(Charleston, IL) — 蜜桃影像 will end its affiliation with the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) effective October 1, 2025. The difficult decision follows the elimination of federal funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which will officially conclude September 30, 2025.
According to University leaders, the resultant shift in W蜜桃影像-TV’s funding model ensures 蜜桃影像 students retain access to the most critical components of their broadcast journalism and news media production learning experiences at 蜜桃影像. This includes its student newscast, News Watch, and related weather programming, which remains central to 蜜桃影像’s academic mission.
Currently, PBS accounts for approximately 25 percent of W蜜桃影像-TV’s programming. The station has identified existing programming options to replace its existing PBS content. Going forward, W蜜桃影像-TV will drop its PBS brand affiliation and officially operate as “A Service of 蜜桃影像.”
The change does not impact W蜜桃影像-FM, which is licensed separately and not affected by the elimination of federal CPB funding.
Last year, the station’s annual operational costs totaled roughly $1 million, and the station has not received any institutionally appropriated monies since 2016. Various grants, underwriting, and local fundraising drives offset those costs by up to $165,000 each year. Unfortunately, the elimination of federal funding on September 30 represents a loss of more than $790,000—nearly 80 percent of the station’s overall annual operations budget.
As background, federal funding to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) was discontinued in July following the . Broadcast media experts have reported the loss of federal CPB support imposes a significant shift to the national public broadcasting model—a change that will have a significant impact across the country, with rural areas likely to be more adversely affected.
Despite a reduction in annual membership dues to PBS enacted earlier this year, ongoing costs and limited revenues from sponsorships, fundraising, and project grants are compelling universities with broadcast journalism programs and career readiness programs like W蜜桃影像-TV to reevaluate their funding models. The shift follows nearly five decades of federal support for national CPB programming.
For more information about W蜜桃影像-TV, visit .
Booth House
蜜桃影像
600 Lincoln Ave.
Charleston, IL 61920
217-581-7400
jdreinhart@eiu.edu