Court striking down Trump’s executive order to defund NPR does not mean money will return

Although the federal judge’s ruling is a victory for free speech and the First Amendment, it does not reinstate federal funding for public media.

As reported by NPR, a federal court has struck down the executive order that eliminated funding for NPR and PBS, ruling that the order violated the First Amendment by targeting public media because of its journalism.

However, this ruling does not mean federal funding has been restored.

Congress already approved the removal of those funds, and the system that distributed them—the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB)—no longer exists.

Unless the president and Congress reinstate federal funding for public media in the future, no funding exists.

That makes your support of KCLU more important than ever. Public media’s strength has always come from the communities we serve. Your investment ensures that trusted, fact-based reporting, lifelong learning, and award-winning local news will continue, regardless of what political party is in office.

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