Most countries across the globe have public media broadcasting. In Britain, it’s the BBC, in Canada, they have the CBC and Radio Canada; Mexico has the Public Broadcasting System of the Mexican State. Mexico used its public radio system to conduct elementary school classes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, Ghana, Japan, and Kenya all have public media financed by their national government.
These entities provide mass reach with safety and emergency messaging when needed. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting in the USA received approximately $550,000.00 from the federal government. A minuscule amount when the annual US budget is over 6 trillion dollars.
WCLK is an NPR affiliate part of the public media supported by CPB. We are immediately facing a $300K shortfall, and we are searching for ways to fill that gap, but also to find sustainable donations to keep us up and running beyond the 2026 fiscal year. Wendy Williams, our fearless leader, joins us to speak about this challenge.
Williams explains that the last few weeks have been about strategizing and galvanizing funding support to replace the funds that annually come from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. For our current fiscal year, we are $300K short. We’ve done mail campaigns and press campaigns to increase awareness. Additionally, Williams explains that we have reached out to local and regional foundations, along with high-net-worth individuals who can support the station by writing a check. Williams emphasizes that this is an emergency for us to lose that type of money for this fiscal year.
I asked Williams what she wanted our listeners to know about this challenge. She mentions that half of our year is funded with the grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Williams says that the funding is used to support the platforms that we use, software updates and upgrades, refurbishing equipment even our tower rental.
Williams shares that she is in touch with local institutions in our city that have partnered with WCLK over the years. They have been asked to reach out to their members to increase awareness about the value that WCLK brings to the community. We train students, educate our community, as well as highlight America’s Classical music: Jazz. The station has been on an upward trajectory for over 51 years, and we want to continue the growth.
Many of our federal representatives supported funding public media. I asked Williams if it was too late to reach out to them. Williams is asking that we all continue to reach out to elected officials at every level. Write letters or call their offices with the message that WCLK is too important to lose.
When asked why the public should support the station, Williams states that WCLK is more than a station; WCLK is a cultural institution. Make your donation today!