Connections

Funding cuts to public media

By Racquel Stephen,

Elissa Orlando, Veronica Volk, Julie Williams

Published July 21, 2025 at 2:40 PM EDT

Two smiling people wearing headphones sit next to each other at a table in a radio talk studio: a man at left has very short dark hair and a grey beard and is wearing a black blazer over a grey polo shirt; a woman at right has short blonde hair and is wearing a black and grey striped dress. — Chris Hastings with host Racquel Stephen on "Connections" on Monday, July 21, 2025

A smiling woman with short blonde hair sits at a desk in front of a microphone wearing a gold necklace and green and white patterned dress. — Racquel Stephen guest hosting "Connections with Evan Dawson"

We discuss what’s next for public media.

Congress has zeroed out funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. This means less support for public radio, TV and digital media across the country.

We discuss what the rescission means for WXXI. WXXI president and CEO Chris Hastings has said the funding cut is serious but has also asserted “we’re not going anywhere.”

Chris joins host Racquel Stephen to discuss the future and to hear your questions and comments.

In studio:

Chris Hastings, President and CEO of WXXI Public Media

Connections

Racquel Stephen

Racquel Stephen is WXXI's health, equity and community reporter and producer. She holds a bachelor's degree in English literature from the University of Rochester and a master's degree in broadcasting and digital journalism from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.

See stories by Racquel Stephen

Elissa Orlando

Elissa Orlando is a producer for “Connections with Evan Dawson.” She returns part-time to WXXI News after stepping back from a long career in public media and in translational science.

See stories by Elissa Orlando

Veronica Volk

Veronica Volk is a senior producer and editor for WXXI News.

See stories by Veronica Volk

Julie Williams

Julie Williams is an associate producer for "Connections with Evan Dawson." She started at WXXI in 2019 and has been working on Connections since 2022.

See stories by Julie Williams