Months after Congress defunded public broadcasting, 14 public media stations in Alaska got some good news this week.
The Interior Department has put them on the list to be funded through a program that supports tribal stations, to make up for the money they’re no longer getting from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
Lauren Adams, general manager of KUCB in Unalaska, got an email Wednesday with the exact figure: $282,728.
“So roughly the amount that we received in our CPB Community Service Grant,” she said.
That gets KUCB through the year. But it is a one-time grant, so Adams still has a big challenge ahead.
Meanwhile, the plight of the little station in the Aleutians won the hearts of public radio supporters around the country.
Alerted by stories in the New York Times and other national media outlets, contributors found their way to the donate button on KUCB’s website. Others were matched through an organization called Adopt A Station. More than 100 people sent contributions from afar, Adams said, and the station gained roughly $25,000 in membership fees. The accompanying notes buoyed the staff.
“A lot of the comments were really, really touching. And just saying that ‘the local work you do in your community makes a difference. Keep doing it. Keep up the good work,’” she said. “Really morale boosting.”
It was a similar story for KYUK in Bethel. General Manager Kristin Hall said contributions from afar helped cheer the staff, even if they didn’t approach the value of the federal funds the radio and tv station lost. The new Interior Department grants make KYUK whole, at least for one year. They come to nearly $250,000 for radio operations and more than $800,000 for TV,” Hall said.
“This funding that has been earmarked for stations, they are truly some of the most vulnerable in our country at this moment.”
KYUK and KUCB are not tribally owned, but they partnered with their local tribes to receive the grants. There’s one more hurdle though: Hall says she thinks her station won’t actually get the money until the government shutdown ends.
