In the seven weeks since Congress voted to rescind $9 billion that had already been allocated for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, public radio stations across the country have been scrambling to figure out what the future looks like.
The Conversation recently talked about the current state of affairs with a familiar voice: Michel Martin, a host of National Public Radio’s “Morning Edition.” Martin shared her journey through public media and offered her perspective on the role of public radio in today’s media landscape.
Interview highlights
On how NPR is doing
MICHEL MARTIN: I'm glad I have the chance to say we're not going anywhere. We are not going anywhere. And I would think that people would know that, but I kind of understand why they don't. Yes, it is true that there has been a significant loss of funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which it's a big hit; you can't lose a billion dollars in funding and have it not be a big hit. But the reality of it is, it's a small part of our funding overall. Yes, it's true that some of the stations are going to be hit harder than others. Some of our stations are in places that are certainly rich in culture. They are certainly rich in story, and they certainly serve a vital need, but they are in places that don't have a lot of excess capital that people can readily share. So that's where the public funding comes in, because it has been important over the 50-year history of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to be sure that people all over the country have access to this kind of work. But my answer is, we are going to continue to do what we do. We know what our mission is. Our mission is to report on what's important to our audience, around the country and around the world. We're going to keep doing that. Obviously, we're going to have to figure out some new ways of doing that, but we have a learning mindset here. I mean, this is one of the reasons why I think that we have been successful over the years.
On the benefits of public media
MARTIN: We don't just connect with you on your worst day or your best day. We connect with you in between the things that are happening in your life that are just important and interesting, and that, to me, is those gray areas. You know, when a big, giant, crazy thing happens, everybody's going to rush there. And when something amazing happens, like, I don't know, somebody wins the lottery, think about it — you're gonna hear about it. But we're there for those in-between moments, because we live where you live, and we have the benefit of this network across the country, and, in fact, bureaus around the world, where we can tell you what's happening across the street, across the county, across the state, across the country, across the world. I think that's the value proposition. I hope that people get that message.
This story aired on The Conversation on Sept. 4, 2025. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. Hannah Kaʻiulani Coburn adapted this interview for the web.
