A devastating blow to public media

Trump's attack on public media is a five-alarm fire for our democracy.

Dear MoveOn member, Donald Trump's attacks against public media are quickly becoming a national crisis. Last week, Trump signed an executive order to eliminate all federal funding for PBS and public radio, outrageously claiming that their reporting is "radical, woke propaganda disguised as 'news.'"1 And as early as this week, Congress could vote to eliminate funding for public media retroactively—a devastating blow that could result in the immediate shutdown of stations across the country, particularly in underserved and rural areas.2,3 The good news is that cracks are forming in Republican support of Trump's assault on public media—and we have a time-sensitive opportunity to defeat these attacks. The Hill reports that "concerns are bubbling up among some Republicans over what those cuts could mean for programs and constituents back home."4 MoveOn's been incredibly busy defending public media: launching petitions, flooding Congress with calls from constituents, driving mobile billboards, shining a spotlight on Trump's authoritarian agenda, and working to drive a wedge between Trump and Republican lawmakers from rural and underserved areas who rely on public media. We need to be able to keep these efforts going until funding for public media is secured—now and for the future. Will you donate $5 a month to support MoveOn's efforts to protect funding for PBS and public radio before it's too late? We need to flood Republican lawmakers with constituent pressure right now. Yes, I'll chip in $5 a month. (If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately.) No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation. From broadcasting emergency information during natural disasters to teaching our kids the ABCs on "Sesame Street," PBS and public radio play a vital role in our democracy and community life. They are a lifeline of information and civic engagement—often the only outlets providing local news, educational kids' shows, and cultural programming free from corporate agendas.5 That's particularly true in many rural and underserved areas.6 That's why Trump's efforts to destroy public broadcasting are so concerning. And these attacks are just one part of his larger authoritarian attack on the free press. In a recent interview, Trump literally said he "does not know" whether the Constitution guarantees due process rights in America—suggesting that he doesn't feel bound to uphold our constitutional rights as president.7 Without an independent media, who will report on Trump's abuses and hold him accountable? Who will report his statements and his actions accurately? Who will speak truth to power? Earlier this year, Trump personally made the decision to bar the Associated Press, one of the most well-respected news organizations in the world, from the White House and Air Force One after the "independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting" declined to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.8,9 Corporate-owned media have either aligned with Trump or are being extorted as Trump has been using lawsuit after lawsuit as weapons to chill their future coverage. In December, ABC News paid Trump $16 million, setting a scary precedent.10 That was followed by settlement payments from Disney and Meta.11 Paramount, the parent company of the show "60 Minutes," is on the cusp of paying Trump millions of dollars.12 This is straight out of the playbook of authoritarian like leaders Vladimir Putin and Viktor Orbán: Attack media both public and private to ensure only his propaganda gets out and his grip on power is tightened.13,14 Trump's attack on public media is a five-alarm fire for our democracy. Will you chip in $5 a month to fund our emergency efforts to protect funding for public media—before it's too late? Yes, I'll chip in $5 a month. (If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately.) No, I'm sorry, I can't make a monthly donation. We've stood up to attacks on the media in the past and won, and we're prepared to do it again. But the threat is even greater now. Time is of the essence, and we urgently need your help to save public media, stop Trump's tyranny, and strengthen our nation's democracy. Thanks for all you do. –Alexis, Alex, Britt, Nakia, and the rest of the team Sources: 1. "Trump signs order to cut federal funding for NPR, PBS broadcasters," Reuters, May 2, 2025 https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/society-equity/trump-signs-order-that-aims-cut-funding-npr-pbs-2025-05-02/ 2. "House Republican leaders eye rescissions vote in early May," Punchbowl News, April 21, 2025 https://punchbowl.news/article/house/house-gop-leaders-eye-may-rescissions-vote/ 3. "Trump plans order to cut funding for NPR and PBS," NPR, April 15, 2025 https://www.npr.org/2025/04/15/nx-s1-5352827/npr-pbs-public-media-trump-rescission-funding 4. "GOP push for cuts to NPR, PBS gains steam but some are skeptical," The Hill, April 30, 2025 https://thehill.com/homenews/media/5273951-gop-npr-pbs-cuts-trump-congress/ 5. "Trump plans order to cut funding for NPR and PBS," NPR, April 15, 2025 https://www.npr.org/2025/04/15/nx-s1-5352827/npr-pbs-public-media-trump-rescission-funding 6. Ibid. 7. "Trump Says 'I Don't Know' When Asked About Due Process and Upholding Constitution," The New York Times, May 5, 2025 https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/04/us/politics/trump-meet-the-press-interview-due-process.html 8. "Trump's meme coin business racks up fees as buyers jump at the chance for access to the president," AP News, May 5, 2025 https://apnews.com/article/trump-meme-coin-crypto-75063140a2223eb2698db7435dfaf5ac 9. "Trump personally decided to limit Associated Press' access to White House," Politico, February 24, 2025 https://www.politico.com/news/2025/02/24/trump-white-house-associated-press-lawsuit-00205723 10. "Trump's New Line of Attack Against the Media Gains Momentum," The New York Times, February 7, 2025 https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/07/business/media/trump-media-lawsuits.html 11. "Media Giants Settling With Donald Trump Are Setting a "Dangerous" Precedent," Vanity Fair, February 7, 2025 https://www.vanityfair.com/news/story/media-donald-trump-paramount-disney-meta 12. "Paramount Board Clears Possible Path for Settling Trump's '60 Minutes' Lawsuit," The New York Times, April 29, 2025 https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/29/business/media/paramount-cbs-60-minutes-trump-lawsuit.html 13. "Hungary's Orban flags new legislation, crackdown on media over 'foreign funding,'" Reuters, February 24, 2025 https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/hungarys-orban-flags-new-legislation-crackdown-media-over-foreign-funding-2025-02-24 14. "Nothing Scares Putin More Than Informed Russians," The Nation, March 9, 2022 https://www.thenation.com/article/world/putin-russian-media/ Want to support our work? The MoveOn community will work every moment, day by day and year by year, to resist Trump's agenda, contain the damage, defeat hate with love, and begin the process of swinging the nation's pendulum back toward sanity, decency, and the kind of future that we must never give up on. And to do it we need your ongoing support, now more than ever. Will you stand with us? If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately: Donate: $5 monthly Donate: $15 monthly Donate: $50 monthly Donate another amount monthly Or make a one-time gift Contributions to MoveOn Civic Action are not tax-deductible for income tax purposes. MoveOn.org Civic Action - PO Box 96141, Washington, D.C. 20090-6141. ActBlue Civics Inc. is the merchant of record for all transactions made to MoveOn Civic Action using the ActBlue platform. ActBlue Civics Inc. receives and processes these donations before disbursing them to MoveOn Civic Action within 30 days of receipt. This email was sent to Andra Patterson on May 07, 2025. To change your email address or update your contact info, click here. MoveOn's privacy policy was recently updated. To read our new privacy policy, click here. To remove yourself from this list, unsubscribe. Sent via ActionNetwork.org. To update your email address, change your name or address, or to stop receiving emails from MoveOn, please click here.