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GUEST OPINION
For decades, residents in rural Washington have relied on local KSPS public television and its translators across eastern Washington to provide high quality children’s shows, and a variety of entertaining and news programs for adults. In addition, KSPS provides lifesaving public safety infrastructure allowing weather and natural disaster alerts to be broadcast throughout the Inland Northwest. These invaluable services will be jeopardized if Congress cuts federal funding for public media.
KSPS currently receives over $1 million in annual federal funding. These funds help maintain the translator systems around the Inland Northwest we all rely upon to receive KSPS programs and emergency alerts. Keeping these translators operating requires regular maintenance and is expensive.
Federal funding is used for this purpose.
For over 50 years, Federal funding has allowed KSPS to purchase shows that we depend upon. From Sesame Street, Mister Rogers, and Arthur to today’s Wild Kratts, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood and Cyber Chase, KSPS’ educational shows for young children remain the hallmark of public television. KSPS has supported families with proven educational tools that have helped parents be their kids’ first teachers, and prepared multiple generations to be ready to learn in school and succeed in life.
Public television provides critical education resources for the over 50% of 3- to 4-year-olds in the U.S. who do not attend preschool. KSPS works with preschools, schools, libraries and other partners, bringing the resources of PBS Kids to help prepare children for success in school.
KSPS produces local shows as well including Northwest Profiles, and Inland Sessions. Sit and Be Fit is produced in their studios and is seen across the country. Popular programming it purchases includes Austin City Limits, Finding Your Roots, Antiques Roadshow, Masterpiece, Father Brown, Nova, Nature, Ken Burn’s documentaries, British comedies and my personal favorite, The Red Green Show.
Important to rural communities, KSPS provide lifesaving public safety communications and services in partnership with federal, state and local authorities using KSPS translators. This includes traditional alerts and warnings in communities throughout eastern Washington, northern Idaho, and parts of Montana--communities that may have no other local broadcasters—and new cutting-edge technology that helps first responders communicate with each other over the broadcast spectrum without the need for mobile service or broadband.
This technology, and public television’s public safety partnerships, is already helping with weather events and natural disaster warnings and has been proven effective in a wide range of scenarios where broadband or cellular service are limited, including rural search and rescue. These services keep us safe.
To receive these programs and services it costs each US taxpayer about $1.60 a year. As you can see, this investment is worth it and critical for residents in rural Washington. Public television has earned the broad support of the American people, across the political spectrum.
That bipartisan support has been consistently reflected in Congress, which approved funding for public media just a few weeks ago in the final fiscal year 2025 funding bill. However, the administration and some members of Congress want to eliminate all public media funding. You can see how devastating this would be to rural Washington residents.
Please contact our US Representative Michael Baumgardner and urge him to protect federal funding for KSPS and other public stations across our nation.
JEFFREY BELL IS A RESIDENT OF DIAMOND LAKE.
