When Congress yanked $1.1 billion from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting with the Rescissions Act of 2025 (H.R. 4), it wasn’t just big names like PBS and NPR that lost support—it threatened Georgia Public Broadcasting’s 65-year role as Georgia’s public media anchor.
💥 GPB Funding Update
In a historic and challenging move, Congress voted to defund the Corporation for Public Broadcasting under the Rescissions Act of 2025 (H.R. 4), rescinding $1.1 billion previously allocated to more than 1,500 public media stations—including GPB.
GPB relied on $4.2 million in federal funding—10% of its annual budget. Nearly intact donor and state support helped maintain stability this year, but these cuts open a gap that threatens public radio, classroom content, community sports coverage, and critical emergency messaging.
🤔 What’s Happening
- GPB leadership has run contingency models, but even the leanest budgets can’t absorb this magnitude of cuts.
- Without increased giving or emergency funding, public service broadcasts—especially in rural areas—are at risk.
- The fiscal shockwaves are already rippling through GPB’s planning for 2025–26.
🔍 Between the Lines
GPB is more than a media outlet—it’s Georgia’s voice in crisis, classroom and community. Cutting those funds is more than budget gymnastics; it’s untethering an institution from its people.
📚 Catch Up Quick
- Federal blow: $1.1 billion CPB strip-out hits annually.
- Local hit: GPB loses $4.2 million, 10% of its overall revenue.
- State support: Georgia General Assembly funding remains flat.
- Community lifeline: Individual donations now more critical than ever.
🌍 The Big Picture
This move isn’t happening in a vacuum. Across the country, public media faces growing threats from partisan budget targets to digital competition.
🗣️ GPB Speaks
“Since its inception 65 years ago, GPB has belonged to Georgians who have relied on it to bring them high‑quality educational programming, unbiased local news, homegrown sports and entertainment as well as emergency public safety messages. We are not about to stop now.”
How to Read and Understand The News
When reading news, remember:
- Truth doesn’t change because we dislike it
- Facts remain facts even when they make us uncomfortable
- Events happen whether we accept them or not
- Good reporting often challenges us
- The news isn’t choosing a position — it is relaying what official, verified sources have said.
- Blaming the press for bad news is like blaming a thermometer for a fever.
Before dismissing news that bothers you, ask:
- What evidence supports this story?
- Am I reacting to facts or feelings?
- What would change my mind?
- Am I “shooting the messenger” because I don’t like what is happening?
Smart news consumers seek truth, not just comfort.
B.T. Clark
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
