St. Petersburg, Fla. – September 11, 2026 -- The Poynter Institute and Public Media Company have launched the Future of Public Media Initiative, a national effort to rebuild the U.S. public media system a year after Congress rescinded more than $1 billion in future funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
Congress cut over $1 billion in CPB funding a year ago, ending five decades of support
CPB had distributed funding to a network of 1,500 public media stations for over 50 years, backing news, educational and cultural programming. The rescission left many local stations searching for new funding and operating models.
Initiative targets a full set of recommendations by early 2027
Poynter and Public Media Company will lead a community-driven process to define public media's purpose, structure, funding models and design principles. Sitara Nieves, Poynter's vice president of teaching and organizational strategy, said the goal is a recommendation for how a reimagined system could serve community needs at scale.
Tim Isgitt, CEO of Public Media Company, said the effort aims to establish a framework for a public media system that delivers free, trusted information to all Americans.
Research partner has already surveyed over 100,000 U.S. adults
The initiative will work with City Square Associates, which has conducted research on the needs, sentiments and opinions of more than 100,000 U.S. adults regarding how communities want media to serve them. That data will inform a coalition of civic leaders, public media station leaders and staff, nonprofit media representatives and citizens tasked with building a shared framework for the sector's future.
Arthur Vining Davis Foundations and Knight Foundation provide initial funding
The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations and Knight Foundation have committed initial funding for the initiative, with individual donations accepted through Poynter's website. The public can register for updates at futureofpublicmedia.org.
Both organizations bring existing ties to hundreds of local media outlets
Poynter has worked with more than 300 public media stations, including on digital transformation projects to grow revenue and audience. Public Media Company has worked with over 450 local media organizations across all 50 states on mergers, acquisitions, operating agreements and content partnerships, and launched the Public Media Bridge Fund to help at-risk stations navigate the post-CPB landscape.