Скачать или смотреть KAXE Radio: How Public Media Cuts Hit Northern Minnesota

Public media is under fire. KAXE, like many local stations, is confronting a triple threat: federal funding cuts, state-level reductions, and unexpected operational costs — all converging at once.

Congress recently voted to rescind over $1 billion in funding that had already been appropriated to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) — funding that was meant to support public media over the next two years. This reversal undermines the decades-long tradition of bipartisan support for CPB and threatens the stability of stations like KAXE, which rely on that support to serve communities across Minnesota.

CPB funds are typically allocated two years in advance to shield public media from political interference. With these funds now stripped away, local stations are left scrambling to find alternative support.

In this video, we explore what these cuts mean for KAXE and the future of public media in rural Minnesota.