A dozen radio and TV stations in NJ about to lose millions in cuts by feds
A dozen radio and television stations serving residents of New Jersey are set to lose nearly $23 million from their annual budgets if the Trump administration gets its way.
The Senate this week passed a bill at the president's request to strip $1.1 billion from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The measure heads to the GOP-controlled House for approval.
The nonprofit corporation is the mechanism by which public dollars support the programs on PBS and NPR stations, which the Trump administration and Republicans have accused of being biased against them. Critics of the funding also say taxpayers should not fund broadcast programs or stations.
The grants from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting are not the only sources of funding for these stations, which receive grants from corporate sponsors and charitable foundations, known as underwriters. Significant funding also comes, as the PBS slogan has long reminded, from donations from "viewers like you."
Still, the cuts are expected to severely impact stations in rural America, which rely more on the grants.
What is the Corporation for Public Broadcasting?
The CPB was created by federal law in 1967.
It does not produce any programs and it doesn't own any stations. Likewise, the Public Broadcasting Service and National Public Radio also do not own any stations and are independent of each other.
The CPB funnels 70% of its funding to more than 1,500 locally owned public radio and television stations and less than 5% of funding is spent on its own operations.
Stations available to New Jersey residents
New Jersey has several state-based non-commercial stations as well as stations that simulcast programming from New York and Philadelphia-based stations. The WNET Group, which owns Thirteen and WLIW Channel 21, also operates the NJ PBS stations.
These are the grants they received this year.
📺 Philadelphia TV stations
WHYY — $2,979,410
📻 Philadelphia radio stations
WHYY — $576,938
- WHYY-FM 90.9 Philadelphia
- WNJM-FM 89.9 Manahawkin, NJ
- WNJN-FM 89.7 Atlantic City, NJ
- WNJZ-FM 90.3 Cape May Courthouse, NJ
WRTI 90.1 FM — $301,776
WXPN 88.5 FM (University of Pennsylvania) — $524,915
📺 New York television stations
WNET Thirteen — $11,644,896
WNYE (New York municipal station) — $1,916,886
📻 New York radio stations
WNYC 93.9 FM and AM 820 — $2,655,257
- WNJP 88.5 FM Sussex
- WNJY 89.3 FM Netcong
- WNJT 88.1 FM Trenton
- WNJO 90.3 FM Toms River
📺 New Jersey television stations
New Jersey Network (NJ PBS) — $1,691,634
- WNJN Channel 50 Montclair
- WNJS Channel 23 Camden
- WNJB Channel 58 New Brunswick
- WNJT Channel 52 Trenton
📻 New Jersey radio stations
WFMU 91.1 FM Jersey City— $158,697
WBJB 90.5 FM Lincroft — $91,493
WBGO 88.3 FM Newark — $215,212
WWFM 89.1 FM West Windsor — $119,988
Montclair State University — $5,000
