NEW YORK, Dec. 27 (Xinhua) -- In his new role advising President-elect Donald J. Trump to cut federal government expenses, Elon Musk is set to eliminate hundreds of millions of dollars in annual funding that the government funnels to PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) and NPR (National Public Radio) stations, reported The New York Times on Friday.
For decades, NPR and PBS have overcome similar threats. But this year, "the attention and intensity" of the calls to defund public media seem greater, said Michael Isip, the president and chief executive of KQED, which operates NPR and PBS stations in the San Francisco Bay Area.
NPR and PBS stations are bracing for the fight. After the election, leaders of NPR's biggest member stations circulated a report that warned "it would be unwise to assume that events will play out as they have in the past," with regard to their federal funding. PBS received an update on the situation from political consultants at a board meeting in early December. And station directors in some states are already making their case to legislators.
"Internally, NPR is preparing for a variety of funding possibilities, including that government money will be clawed back immediately, according to two people briefed on the network's planning," noted the report.
NPR and PBS had a difficult road ahead even without a funding battle, with changing listener and viewer habits putting pressure on their business models, it added. ■
