Public broadcasting has largely achieved the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967's “universal service” mandate — to provide all Americans with free, over-the-air access to public broadcasting's programming and services. Today, nearly 99 percent of the U.S. population can access public broadcasting's over-the-air signals. This reach could not have been achieved without significant federal investment in rural communities throughout the country.

 

 

CPB Support for Rural Stations

More than 70 percent of CPB’s annual appropriation goes directly to public media stations in the form of Community Service Grants (CSG). As described in the Television and Radio General Provisions and Eligibility Requirements, CSG grant calculations include a variety of provisions that provide special assistance to small and rural stations.

• 245 of the total 544 radio and TV grantees are considered rural. Of these, 84 are public television station grantees and 161 are public radio station grantees.
• During FY 2023, CPB provided more than $147 million to support operations and programming at these stations, representing 31 percent of our total appropriation. Rural stations leveraged this funding to raise $553 million in non-federal funds, including $164 million in state funding, $48 million from colleges and universities, $37 million from foundations, $42 million from local businesses and $248 million from individual donors. All told, this represents a return of over $3.70 for every appropriated dollar.
• These rural stations employ more than 5,850 people.

According to stations’ most recent financial reports to CPB:

Rural stations depend more on CPB funding than urban stations. CPB grants -- represented 17 percent of an average rural station’s revenue, versus 9 percent for non-rural stations. Almost half of all rural grantees – 120 stations – relied on CPB for at least 25 percent of their revenue while 33 rural stations – many on Native American reservations – relied on CPB funding for at least 50 percent of their revenue.

Rural stations depend more on state government funding than urban stations. State funding represented 22 percent of an average rural station’s revenue, versus 6 percent for non-rural stations. 44 rural stations relied on state government funding for at least 25 percent of their revenue while 11 rural stations relied on state funding for at least 50 percent of their revenue.

Rural stations have a harder time raising money from individual donors than urban stations. Individual donations represented 28 percent of an average rural station’s total revenue, versus 40 percent for non-rural stations.

Due to the low population density of its audience, and the fact that they often operate multiple transmitters to reach remote areas, broadcasting and engineering costs are higher at rural stations than at urban ones, and represent 19 percent of the average station’s total expenses, versus 14 percent for non-rural stations.

CPB Support for Rural Programming

Public media in the U.S. is locally controlled and operated. Public television and radio stations in communities across the country make the final decisions on the programming and services that best meet their community needs.

CPB, through the appropriation from Congress, supports geographically diverse programming, including programs set in rural America distributed regionally and nationally, local journalism in rural communities, and the development of local talent to tell stories in rural America. Recent and ongoing CPB support for programming includes:

Homegrown: Future Visions: The documentary series from Firelight Media, PBS, and the Center for Asian American Media featured eight short films made by emerging filmmakers that illuminate the living histories, cultures, and prospective futures of the American Midwest.

Molly of Denali: This acclaimed animated PBS KIDS program features Molly Mabray, a contemporary Gwich’in/Koyukon/Dena’ina Athabascan girl whose family runs a trading post in the fictional village of Qyah in rural Alaska. The series is developed and produced by WGBH in partnership with CBC Kids, with support from CPB. It is also funded through the CPB-PBS Ready To Learn Initiative, which is funded by Congress and administered by the U.S. Department of Education to promote early science and literacy learning, with an emphasis on supporting children from underserved communities.

PBS Digital Studios, produces original programming on YouTube and PBS digital channels to educate younger audiences about the world around them with series including Indie Alaska, produced in partnership with Alaska Public Media to tell fascinating true stories of the Last Frontier. With CPB funding, PBS Digital Studios has developed Regional Digital Centers of Innovation to expand the digital production capacity at stations throughout the country, including those serving large rural audiences. Ritual, from Louisiana Public Broadcasting and Tarriona “Tank” Ball, explores how rituals across the American South reveal complexities of the past and new possibilities for the future. Rogue History, from PBS North Carolina, explores the lost history of outlaws, outcasts, and rogues.

Regional Journalism Collaborations: Since 2010, CPB has invested more than $44 million to help launch over 40 local and regional news collaborations connecting 150 public media stations in 43 states and the District of Columbia. Many of these collaborations, including the Gulf States Newsroom, Mountain West News Bureau, Harvest Public Media, the Ohio Valley ReSource, and the Alaska Desk, have added reporting positions to cover wide swaths of rural America that do not have many other local news options.