Variety has reported that public media have begun to look elsewhere in search of support in the wake of $1.1 billion of budget cuts by the Trump administration. New York Public Radio hosted a gala in honor of late-night host Stephen Colbert and his wife, Evelyn McGee Colbert, in salute to their fight for free speech. Colbert has stated his hope that public media won’t see its support mitigated in future administrations.

“I have no idea whether it’ll continue into the future, and I hope it won’t,” Colbert said. “So many people value what public media can give them. In a lot of communities around the United States, public radio is the only local news because local newspapers have failed. It gives people a sense of community, lets them know what’s happening in and around where they live. And so it’s really critical that these stations,” he continued via Variety.

According to Variety, New York Public Radio CEO LaFontaine Oliver believes that public media must brace for the possibility that funding may need to continue to come from elsewhere.

“We have to look for new revenue pathways. We have to connect to our communities and audiences in different ways. It means we’re looking for institutional funders and philanthropists to ideally step up. We’ll look for ways to monetize the content we produce. This is a time of reinvention for our system. And that spirit of reinvention will serve us, even if federal funding comes back in some slice or portion.” Oliver said via Variety.

According to Variety, outside of New York, public media companies are under even more dire circumstances. Leaders in Alaska have stated the situation is “a life and death issue.”. In rural Alaska, broadband and internet are not always readily available, and public may be the only means of communicating about dangerous weather or emergency situations. With public radio stations seeing between 40 and 90 percent cuts, they are at risk of going dark.

Variety has reported that Recent surveys indicate that public media is being viewed more favorably than ever, as trust in local and national corporations declines steeply.

“I think people in the public media space are telling us the facts. It’s really hard to go to places now that are unbiased, independent, and purely factually-based.” McGee Colbert stated via Variety.

Colbet and Colbert Mcgee are avid listeners of public radio. Colbert voiced his support for the media format. “And because it’s commercial-free news, you get a longer exploration of the story. “You could spend 20 or 30 minutes on a story, rather than 7 minutes. That’d be a long time on cable news. And I can also cook while I’m doing it. I don’t have to look at anything.” via Variety.

According to Variety, Colbert’s vocal support for public media comes amid a tumultuous situation with his own broadcaster. CBS recently cancelled his talk show, Late Night With Stephen Colbert, due to what they deemed “financial reasons”. Critics have argued that Colbert’s cancellation was due to vocal criticism of the current