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The FCC has announced an investigation into NPR and PBS over concerns that their corporate underwriting announcements may violate federal laws prohibiting commercial advertising on public broadcasting stations.
Some shit you should know before you read: PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) and NPR (National Public Radio) are nonprofit public broadcasters in the United States, designed to provide news without commercial influence. While they do receive some government funding, the majority of their budgets come from private donations, corporate sponsorships, and grants. PBS receives about 16% of its funding from federal sources, while NPR gets roughly 1% directly from the government, though its member stations receive about 10% of their funding from the federal government. Public broadcasting stations are prohibited from running traditional commercials and instead rely on underwriting announcements, which acknowledge corporate sponsors without making explicit calls to action.

What’s going on now: In an announcement, President Trump’s recently appointed FCC Chairman, Brendan Carr, launched an investigation into NPR and PBS, alleging that their underwriting announcements may violate federal laws prohibiting commercial advertising on public broadcasting stations. The FCC is examining whether these sponsorship messages cross the legal boundary between permissible acknowledgments and impermissible advertisements. According to Carr, certain underwriting announcements may contain promotional language that resembles traditional commercials, which public broadcasters are legally barred from airing. He expressed concerns that taxpayer dollars may be indirectly supporting content that functions as commercial advertising, which could further justify eliminating federal funding for public broadcasting.
PBS & NPR react: In a statement, Katherine Maher, NPR’s top exec said, “We are confident any review of our programming and underwriting practices will confirm NPR’s adherence to these rules. We have worked for decades with the FCC in support of noncommercial educational broadcasters who provide essential information, educational programming, and emergency alerts to local communities across the United States.”
Similarly, PBS said they were “proud of the noncommercial educational programming we provide to all Americans through our member stations. We work diligently to comply with the FCC’s underwriting regulations and welcome the opportunity to demonstrate that to the Commission.”
This all comes as Republican leaders, including former President Trump, have renewed calls to eliminate government funding for NPR and PBS, arguing that taxpayer dollars should not support public broadcasting. Trump previously attempted to defund the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) during his first term but faced bipartisan resistance in Congress.