Funding
Public media operates on three mission-driven principles: the creation and distribution of instructional, educational and cultural programming; civil dialogue, civic information and community engagement; and free, reliable, redundant access to potentially life-saving public safety information and alerts. Funding from multiple sources helps Alaska Public Media deliver on those missions through television, radio and a statewide news network.
Alaska Public Media’s greatest percent of annual funding — 80 percent — comes from the local community of individual donors, corporate partners, local foundations and other community partnerships. The second largest funding source is federal support though the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Since 2019, we have received no grant funding from the State of Alaska.
How you can help ensure federal funding for public media
- Take Action – Through the Protect My Public Media Action Network.
- Get Involved – Send an email to Congress about protecting public media.
- Share – Invite your friends to help by using #ILovePBS and #ILoveNPR.
Why federal funding from the CPB is key
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) is the federally funded nonprofit organization that funds PBS and 1,500 locally owned and operated public television and radio stations across the country -- like Alaska Public Media -- with the purpose of educating, entertaining and inspiring the American people, unencumbered by political or commercial imperatives. The federal funding for public broadcasting represents 0.01 percent of the federal budget.
Federal funding for public broadcasting is an irreplaceable investment in local communities. It is also the primary funding source for the Alaska Public Radio Network which includes twenty-three, small, rural radio stations.
At about $1.60 per person per year, and less than .01% of the federal budget, federal funding for public broadcasting provides an exceptional return on investment through federal and state public safety partnerships, educational services, and homegrown programming.
The vast majority of federal funding goes to local public media stations, which are some of the last local media, particularly in rural, remote, and underserved communities throughout the country.
Other information you can share about the value of public media
- Public television provides more than 120,000 trusted learning tools and free resources for teachers, parents and caregivers to use in the classroom and at home, reaching 40 million children across the country.
- As the No. 1 source of children’s educational media, public television is America’s largest classroom. Research shows that children’s shows such as Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, Super Why! and Peg Plus Cat teach important skills, such as social-emotional skills, early literacy and math.
- Alaska Public Media offers free, over the air PBS KIDS 24/7 -- an all-day & night educational kids channel.
- Public television reaches 68 percent of all kids ages two to eight, providing educational media that’s proven to prepare kids for school, especially low-income and underserved children who do not attend preschool.
- Public television is the only non-commercial television network available for free to all Americans, whether or not they have cable TV. More than 200 million Americans connect through more than 350 public television stations, the web, mobile devices, in the classroom and at in-person events.
- Public television provides trusted, family-oriented programming for all ages that does not include violence or sexual content.
- Public television is a smart investment. At a time when schools are cutting funding for music and art, public television helps keep the arts alive for children and adults.