Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel is joining 22 other state attorneys general in a fight to stop President Donald Trump’s effort to defund public broadcasters.
In May, President Trump issued an executive order directing the board of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to end federal funding for NPR and PBS. That body is a private, non-profit agency established by Congress.
Trump is attempting to take back about $1.1 billion in funds already appropriated to public broadcasters nationwide—including Michigan Public. NPR and PBS stations in two states have sued to reverse the cuts, arguing Trump doesn’t have the power to do that.
Now, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and colleagues in other states have filed briefs in support of those lawsuits. They argue that public broadcasting serves “a critical role in delivering information to the public,” and cutting their services would “gravely harm Americans.”
The coalition of attorneys general argue that ending funding “would create risks to public safety and erode trust by threatening coverage of local news, creating disruptions to the distribution of emergency notifications, reducing critical educational services, and limiting public media’s unique reach to rural and tribal audiences,” Nessel’s office said in a statement.
“The state of Michigan is covered by a dozen public media stations,” it continued. “In many rural areas, these stations are the only reliable source of news, especially during emergencies. Michigan’s network of public media stations plays a vital role in amplifying important news and weather updates and they broadcast press conferences live during times of crisis.”
The amicus brief filed with the lawsuits notes that when Congress funded the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in 1967, “CPB’s express purpose was to maintain an independent public broadcasting system free from government control and influence,” and that no “department, agency, officer or, employee of the United States” had authority to “exercise any direction, supervision, or control” over broadcasting or over the CPB.”
“Public media connects millions of Americans. It touches life’s ordinary and extraordinary moments, from school lessons in the living room to life-saving emergency alerts in the midst of a storm,” the brief continued. “It links remote communities to the happenings of the country and world at the same time that it carries those communities’ vibrant perspectives to a wider audience.
"These services, and more, combined with the public funding structure, foster an increasingly rare asset for American institutions: public trust. Losing public media would erode that trust and leave many American communities in the dark.”
Trump's executive order argues that "unlike in 1967, when the CPB was established, today the media landscape is filled with abundant, diverse, and innovative news options. Government funding of news media in this environment is not only outdated and unnecessary but corrosive to the appearance of journalistic independence." It goes on to say that "neither entity presents a fair, accurate, or unbiased portrayal of current events to taxpaying citizens."
The U.S. House has already approved President Trump’s request to rescind about $1.1 billion from public broadcast outlets over the next two years. The Senate has yet to vote on the request, but by law must do so within 45 days of when it was introduced.
