NPR and PBS respond to President Donald Trump's executive order cutting funding

By Evan Dawson,

Megan Mack, Julie Williams

Published May 5, 2025 at 4:45 PM EDT

Two men wearing headphones sit at a table in a radio talk studio: a man at left has short grey hair and is wearing a grey sweater; a man at right has short dark hair and is wearing a grey plaid blazer, black button-down shirt and jeans.

1 of 3 — Tom Proietti on "Connections"

Tom Proietti on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Monday, May 5, 2025

Julie Williams / WXXI News

2 of 3 — Hastings_headshot.jpg

Chris Hastings

Provided

A man with short dark hair sits in front of an American flag wearing a grey blazer, white button-down shirt and red tie.

3 of 3 — My Portrait Sessions

Joe Morelle

Nate Payne/Nate Payne / Provided

A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a blue button-down shirt and a grey blazer. He is holding a pair of eyeglasses. The word "Connections" appears on the left side of the photo in vertical letters.

Leaders from NPR and PBS said Sunday that the president's executive order eliminating funding for public broadcasting could have devastating effects across the country — especially for small and mid-size markets.

President Trump said that he doesn't trust public broadcasting and he wants Americans to rely on other outlets.

ur guests include WXXI CEO Chris Hastings and Congressman Joe Morelle, who can speak to the mission and impact of public media for everyone. We welcome audience feedback as well.

Our guests:

Chris Hastings, president and CEO of WXXI Public Media
Rep. Joe Morelle, 25^th Congressional District
Tom Proietti, resident media scholar at St. John Fisher University and longtime WXXI member