Public media stations of all sizes are scrambling after President Trump in July moved to slash over $1 billion in federal funding and dissolve the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB).

But broadcasters that serve rural communities with already strapped resources will feel these cuts most deeply — and the financial pain is already hitting home. Stations have resorted to scaling back staff or switching to automated programming to stretch their shrinking budget.

“Before CPB was defunded, these stations were under a lot of stress,” said Scott Finn, the former president and CEO of Vermont Public, noting stressors facing the local news industry such as declining revenue and evolving audience consumption habits.

“Now on top of it, stations are losing a percent of their funding, and for some stations, it's up to 50 percent or more,” he continued. “For the average station, it's a lot less than that, but the stations that tend to be losing the most money are the stations that need that money the most.”

KRBD, an NPR station with five staff members, serves several small communities in Southeast Alaska reaching roughly 20,000 people. When CPB officially dissolved last month, the station lost nearly 40 percent of its funding. It organized an emergency fundraiser to close the gap, but only raised roughly half of what was lost.

Stations serving remote areas in Alaska are critical for informing communities on natural disasters and other breaking news, Mike Gates, general manager of KRBD, said.

Karen Petersen, a 65-year-old retiree originally from Seattle, Wa., and a longtime listener and supporter of the station, echoed this sentiment. She says she’s worried........

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