Report: 24 states cut funds for public broadcasting, four deleted all state support

Washington – Almost half of all U.S. states have reduced their funding for public radio and television, according to a report this week from Free Press. The analysis shows $30 million was cut from state funding for the 2012 fiscal year and cumulative state support since 2008 has dropped by over $200 million. Florida, New Hampshire, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania completely eliminated state support for public broadcasting. In New Jersey, this resulted in the longtime state network going off the air in June, as CCLP reported last summer. Since 2008, Alabama, Indiana, Kansas, South Carolina, and Virginia have reduced support……

BBC executives describe deep cuts, new investments

WASHINGTON — Faced with a 16% budget cut, BBC executives decided to focus resources on top priorities – peak viewing hours and the "best journalism in the world." That was the word today from top managers at the BBC, speaking at a CCLP communication forum at the USC Washington DC Center. The budget cuts were the result of across-the-board reductions by the UK government, and 16% was comparable to the cuts at museums and other cultural institutions. But the BBC was also determined to invest in new programming. "It's all very well cutting," said Caroline Thomson, the BBC's Chief Operating……