding. Seeing these programs disappear from media outlets could mean these voices will not be heard.
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| Map of state funding cuts to public media (2008-2012). Source: On the Chopping Block: State Budget Battles and the Future of Public Media, freepress.net, November 2011 |
Most Kansas City area public and community media outlets like KKFI, KCUR-FM 89.3 and KCPT-TV get the overwhelming majority of the funding from non-government sources, but still "small government" advocates like Kansas Governor Sam Brownback argue for killing all government funding of public media. They point out that federal support for public media creates "state TV," which allow these media outlets to influence viewing audience with slanted (read: liberal) opinion.
In one of the most dramatic moves to shut down state funding for public media Governor Chris Christie compared "New Jersey’s network of public broadcasters, NJN, with 'state run-media of the Soviet Union,'" and then announced efforts to sell all of New Jersey’s public media outlets, as reported by Freepress.net's Josh Stearn and Mike Soha in "On the Chopping Block: State Budget Battles and the Future of Public Media." (PDF - full report)
How far are these state legislators willing to go to limit investigative reporting, civic dialog and educational programming? Are they willing to kill "state run-media" outlets like that of municipal government outlets KCCG-TV2 (Kansas City, Missouri) and LSTV (Lee's Summit, Missouri)? Not likely since they are city TV stations.
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High Plains Public Radio listening
service area in western Kansas and
Oklahoma and Texas panhandles
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"On the Chopping Block" reported what funding cuts mean for vital local programming in Pennsylvania at radio station WITF, which "produces SmartTalk, the state’s only current affairs program. Although still on the air, SmartTalk has reduced its locally produced episodes from 30 to less than a dozen, and cut longtime host Craig Cohen."
The Kansas City Star article points out that Kansas legislators are looking to cut vital funding for High Plains Public Radio. The article revealed that Kansas state funding comprises 11-16% of funding for the 20 HPPR stations. This small radio station network is located in a largely rural area in southwest Kansas with pockets of a young, majority low-income Latino population. The National Public Radio affiliate broadcasts many syndicated shows, but also produces vital local public affairs and music shows.
HPPR operates these FM stations with a listening range serving western Kansas, eastern Colorado, and the Oklahoma and Texas panhandles. The KANZ program schedule lacks any Spanish-language or Latino programming, which might indicate they have decided to ignore the large Latino population. However, KZGC in Colby, Kansas, one of the other HPPR FM stations is listed as a Spanish-language format.
While KKFI devotes 10 hours per week to Spanish-language programming by and for the large KC Latino community, the station does not receive a significant amount of listener-supported donations or business underwriting from that community. Does that mean KKFI should elect not to devote programming to that audience? No, but it means that station could improve this connection by developing stronger partnerships with area Latino civic organizations and businesses, or seek grants from private foundations or public sources to continue this crucial local programming.
Some community and public media is so unique and vital to a local area or culture that it warrants consideration for government funding. Seeing these programs disappear from media outlets could mean these voices will not be heard.
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