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 of public broadcasting by 50% or more, according to the report. Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, and Oklahoma reduced state support by 25% or more.
This trend is not limited to the U.S.. As previously reported, government funding of public service media has been reduced in many countries. In the UK, the BBC is implementing a 16% budget cut.
(Disclosure: Free Press was a partner in the Oct. 18 CCLP Washington DC forum on BBC budget reductions.)